#377 – What will stop you from quitting?

We often trace a cause-effect relationship where there is none. The erroneous conclusions we then draw will make us question the merits of our endeavors.

If I write and post a piece on Substack and only 17 people view it, I may feel it wasn't good. If I'm a coach who can't seem able to grow my business, I may believe my skill is subpar. If I'm training for a marathon and get tired during a three-hour run, I may assume I'm not built for marathons.

If you've also been there, you know what comes next: tail between legs, you quit.

But those events are only related in the twisted mind of your Ego and the Ghosts.

They make you draw those conclusions because it's their job to protect you from ridicule––only 17 views, and you're still at it? From shame––ahem, you call that a coaching business? From pain––oh, c'mon, running isn't your thing!

What if you stopped measuring your progress with inappropriate metrics?

Then you'd go on or quit when and because you wanted to.

James Joyce continued to write Ulysses despite contemporary intellectuals (Virginia Woolf, famously) hating it; JD Salinger stopped publishing at the height of his success.

Queen stuck with "Bohemian Rhapsody" despite their A&R's anger and withdrawal of contract; The Beatles dissolved at the peak of their creativity.

Because they all knew inside exactly what they wanted.

What will keep you going, when everything outside seems to tell you to quit?

Love,

Carolina