Charlie Side Hustle

It’s either a fact of life or an article of faith that you can’t prosper in the modern world without cultivating a legitimate side hustle. The time when a single vocation fulfilled your every aspiration is no more. This is a message to promote multitasking. Success is only possible if people think of you as an interesting, complicated, ambitious worker. The techniques to achieve this are quite varied. 

There was a time, not too long ago, when you could do one thing and one thing only. There was no need for the mechanic to work as an artisanal pickler – brining everything and everyone in sight. In those days, words like artisanal hadn’t yet taken hold of the popular consciousness, forcing people all over to rethink their life choices. Does the world really need another software developer when archery is suddenly trendy? Why did I become a doctor when there’s so much gluten-free baking to be done?  People went where they felt needed, instead of where they kneaded. That would change over time. 

Astronauts weren’t podcasting during the apex of Apollo. You can’t really moonlight when you’ve literally walked on the moon. But that was then. Advertising was similarly full of single-minded individuals, unmoved by the inevitable hustling tide. They were awash in a rip current of ambition. An undertow of action. They believed that being a copywriter or an art director was enough responsibility. The thing is, we might remember Helmut Krone more today had he opened up a cycling shop in his free time. Helmut’s Helmets? Would it have ruined the reputation Bill Bernbach had he done something other than advertising? Just imagine if he dabbled in the chiropractic arts. Bill Bernback anyone? Instead, these men are relegated to tiny subcultures, unknown by a wider swath of people. It didn’t have to be this way. 

There was one person who understood the importance of side hustling decades before everyone else. His name was Pete Rose. Sure, he played baseball for the Cincinnati Reds, but he wasn’t merely a ballplayer. He also happened to be a degenerate gambler. That was his side hustle. Getting hits was what he did for a living, while trying to beat the spread was what kept him alive. Breaking Ty Cobb’s hit record didn't do it. But seeing a subpar kicker shank one to ensure he covered did.

There have been a lot of great hitters over the years. But only one Pete Rose. While his side hustle prevented his induction into the Hall of Fame, he’s easily the most famous non-member. We could all take a page out of Charlie Hustle’s sports book.