When you talk to people who have succeeded in their ventures, the first lesson you are likely to learn from them is that the beginning of doing something is always the hardest. The second lesson will probably be on how they had overcome all obstacles, to get to where they are today. How did they manage? By not quitting.
“Of course, there were times when I felt like quitting, but when I thought of the time and money I had invested to get to where I was, I kept pushing forward,” the speaker said, during a symposium for startup businesses.
He described his journey to the top as an investor as one that was full of pitfalls—but very rewarding in the long run. But what really captured my attention in his whole presentation was when he said that everything you do should be motivated by your vision, otherwise, you run the risk of losing focus, and should this happen, chances are high that you will quit.
When implementing your goals, sometimes the progress may seem to be slow and you will feel discouraged. Hang on and don’t quit. When you have invested your time and money to achieve your goal, and you run in to a wall, quitting is a bad-bad idea.
But as you know, people quit implementing their goals for various reasons. A wise reason for quitting is when you realize that no matter what you do, you are getting nowhere. A not so wise reason for quitting is when you do so because it is less scary than continuing to push forward. So, what do you do the next time you feel like quitting? You should first ask yourself these four questions to help you make a decision.
- What makes me want to quit? Make a list of what is causing you the most stress and anxiety, and this will help you to know the core reason(s) of why you want to quit.
- Am I quitting for a good or bad reason? At this point it is very important for you to know whether you are quitting out of a place of strength, or out of a place of weakness. To find out, on a piece of paper divided in to two columns, list down reasons of why you should quit, and why you should not quit.
- Will I regret quitting? If quitting will lead to self-pity, then stop. If quitting will free you to be able to focus on attaining bigger and better goals, then do it.
- Why did I start in the first place? It is very important to remind yourself why you started, and what has changed/or has not changed since then—that makes you want to quit.
Getting answers to these questions will definitely help you to decide whether to quit or not to quit. The final decision ultimately lies with you, just make sure that it is a wise decision that you make. All the best!