When is it time to quit?
When you keep doing something that isn’t working, at which point do you say, “fuck it, I’ve had enough!” and move on to the next thing?
At which point do you decide to stop wasting energy, time, and effort trying to get this thing off the ground and try something else?
I know in the beginning, nothing happens and no one notices and you need to persist, but you get sick of it after a point.
Sick of the lack of progress. Sick of not getting results.
It’s a lonely, uphill battle.
How do you know when to stop trying?
Tim Ferriss promised himself he’d do five podcast episodes as a trial. His podcast is now one of the most popular podcasts in the world with more than 900 million downloads.
Why five and not three? What if he had promised he’d only do three? He probably wouldn’t have stuck with it long enough to see traction. His podcast wouldn’t have become one of the most famous podcasts in the world.
Reed Hastings, co-founder of Netflix, made the strategic decision to shift the company’s focus from DVD rentals to streaming services. Had he not pivoted, there would be no Netflix today.
Jeff Bezos quit his job in finance to found Amazon in July 1994. What if he had waited a few more years before making this move? What if he had “saved six to twelve months’ of expenses” before quitting? Probably there would be no Amazon today.
Timing and luck matter a lot more than we give credit. Because it’s not in our control, we opt to ignore it. But it matters a lot more than we think. Topic to expand for another day…
I am curious what YOU think.
When is it time to quit?
At which point the process isn’t worth doing anymore?
Please email me your ideas or thoughts.