After a whole mess of, well, "mess" for lack of a better term, "KNOCK THE HUSTLE: How to save Your job and Your Life from Corporate America" was released at the end of 2005 on ProdigalPen Publishing.
After more work than you'lll ever know (or until KTH vol 2 drops in Dec. 2009), the book finally began to sell... and sell... and buzz, and buzz.
After a lot of critical acclaim, some industry venom and "when's the follow-up comin'?" I'm finally back in the lab concocting the follow-up.
In celebration, I'm sharing excerpts from the one that started it all.
So check back check back daily as there'll be something fresh on the plate for all to enjoy.
Old school, new school, even B-school need to know this: Corporate America is a hustle. Just as the drug game, the music game, and the political game are hustles, so too is the corporate world. Worldwide companies have become income-agnostics: They believe all money is good money and it’s only wrong if it fails or you get caught. The only god most of ‘em trust is on the dollar bill. The Dow Jones is Christ and capitalism is its Holy Spirit. Everything and everyone is a potential commodity and a means to making ends. And The Hustle’s core principle: The world’s a zero-sum game—so before you get yours, I’ll get mine.
You can’t knock The Hustle—at least, not while you’re blind to it. It’s like Spacey said back in Usual Suspects: “The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist.” That’s how The Hustle gets most. Its first mission is to keep you in the dark. Why? Because you can’t hit what you can’t see.
But Knock The Hustle is going to help you see what you’ve been missing. Knock The Hustle combines the most powerful insights of the streets and the office suites with hiphop’s noblest self and a mustard seed’s worth of faith to create a one-of-a-kind movement that will change the business world and society at large for the better.
Knock The Hustle is all about businesses run right, businesses run wrong, and businesses run right into the ground. It’s a collection of cautionary tales about employees and CEOs. Consumers versus Fortune 500 brands. Crooks and coworkers. Stupid people and smart leaders. Commodity versus Culture. Companies versus communities. Pimps and hustlers versus professionals. People versus profits. Street knowledge versus conventional wisdom. Common sense versus stale paradigms. Denial and complacency versus potential and change. Knock The Hustle is also about finding your way home long after you’ve lost your way.
The writing style of Knock The Hustle is Black ink meets Wall Street. It flows like a classic hip-hop album: track lists, vivid imagery and lyrical flavor, hot quotables… and of course, there’s absolutely no filler. It’s a delicious gumbo of the practical, the biblical, plus straight-ahead, everyday-people speak guaranteed to enrich the mind, body and soul.
But most importantly, Knock The Hustle is 100% fact. Every word is true. Real companies and real case studies. Real people with real struggles. Real actions and real consequences. Real insights and real truths. And I’m sharing it all as it was, still is, and as it could be. (Only certain names have been changed.) Knock The Hustle is southern-girl thick, but reads easy, goes down smooth, and will stick to your ribs like an old soul record.
Knock The Hustle breaks down into 2 sides, like an LP or cassette tape. “Side A: The Foundation” focuses on workplace dynamics. Each chapter is packed with easy-to-follow strategies that will empower you to see thru corrupt bosses, coworkers, and clients. It’ll help you dodge daily BS, think sharper, move smarter, and get more out of work than ever before. You’ll also learn how to redefine your job and change the very soul of your company and how it functions for the better, regardless of your position on the flowchart.
“Side B: The Takeover” is about evolutionizing business and society on a macro level. (And by “evolutionize” I mean making fundamental positive change and laying the groundwork for real growth.) It’ll change the way you understand marketing and branding, entrepreneurialism, consumers, consumption, culture, and mostly importantly, people. Side B will open eyes, minds, and hopefully more than a few hearts. It may even help open a few doors. (There are also a couple bonus tracks at the end; so don’t stop until you hit the back cover.)
With all this said, let’s turn the page and get free.
You can’t knock The Hustle—at least, not while you’re blind to it. It’s like Spacey said back in Usual Suspects: “The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist.” That’s how The Hustle gets most. Its first mission is to keep you in the dark. Why? Because you can’t hit what you can’t see.
But Knock The Hustle is going to help you see what you’ve been missing. Knock The Hustle combines the most powerful insights of the streets and the office suites with hiphop’s noblest self and a mustard seed’s worth of faith to create a one-of-a-kind movement that will change the business world and society at large for the better.
Knock The Hustle is all about businesses run right, businesses run wrong, and businesses run right into the ground. It’s a collection of cautionary tales about employees and CEOs. Consumers versus Fortune 500 brands. Crooks and coworkers. Stupid people and smart leaders. Commodity versus Culture. Companies versus communities. Pimps and hustlers versus professionals. People versus profits. Street knowledge versus conventional wisdom. Common sense versus stale paradigms. Denial and complacency versus potential and change. Knock The Hustle is also about finding your way home long after you’ve lost your way.
The writing style of Knock The Hustle is Black ink meets Wall Street. It flows like a classic hip-hop album: track lists, vivid imagery and lyrical flavor, hot quotables… and of course, there’s absolutely no filler. It’s a delicious gumbo of the practical, the biblical, plus straight-ahead, everyday-people speak guaranteed to enrich the mind, body and soul.
But most importantly, Knock The Hustle is 100% fact. Every word is true. Real companies and real case studies. Real people with real struggles. Real actions and real consequences. Real insights and real truths. And I’m sharing it all as it was, still is, and as it could be. (Only certain names have been changed.) Knock The Hustle is southern-girl thick, but reads easy, goes down smooth, and will stick to your ribs like an old soul record.
Knock The Hustle breaks down into 2 sides, like an LP or cassette tape. “Side A: The Foundation” focuses on workplace dynamics. Each chapter is packed with easy-to-follow strategies that will empower you to see thru corrupt bosses, coworkers, and clients. It’ll help you dodge daily BS, think sharper, move smarter, and get more out of work than ever before. You’ll also learn how to redefine your job and change the very soul of your company and how it functions for the better, regardless of your position on the flowchart.
“Side B: The Takeover” is about evolutionizing business and society on a macro level. (And by “evolutionize” I mean making fundamental positive change and laying the groundwork for real growth.) It’ll change the way you understand marketing and branding, entrepreneurialism, consumers, consumption, culture, and mostly importantly, people. Side B will open eyes, minds, and hopefully more than a few hearts. It may even help open a few doors. (There are also a couple bonus tracks at the end; so don’t stop until you hit the back cover.)
With all this said, let’s turn the page and get free.
