The Humbling Hustle #4

This Week’s Successes

• Sales went up dramatically this week

  • https://www.instagram.com/reel/DIUl4vtOOYu/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

• Created a profit calculator and inventory data sheet

• Cold-called 15 tax lawyers for internships

The Machiavellian Balance

I’ve been reading Niccolò Machiavelli and his infamous “political advice”, and I’ve developed an interesting perspective that’s different from most of what I’ve seen online.

I think that the modern-day interpretation of Machiavellianism does injustice to Machiavelli’s work and portrays this way of thinking as greatly unethical and cunning, which turns people away from his actual message.

If you search up Machiavellian on Google, it’ll show you a lot of rhetoric and tell you, “Machiavellian, in essence, describes someone who is cunning, manipulative, and focused on achieving their goals through any means necessary, often at the expense of others.” This whole idea is true as he did push the idea that when it comes to power, “the ends justify the means.” But, that’s where people stop when studying him.

So I want to focus on the good parts of Machiavelli’s message and shine a light on how some of his principles are actually good to live by especially in today’s world.

Because when you actually read The Prince, especially with a fresh set of eyes in today’s context, you realize that Machiavelli wasn’t just encouraging tyranny or cold-hearted manipulation. He was being brutally honest about the realities of power, leadership, and human nature. And in a world where authenticity is often drowned out by performative virtue or surface-level branding, that kind of honesty is rare, even refreshing.

Machiavelli’s real message is about being effective. He didn’t care for moral grandstanding if it led to instability. He wanted leaders who could keep order, protect their people, and maintain their position. Not because he loved power for power’s sake, but because he understood the chaos that follows weak leadership. In fact, you could argue he was more of a realist than a villain.

One of his more underrated ideas is that a leader should strive to be both loved and feared, but if you have to choose, choose fear, because love is fickle but fear is reliable. At first glance, that sounds cold. But think about it in a modern sense. It’s not about instilling terror. It’s about earning respect through competence and strength rather than trying to please everyone. It’s a warning against spineless leadership and empty promises, something we see way too often in corporate boardrooms and political offices today.

Another principle he writes about is adaptability. He talks about virtù which is not virtue in the moral sense, but the kind of boldness, intelligence, and decisiveness a leader needs to navigate unpredictable times. In an age of constant disruption, whether it’s AI, globalization, or political polarization, this idea is more relevant than ever. Leaders, entrepreneurs, even students, need to be able to pivot quickly, act decisively, and not get too attached to ideal outcomes. In a sense, Machiavelli was advocating for agility before it was a buzzword.

And maybe that’s the biggest takeaway. Machiavelli wasn’t trying to make you a bad person. He was trying to make you a strong one. Not naive, not idealistic to a fault, but prepared for how the world really works. The issue is, most people only remember the provocative quotes and ignore the full context.

If anything, we should revisit Machiavelli with more nuance. Not to become ruthless manipulators, but to better understand how to lead, how to think strategically, and how to survive in a world that often rewards bold action over passive virtue.

He didn’t just write a guide for princes. He wrote a mirror for anyone who dares to lead.

This Week’s Business Idea

I detailed my car this week. It was laborious, but the final product was amazing. My 2018 car shined in the light, it was beautiful. As a result of that, I the all-knowing Instagram algorithm found out I spent some time detailing my car and I got a million ads and reels about detailing. I saw so many people making 15k+ a month just detailing people’s car full time.

So naturally I started going down the rabbit hole. Videos, setups, random detailing reels with dudes showing off their foam cannons and spotless interiors. It’s crazy how many people are making real money from it. Like 15k a month just cleaning cars? Not bad for a couple buckets and a vacuum.

But honestly the idea of spending all those hours bent over cleaning rims and scrubbing floor mats every day doesn’t sound fun at all. I’d get tired of that real quick. Still the business model makes sense and if you can outsource the actual work while handling the branding, marketing, and customer stuff it could be a solid play. Just something cool to keep in the back pocket.

This Week’s Struggles

I don’t usually crash out at all, but this week I noticed an interesting pattern. Maybe because of stress, I’d react to something, feel kind of scattered for like five minutes, then pull myself together, look at the situation more clearly, and fix it without much trouble. Looking back, those quick reactions felt unnecessary and honestly made me feel kind of dumb afterward.

Two moments in made the pattern quite obvious:

The first one was when I opened my Amazon Seller App at the mall and saw this:

I got so scared, I had no idea what had happened and so I sent this screenshot to my friend and shot him some panic texts. Then I decided to call Amazon Seller directly about this alert.

Turns out it was just a minor thing. One of our shipments had shown up late, and because our sample size is still small, Amazon flagged it like a bigger issue than it really was. Nothing major. I felt kind of stupid for getting so worked up.

The second moment was even dumber.

I accidentally ordered like 200 dollars worth of product from Walmart at some marked up premium price I totally didn’t expect. I freaked out and tried to cancel it right away, but the cancellation didn’t go through. That’s when the panic kicked in again. I started thinking I’d just burned 200 bucks.

I ended up calling Walmart support, which was a whole long process that honestly didn’t help much. But in the end, the cancellation finally processed on its own and I got my money back. I just had to be a little patient and let it play out.

Honestly, both times just made me realize I’ve gotta chill a bit. Stuff’s gonna happen, and most of it isn’t as dramatic as it feels in the moment. A little patience would’ve saved me the stress, and everything worked out anyway. Just one of those weeks where you laugh at yourself after and keep it moving.

This Week’s Quote

Reflects the impermanence of all things, both good and bad, and encourages patience and hope during difficult times which suggests that challenges will eventually end.

This Week’s Pictures