Have You Ever Struggled With Not Knowing When to Quit?

Never give up. Yes, it makes sense to be persistent. But only when it comes to certain things, certain people and only sometimes. Knowing when to quit is important when holding on will not improve the situation.

What is more important is to ask ourselves this:

• Will I gain anything by being persistent?
• What will I lose because of my indecision, by not cutting my losses and moving on?

Of course, the answer to that is Time. Time is precious and we lose a significant amount of it by holding on to something that we know is not going to work out.

Whatever might be the issue – professional or personal – whether it has to do with work or a relationship, we can never reclaim the time we consume if we allow the issue to drag on.

Dwelling on whether the issue is good or bad or worrying about whether our decision will reflect your skills, abilities, reputation or self-worth will not allow us to come up with the best strategies to resolve it. And there is no point thinking that you can’t quit now since you have invested too much time and energy in this issue.

So how do you decide when to quit?

Think about how you really feel

As we go through life, we weave a rich tapestry of mixed feelings. It is only natural for our feelings to change about things on a day-to-day basis.

But if we tend to consistently have negative feelings about specific issues it is time to take stock of what’s going on.

Clarify the Issue

Viable, objective decisions are usually made with proper information. So get that sheet of paper and pen and make a list of the pros and cons of the issue you are dealing with. Start with:

• What you feel
• When you feel it
• What you can do about it.

The idea is to have clarity and a balanced awareness of the issue so that you understand what’s really going on.

Then, give it enough time. Some things take time, but time alone doesn’t always resolve the situation.

What is important is to be clear about what needs to be done and being decisive about the choices you make. Change does not happen until you decide to take action.

Quitting may be best thing you can do

There are fortunate people who have no problem with letting go of things. They look at quitting as a change in direction.

Others have a hard time letting go of anything. They see quitting as some kind of failure, even though there is enough evidence that things won’t work out if they persist in holding on.

Knowing when to quit is a very valuable skill to learn, and the only way to learn it is through practice.

Remember life is short

When you are smart enough to realize when to quit, you understand the true cost of lost opportunities. You understand the physical, mental, and emotional energy saved, in addition to the time and/or money saved because you quit. All of this can be reinvested into something more worthy of your attention.

Do it decisively to dramatically increase your chances of ongoing success.

Why waste time and effort on anything that doesn’t give you joy, reduce your stress, or make you happy? Letting go of anyone or anything is tough but you will be better off in the long run.

Knowing when to quit is something that we must make into a habit. It makes sense to turn quitting into a positive adjustment on our life’s journey.

Ultimately, you can tackle most situations in three ways

You can learn to live with it

Many people do, but most live to regret it.  It’s not good for your self-esteem to learn to live with something that grates on you. Imagine the daily mental torture!

You can fix it

This can work very well if you have full and total control of the issue. If you do, then fix it and move on. If you don’t have control and you can’t fix it, this may not be an option.

You can quit

Move on. Leave it all behind and start again with a fresh perspective, safe in the knowledge that your decisiveness and direct action has removed the issue from your life and you are free to move onwards and upwards without any further encumbrance or delay.

Do not think of quitting as failing!

Sometimes walking away is the best thing you can do for yourself, your family, and the future you deserve.

Contrary to popular opinion,
Quitting is for winners.
Knowing when to quit, change direction
Leave a toxic situation, demand more from life,
Give up on something that wasn’t working and move on,
Is a very important skill that people who win in life all seem to have.
– Steven Bartlett

Have you ever faced the dilemma of not knowing when to quit?

Further reading:

The Dip: The extraordinary benefits of knowing when to quit (and when to stick) by Seth Godin

♥

Wednesday Wisdom is a series with short bursts of easy-to-consume wisdom in the form of inspiring stories, verse, quotes, anecdotes, reflections, easy meditation, thought-provoking questions and humor. Oh yeah, some days are not so short.