What is it that makes you quit?
Have you ever asked yourself that question? Chances are that the same thing comes up again and again because that’s The Quitter Inside you. The Quitter manifests itself in our excuses and while for each of us these excuses may be different, their impact is the same.
We suffer. We do less. We get depressed. We give up.
How can we kill The Quitter Inside?
"Resolve never to quit, never to give up, no matter what the situation" Jack Nicklaus
I’ve had many times when I have wanted to quit. I remember back in the days when I was Expedition Racing and pushing my mind and body into realms that they could never have possibly imagined.
Picture this – My team and I had already sailed, river kayaked (upstream), horseback ridden, trekked and Mountain biked over 350km of hostile and unforgiving Brazilian terrain, only to be faced now with 150km more. We were all injured, tired, hungry and frankly not excited about anymore racing. We were faced with a decision; STOP as a team since 2 of us could not continue due to injuries or re-evaluate and continue as a 2 person team. We made the hard choice to say goodbye to our team mates, get into our kayak and continue out on the course.
We were not more than 500m down the river when we came to a shallow rocky section where we needed to get out of the kayak and pull it past. As we were moving the kayak I slipped on the rocks and fell on my hip. Lying there in more pain than I have ever experienced with the water soiling my fresh and last set of anything resembling clean clothes, I was struck with a choice. Lay here in pain, wallowing for a few more minutes, then with head hung low make my way back to the transition area and quit….. or get back up and attempt to succeed and finish what I started. I got up and tried. On that day I learned about my Quitter Inside.
So, how can you kill The Quitter Inside you?
Learn these 3 simple steps, put them into practice and The Quitter won’t have a chance.
Step 1 –
Succeed! What ever you do, make the first conscious activity of your day into a success. If you’re like me you have goals, a schedule and a calendar that is bursting at the seams. It’s imperative that you start out each one of your valuable days by SUCCEEDING at something. If a goal is to eat better, then as soon as you get out of bed prepare a healthy breakfast and get it in you. Now mentally tick that box of success inside your head – YOU MET YOUR GOAL – you ate better. Acknowledge the fact that you met your goal and let that success fill your body with a warm glow. It will propel you into another success and another and so on as your day progresses. Your excuses – The Quitter Inside – have no power against a success mindset… the quitter withers away and crawls back into the darkness with the other cowards waiting ever so patiently for the opportunity to return.
"He that is good at making excuses is seldom good at anything else" - Benjamin Franklin
Step 2 –
Try! – Get out there and do it. I don’t care what it is that you’re trying to do but you have to put yourself out there and TRY, TRY, TRY. No one else is going to do this for you. Let me repeat that:
NO ONE ELSE IS GOING TO DO THIS FOR YOU
You’re the only one that can take the first steps and try.
You must be willing to look foolish, to get dirty, to make a mistake, to get up after being knocked down, to bleed and to fail.
If you want it, you are going to have to get it. You can have results or your excuses, but you can’t have both. The Quitter Inside likes to tell you that “other people have tried and failed” or that “Its been done before” or the ever popular “I don’t think I can”. The truth of the matter though, is that The Quitter has never tried. The Quitter has never taken that leap of faith or tapped into the intestinal fortitude that truly makes life great. “Look before you leap, but leap you must”.
The athlete fails in training to succeed in competition" - Unknown
Step 3 –
Control! – Everything you do is under your control. No one else, it’s your fault or your success. The ability to control our daily lives and I do mean our lives, not those around us or those we work with or those we play with but our lives, is where we have the best defense against The Quitter Inside.
The simple acts of discipline can combat chaos, willpower can destroy impulse and determination will outwit weakness every time.
The Quitter Inside has only a select few weapons to come at you with and here’s the thing – The Quitter’s a coward. As you build up your immunity you will find that The Quitter Inside rears its ugly head only when you let it. You have the control.
"It takes less time to do a thing right, than to explain why you did it wrong" - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
These 3 easy steps when practiced will keep The Quitter Inside away.
I’m curious to hear what your Quitter looks like and your execution strategy? Send me a note or leave a comment below to share your experiences in dealing with excuses or quitting. Don’t forget to SHARE this post to help spread the word and find out how others are killing The Quitter Inside.
