Quit has become a dirty word.
American football coach Vince Lombardi is credited with saying that “Winners never quit and quitters never win!”
Early in the movie “Molly’s Game” (based on the life of Molly Bloom) there is a flashback to Molly’s childhood and a session training to be a competitive skier. After hours of training she asks her father (who is also her coach) if she can quit because she is tired. Her father replies that she can quit only after she gives him a synonym for tired. She thinks about it for a moment and says “weak”. Feeling defeated she heads back up the hill to keep training.
There is a deeply ingrained mentality in our culture that honors pushing through, in working hard, in overcoming difficult times.
The problem is that there are many tasks, activities, and commitments that we should quit.
Sometimes the projects we start aren’t what we thought they would be, do not give us the returns we expected, take way longer than we planned, or we have just plain outgrown them.
It is OK to let go of commitments that no longer serve us!
More than likely you felt some resistance as you read that last line. If that is the case, this is the perfect tap-along for you (below the audio player you will find a text version of the tap-along audio).
I don’t want to be seen as a quitter…I want my word to mean something…I want my commitments to mean something…I want the people around me to take me seriously when I make a commitment…There is a part of me that is afraid that if I do not follow through on my commitments then I’m going to be seen as a quitter…I’m going to be seen as a quitter by other people…I’m going to see myself as a quitter…I am afraid the moment I let myself out of a commitment I am setting a precedent for the future…In which I allow myself out of all future commitments…I recognize the fact that it is possible for me…To look clearly at the commitments I have made…To make the decision to let go of the commitments that no longer serve me…To let go of the commitments that are no longer helpful for me…To let go of the commitments that are no longer healthy for me…I’m able to do this because I recognize I now have new information about the commitment…I now have new information about myself…I recognize the fact that the commitment is no longer a good fit for me…Letting go of this commitment is not a failing…Letting go of this commitment does not mean that I’m a quitter…Instead I’m making a commitment to using my time, attention, and energy in a way that is so much more productive for me…By letting go of the commitments that no longer serve me…I am creating the space and capacity to make good healthy choices in this moment…Allowing me to commit to the things that serve me…Allowing me to commit to the things that are healthy for me…Allowing me to commit to myself in the best possible way…Letting go of commitments is not quitting…It’s choosing a new and better future.
Thank you so much for this podcast! Really need to quit my job but feel like a failure to quit anything. It has not been serving me for quite awhile. Keeping my from the time I need to spend on my Wellness coaching and life coaching business! Thank you always enjoy your podcast!