When I Quit to Grow…
Quitting is Winning.
Can quitting lead to growth? Quitting is often used as synonymous with failure. And it most certainly is the toughest to quit what you started with all your heart. But does that make quitting the opposite of winning? Or can an exit today account for future evolution?
Whatever you start has to end at the right time.
As a professional, it can become difficult to mark the line between giving up on a project and quitting. But leaving the right thing at the right time is what matters. Let me explain why…
Two years ago, when I was in the second year of my bachelor’s of engineering, the feeling that I was in the wrong place started to bother me. The thought that I needed to do something else started lingering in my mind. But as it turned out, I did not heed those new thoughts flooding my mind until the final year of college.
When it was time to appear for the campus recruitment, my heart gave me one last sign to stop. By then, I had realised a job was not what I wanted to do, surely not in my education field. I decided to quit campus recruitment. Today, one year after my graduation, I’m happily freelancing as a writer.
Giving up on something I once had dreamt of becoming was more difficult than I thought. It took me a year to make peace with that thought. But getting on the other side of that decision, I know quitting was a success.
I’ve quit a lot of things — all for a good reason. And without regret, I can assure you they were the best decisions. I quit a non-profit organisation after dedicating four years to it. It was the place where I used to pursue my passion for public speaking.
Over the period of four years, I won many speech contests and had outgrown myself into a competent communicator. To my surprise, I also started climbing the leadership ladder there.
And soon, I started experiencing friction with other members of my club. Never being the one who stays late at parties and acts all-goodie to be on the good side of others, I rubbed some people the wrong way.
One day, I again encountered a dilemma — to continue climbing the ladder and pursuing my passion while swallowing disrespect or to quit with my head held high. I chose the latter. Leaving what I’d put my soul into for four years was a decision I’d have never chosen, but I never regretted quitting to follow the principles I believed in.
Last month I quit a project I loved working on. After starting to freelance, my goal was to balance work and personal life. But the project took a huge share of my “me time.” I quit the project because I didn’t want to lose the time I’d reserved to recharge and unwind.
Everything I quit was once what I had wanted to do.
At first glance, every decision looked like a slap of failure, but it was growth patting on my back all along.
Be it business or personal life, knowing when to adjust, pivot, or quit decides how your future will be.
I’ve experienced the benefits of quitting, but it’s not always easy. Here are a few indicators that helped me (and can help you) figure out when the time is right to quit:
#1 What you started isn’t what you really want.
This feeling is the byproduct of evolution. With time your ideologies, beliefs, and needs change. That’s what leads to the evolution of a person.
It’s natural to lose interest in things you once loved.
When you lose motivation to continue something, it’s better to check if you’ve outgrown its interest.
#2 What you started isn’t taking you to your final purpose in life.
Like the freelancing project I quit, sometimes you end up signing up for something that doesn’t lead you to your life’s purpose.
Every single thing in life should contribute to the greater good.
It should bridge the gap between your reality and your purpose. It’s good to quit midway if it takes you further from that purpose.
#3 You’ve found something better
So often, you find something better you can invest in while trying to achieve your dreams. It could be a better opportunity or something new you learned that caught your eye. Isn’t it good to grab that opportunity that brings a better ROI? If you encounter something better than what you’re already working on and it aligns with your goals — just grab it!
To understand these signs, we must be in constant conversation with ourselves. So much goes unnoticed when you don’t have a regular tap on your journey — be it personal or professional. When you take time to analyse what you achieved and what you can improve, a lot becomes clearer.
When you have the answer to the question, ‘Am I happy?’ you know where the path is leading you.
Quitting is hard, it takes courage to decide against something that has been ingrained in you. But quitting is rewarding, too. In letting go, you make room for something bigger and better. You start to understand yourself better. You seek better opportunities and achieve greater success.
Why not try quitting if it can lead to fulfilment?
