Money Over Mastery: How Hustle Culture Is Undermining Skill, Craft, and Client Safety

Money Over Mastery

Recently, I was listening to one of my favorite podcasts, The Prof G Pod with Scott Galloway. I listen to a wide variety of shows, but this one has really grown on me. For context, Scott Galloway is an American public speaker, academic, author, podcast host, and entrepreneur. He’s also a clinical professor of marketing at the NYU Stern School of Business.

I discovered Scott during one of my usual TikTok doom scrolls. What caught my attention was a clip where he talked about the decline of young men in America—how they’re falling behind in education, employment, and overall self-esteem. As a mother of a son, this hit home. I worry about where the world is headed, so I appreciate Scott’s hot takes on the state of the youth, the country, and our democracy.

The episode I want to discuss today features none other than Robert Greene, the author of The 48 Laws of Power. Now, I’ve heard mixed reviews about this book. In a previous blog post about the American Apparel scandal, I mentioned how I’ve seen people use 48 Laws as a tool for manipulation—in jail, on the job, even in relationships. That turned me off from ever wanting to read it.

But after hearing Greene speak on this podcast, I had a change of heart. He was articulate, thoughtful, and far from what I expected. So much so that I started listening to The 48 Laws of Power on audiobook.

One line from the episode stuck with me: “We’ve reached a place where people have put money over mastery.” Whew. As an esthetician, this resonated deeply.

I’m constantly having conversations with clients and fellow estheticians about the lack of skill and intentionality in our field. Today’s culture is all about getting rich quick, hitting a lick, and doing the bare minimum to turn a profit. That mindset is shortsighted—and I’ll be honest, I’ve fallen into it at times too.

But I’ve since shifted. I now believe that if I focus on mastering whatever I pursue, the money will come. We've strayed too far from being true students of our craft and traded that in for the illusion of fast cash.

During COVID, I watched beauty professionals flood the industry hoping to capitalize on what Instagram made look like an easy bag. And yes, money was circulating like crazy during that time—but it was a season, not a standard. What followed? Failed businesses, PPP loan fraud, and—most concerning—harm to clients due to negligence and lack of education.

If I had a dollar for every horror story I’ve heard—botched chemical peels, unsafe laser treatments, botched waxing jobs—I’d be rich. And that’s just in esthetics. All because someone didn’t care to learn—or worse, didn’t care at all. All for the sake of a dollar.

This speaks to something bigger: The pursuit of fast money is killing quality.

One thing I’m grateful for is being raised by parents who taught us not to half-step. We were taught to care, to learn, to take pride in our work. I recently looked into adult literacy rates in the U.S., and the numbers are scary:

• Around 79% of U.S. adults are literate

• 21% face literacy challenges

• 54% read below a 6th-grade level

• 45 million adults function below a 5th-grade level
  

Sources: Toner Buzz, National Literacy Trust, STEAM Ahead

So how is it that we’re hustling harder than ever, but reading and learning less? How can we “master” anything if we’re not studying, practicing, or going deeper?

Spoiler alert: We’re not.

If this trend continues, we’re going to see a workforce more underqualified than ever. Maybe I sound like I’ve got a tin foil hat on, but it’s looking spooky out here. Where are the experts? When did TikTok and YouTube become our only sources of “education?”

And while those platforms can be great tools, let’s be honest—how many of those creators are actually qualified to be teaching us anything?

I digress.

Check out the episode linked below and tell me—have we really put money over mastery? And if so, what’s it going to take to flip that mindset?

—Mo’