The Minnesotan “hustle”

The "thank you for respecting my safety, I'll respect your time" hustle.

I don’t know where I got it from but I do that too. Its like “thanks for not honking, I’ll hurry”.

A friend moved from Florida and was confused when people held doors for them. 

Also that everyone respected lines… at church.

Say what you want about “Minnesota Nice”, but people here are polite, and I try to never take it for granted. I’ve lived in other places, and just running errands made me irrationally angry.

Also, they don't "Ope" in the Carolinas. I "ope'd" in a gas station one time, and a guy told me to get the fuck out of his way. Line cutting is really common there, too.

We lived there for eight years, and I can say with absolute certainty that southern hospitality is a myth.

I feel like living in MN you think all the other drivers are A-holes, then you travel to another state and realize what real a-holes are. Those little waves, letting a car merge in, etc, is where “Minnesota Nice” lives.

I was in South Caroline for a bit. I used to joke with people that if they moved any slower they would still be on yesterday.

Oop I’ll just scooch right past ya

I appreciate the general politeness exhibited by Minnesotans. When I was younger it meant little to me, but as I get older I have become more grateful for this trait. There is a lot that has been said about Minnesota kindness or niceness, but for many of us it is rooted in a desire to have harmony in our community. It makes life here a bit better overall despite negatives such as the harsh winters and constant road work.

My partner and I are not winter-people despite having lived here most of our lives. We consider moving but small things like the Minnesotan "hustle", as OP puts it, make it more difficult to leave. We really value being a part of a community where the members of it will regularly exhibit cordiality to each other despite being strangers. Life is tough enough without having constant conflict and chaos about.

Live in SC now, and won’t check the mailbox if a vehicle is coming anymore. I’ve gotten buzzed multiple times because they didn’t move over at all. And overall they don’t really move over for pedestrians here. Have noticed the same thing with the “Minnesota hustle” 😂

I've lived all over the country. People in MN are awesome.

Just yesterday, in a busy store parking lot, I saw the non-hustle version:

I'm one of those drivers who tries hard to give pedestrians plenty of slack, especially those with obvious mobility issues, or trying to herd small kids and a cart.

But this chick was a trip. Looking young, fit and healthy, swaggering slowly and diagonally through the lanes from her car to the store, talking on her phone, completely oblivious to the fact that she was tying up traffic both in front of the store AND in the aisle she was meandering across.

When I was loading my stuff in my car later, I saw her coming back out, pushing a cart straight down the middle of the aisle (which is wide enough that IF she stayed a bit to one side, the cars bunching up behind her could have gone AROUND her.)

I almost wanted to hop in my car and back out in front of her as she approached. Or over her. So you're telling me she was maybe from NC? 🤣 😂 

I lived in NC for 10 years. Can confirm this is accurate.

The cars that DO stop when you aren't trying to cross make me crazy.

My Mom has a walker. It's gonna take a while to cross, so often I help her out to the curb and leave her there while I go fetch the car and come around to pick her up.

She has to keep waving cars on the whole time. Some of them are pretty stubborn, and won't go, until I'm behind them and am forced to HONK to get the spot in front of her. (Sometimes she turns and starts walking along them towards my car until they get the point! 🤣 😂 )

I sometimes wonder if MN being a state with a high quality of life ranking and a place where people are generally taken care of pretty well is reflected in the actions many in this thread are describing (and why the opposite is true in states where there isn’t a high QoL, no social safety net, etc).

That’s how a -20 degree day teaches us to move

The fake run walk lets them know they are appreciated. My family native Texans say I prance.

I call it the scurry

Wish the courtesy extended to the bike paths.

I love this observation. You're making me miss home so hard!

This is one of a series of things that was listed in a study I had to read in grad school. I forgot all of the details, but the gist of it was that people who have little to no power in society (low income) sometimes seek out ways to have power over people, even if just for a moment. That includes things like:

Crossing in front of them very slowly, so the person in the car has to wait.

Listening to very loud music in a public place, so everyone else has to hear it too.

Swearing and/or being very loud when talking in public places.

Providing bad customer service when they suspect the customer is of a higher social class.

Being rude to professionals that are trying to help them (teachers, doctors, etc…)

Taking an adversarial attitude towards any authority figure (their boss, teacher, police, etc…)

Complaining unnecessarily about a product or service they bought.

All of these things come across as being obnoxious, but, for some poor people (not all of them), it’s the only way they get any attention or feel like they have any power in society at all, even if it’s just the power to annoy.