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As always, I welcome all comments and thoughts.
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Kathy says
Inspires me to go out and getter done! So easy to get caught in mediocre. Thanks!!!
RavenWolfab says
Thanks Kathy. Go getter done and to set the record straight you are so far removed from mediocre… You ROCK.
pam says
Reading your blog was one of my successes today. Inspirational and insightful! Ready to take on the world one step @ a time!!
RavenWolfab says
Pam,
So great to hear that you found some value in it. Go get it today and let me know what success meant to you today. I’d love to hear.
Thanks for saying hi.
Alan
Karenee says
You brought this thought to mind. “Those successful people I admire?… they turn out to be the ones who have failed a hundred times more than I have even begun. Guess it’s time to stop giving up.”
Thanks for the encouragement and the reminder. It took a while for this perspective to sink into the part of me that actually lives, but I’ve started collecting and analyzing failures so I can unveil my successes, too.
RavenWolfab says
Hi Karenee,
I think that the most basic human needs are to “Be Valued” and to “Add Value”. Thanks so much for adding value to this post.
It’s such a great message you leave and good food for thought for everyone. Adopting a new mindset when looking at our “failures” is just as important as documenting our successes. Both are amazing learning experiences as well as reminders that we LIVE this life of ours, not just wander aimlessly.
Thanks for taking the time out of your day to comment.
Best,
Alan
Natalie Sisson says
So appreciate this post. I’ve had many times when I’ve gone to give up and thought, no way, giving up is easy, following through and finishing is not.
And if you don’t try you won’t know what you’re capable of. Even biking through Africa, I’ve never had so many mental battles with my mind and body on whether to stop and quit or keep cycling. Usually I chose the latter.
It really stretches you as a person to push those boundaries and through the resistance.
RavenWolfab says
Hi Natalie,
Thanks for adding to this post. I love your example of cycling in Africa. I find once you push through the boundaries the first time it gets easier every time after that but man is it hard to push through in those moments.
Cheers,
Alan
Tom says
Fantastic tips. My biggest hurdle is envisioning each future moment as a success. I’m going to put this into action for the rest of my day to try it out. I’ll share my progress with you. Thanks man.
RavenWolfab says
Thanks Tom,
The envisioning process is such a great step to many levels of success. In respect to this post I think that the first step of success, is something everyone could do more often. That initial start to your day just builds and builds.
I look forward to hearing about your progress. Thanks again for leaving the comment.
Cheers,
Alan
karen crossett says
It takes a lot of determination to keep going to achieve something especially when the going gets tough. I shared your article with a friend to-day, to encourage both of us to improve our internal dialogue and resilience. Thank you.
RavenWolfab says
Hi Karen,
“When the going gets tough”…isn’t that the truth. It does get tough as times doesn’t it. I’m sure everyone can relate to that but it doesn’t stay tough for long. What a great friend you are to help yours realize that through sharing. Thanks for that. Realize that just by having your mindset in such a way that you desire to change your internal dialogue and resilience is a first step to success as well as on the path to Be you own HERO. Nice work.
I hope you have an awesome day.
Cheers,
Alan
Frederic Robinson says
Great blog! Love this. It’s so true and sometimes so hard to see. Never give up!
RavenWolfab says
Hi Frederic,
Never give up. Love it. I also think that people sometimes forget the steps before they get to “Never give up”. The planning that’s involved with setting your path, understanding what type of commitments to make and then the looking back into the past to find all the ways to eliminate the Quitter Inside for the current goal you are on is crucial to providing the “Fuel” for you to never give up.
Keep rocking it…
Alan
Debo says
Thank you so much Raven for this wonderful and inspirational write up, I’m going to read this over and over again until I can internalize the message to my benefit.
Botond says
Thank you! it is really inspiring! I needed to read this 🙂
RavenWolfab says
Glad to know it helped. One foot in front of the other always works. All the best,
Alan
the next millionaire says
Your sailing story about not quitting is amazing! so harsh circumstances, it make me feel embarrassed about the easy situations I face and that I still quit… No more about this! you´ve just inspired me! thanks!
RavenWolfab says
Glad I could be a spark for your passion. Go get it today.
Best,
Alan