I Quit!

“Quitters never win and winners never quit.” So said American football legend Vince Lombardi in what has become conventional wisdom.

But sometimes, conventional wisdom isn’t very wise. In his little book, the dip, Seth Godin claims that winners quit all the time. They just quit the right stuff at the right time.

The dip is one of two books on quitting that are worth reading. The other is Quitter by Jon Acuff.

Both authors claim that quitting is not always wrong; in fact, strategic quitting can be fantastic!

A few years ago I re-evaluated various aspects of my life, including my financial health, priorities, career and personal development. I was stuck and knew I needed to make some changes. I actually quit. It wasn’t abrupt, but it was intentional. I changed from working harder to working smarter. I quit some things in order to start other things. For me quitting was not about giving up, but about making some changes in order to go forward.

Again recently I quit teaching at a particular college, only to then be asked to design and teach two new courses at another university. The fit is better and so is the money. I couldn’t have said yes if I hadn’t said no.

The implications have been phenomenal. I am more fulfilled, am making more meaningful contributions to others, and am financially more secure.

In order to go forward, we often have to QUIT something.

Seth Godin says that initiatives, jobs, hobbies, and companies start out exciting and fun. After an exciting start, we experience “the dip,” a time when we get discouraged and feel like giving up.

Make your own application. Is what you need to quit a job? A relationship? A dream?

The dip can be a temporary setback and will get better if you push through it. But it also might be a cul-de-sac (dead end) or a cliff that will be your certain demise.

A key is knowing how to read the dips and respond appropriately. Should you push through that job you hate or abandon the dead end or cliff? Perhaps quitting is exactly what you need to do in order to go forward.

In Quitter, Jon Acuff advocates finding your dream job. He gives great advice for not only finding your passion but also quitting what you’re currently doing at the right time. Quitting your day job for your dream job too soon might make you miss an even greater opportunity (if you’d waited) or force you to make compromises just because you need the money.

We are sometimes afraid of change. We’d rather face the certainty of misery than the uncertainty of change.

We feel more secure in a bad situation because it’s familiar and less threatening than taking a risk. Fuggedaboudit!

Give some thought to quitting. Are you in some temporary dips? Are you in some dead-ends? Or are you teetering on a cliff?

Perhaps you need to push through. Perhaps you need to quit right now. Or perhaps you need a strategy for quitting the right way at the right time.

In the meanwhile, I highly recommend these two great books. Both the dip: A little book that teaches you when to quit (and when to stick) and Quitter: Closing the gap between your day job and your dream job are available in hard copy, as e-books, and as audible downloads.