Was lucky enough to get a copy of Seth Godin’s newest book last week. It’s called “The Dip“, and it’s a brief but useful book about quitting. I read it in one sitting and promptly gave it to a friend of mine.
Godin challenges the old maxim that “winners never quit.” He suggests that winners quit most things that they do, knowingly and before they get heavily invested in something that they aren’t passionate about, don’t believe in, can’t be the best in the world at. While most people quit when they shouldn’t and bounce around from venture to venture, winners focus their energy on that one thing. If they don’t plan on being the best in the world at it, they don’t bother starting in the first place.
He also suggests that in any venture worth pursuing, one will encounter problems (or a “dip”). Upon reaching the dip, most of us decide to quit and try something else. Winners instead “push into the dip” – recognize it, understand that it will come at some point, prepare for it and tackle it head on. They understand that the dip will occur in anything else they decide to pursue and they must face it if they want to come out on the other end. Successful people, successful organizations, successful companies have reaped the benefits of pushing through the dips while the rest of us quit.
A simple idea – when most people quit, winners stick it out. When most people stick it out, winners quit. As with most great truths, the concept is simple. The trick is in the implementation. The trick is rejecting the idea that you should be a “generalist.” Rejecting the idea that if things get hard, there’s always some other opportunity around the corner. Rejecting the idea that great things can come to you without considerable passion, effort and dedication (of time, resources and will.)
The book comes out officially in a few weeks, and I encourage you to pick it up – you can read it on your commute and it will likely make you rethink the ways you’re currently spending your time and energy.