But seriously if you stop your car for a pedestrian at an intersection that isn't a stop sign, please don't do this. Often walkers can't see if the car behind you isn't gonna cruise around you, or if any cars coming from the opposite way will also stop. Just move along please. TY

In Ann Arbor MI people will actively slow down when crossing the street to waste more of your time

In California people will actively stop and let you go, almost always. Cars will let you in usually. It must be the law of the land but it was quite pleasant compared to Minnesota where people won't usually let people cross the street unless it's a stop sign or traffic light.

Its funny, the "hustle" is something I'm trying to stop doing. I don't think it's good to treat pedestrians like they are guests in the streets or that drivers are being "nice" by letting them cross the street. Streets, especially dense residential and commercial streets, belong to the people and always have. It's really the drivers who should be apologizing for being there.

I don't slow down when crossing a street, but I also don't rush either. I just go at my normal pace like I have every right to do. I usually don't acknowledge the driver either, other than making sure they see me. Do some people expect a thank you for not running me over? Maybe, but I don't think I need to give them one.

I do that, plus the thank you wave thing when driving and someone lets me into their lane. I’ve always done it, but I don’t see it very often anymore. Well, duh, everyone seems to have tinted windows now. I don’t have any tinting and my truck has good visibility for the driver, so I still wave. 👋

I give a wave and a "thumbs up"

I have bad news to tell you about California

😂 thought I was the only one too do this Good too know

I noticed this when I was in KY a few weeks ago. So much for southern hospitality.

I thinks it's acceptable to take your time crossing the street or parking lot, within reason. There's no need to "hussle" every time this happens. That just people pleasing/coping mechanism for anxiety.

At the same time it's inconsiderate to just stand in the middle of the parking lot pretending like others don't exist.

Interesting because MN is the worst when it comes to merging, people actually going when it's their turn, even ordering at a restaurant.

I think the population shift to the south creates a transient environment and therefore rudeness. But cutting in line should get you shot.

If a pedestrian has the right of way, they can walk at the same speed they always walk. There is no need to run or hustle.

As someone from the mountains of nc you are clearly in a touristy blowing rock area or something of the sort. I grew up with people waving when they passed you on a 2 lane road going the other direction.

Very few times in MN do people even wave when I let them in during traffic. I think it's probably location bias on both parts but I feel people driving here are much less nice than growing up in the mountains

Also, depending on the area, a lot of you see are retied people from the NE, specifically NY are who retired to FL and bought summer homes in the mountains. Those people are almost always rude

It’s because it’s 110 degrees with the heat index, there is no hustle

Ah, the old white man shuffle

Interesting because I lived in NC and VA and just moved to MN. I saw it all the time when I lived in both places but have yet to see it here.

Ever been to Boston? It's a constant knuckle biting game of "don't hit the pedestrian."

Generally speaking, I see the hustle most of the time in Texas. If you're gonna be nice enough to wait for me, I'm not gonna make you wait longer than necessary.

Oh yeah, when they stop you gotta “ pick em up and put em down”!

Minnesota Nice 👍

Growing up in SW MN, I grew up watching my dad raise his index finger finger to each and every vehicle we encountered on the local roads. The farmers would always just raise their index finger as a kind gesture to greet one another.

Yea! My dad taught me that when I was like 6.

Hardly ever see that anymore. Most people rudely take their time and don’t acknowledge it. 

It's the same when someone holds the door open for you but you're still a couple of steps behind. You just gotta not make them wait if they are doing you a favor and noticing you.

I've started doing to opposite to assert pedestrian rights. The number of times people have threatened to run me over or hit me is getting ridiculous. Oh, you're mad that I'm slow on acrosswalks? I'm mad that you think you can blast through a populated city street with no courtesy for the people who LIVE here. It's a very passive aggressive policy and I don't care. I've also started driving well below the speed limit when people are present to reduce road noise and pollution.

And don’t forget the optional, but almost obligatory wave that signifies “you’re welcome - I try not to run people over”.

That’s fair.

Still, MN resident for 38 years, and I have a rebuttal: they’re still nicer than we are. By a lot.

I went to NC to visit my family, and made 2 friends in a week that I still keep up with. I have made SO few friends in MN, because everyone here NEEDS to know you from kindergarten to be actual friends with you, that I literally have TWO friends in this state.

If you equate lollygagging with kindness: you’re just wrong. Ope.

Minnesota nice

I don’t wave at cars for “letting me cross”, that’s what they’re supposed to do. I’m not thanking them for doing the bare minimum and following laws.

Former Chicagoan here. I've found the opposite to be true: no one waves "thanks" if I've let them cross.

I make a point to not hurry. Humans > cars, and many Americans have forgotten that

The hustle isn't necessary. If the pedestrian has the right of way, they don't need to run. 

Also if they don't have the right of way, don't introduce confusion by giving it to them. 

Just run them over next time