From the ages of eighteen to twenty, I ran a blog that taught self-empowerment. By the end of those two years, I only had thirty-two email subscribers, about fifty YouTube subscribers, and I never once received a comment.
The truth was, however, I didn’t deserve one. Everything I wrote was regurgitated advice. I didn’t follow my own tips and barely knew who I was as a person, writer, and blogger.
I’d loved my blog in the beginning, but by the end, I had to force myself to write and only did the bare minimum.
The only place I honestly tried was my YouTube channel, but even the advice there wasn’t genuine.
I was bored, anyway. I was tired of writing the same old things I read everywhere.
For months, I wondered if I should quit. I was terrified of doing so because I’d tied so much of my future to that blog. According to me, it would get hundreds of thousands of visitors every month, I’d sell eBooks and courses to that audience, and it’d be my way of “making it.”
I wasn’t just giving up on a blog — I was giving up on myself.
One day, though, I just knew I had to resign. Everything in my body was telling me it was time to let go, so when I finally decided to do just that, it led me to think, “What made it okay to quit?”
People tell us never to give up, but why was I able to? Stopping was the right thing for me to do, but how was that different from the times I felt like quitting but knew it was wrong?
When quitting is the wrong move
Leaving is the wrong choice when you merely want to give up because you’re impatient. If you’ve been working toward your goal for weeks or months, and you’re discouraged because you haven’t seen results yet, that’s not a reason to stop.
Your dreams take time to come true.
If you want to leave because your goal requires much more hard work and longer hours than you expected, (and you thought you’d have more time to watch Netflix), don’t.
No matter what new thing you pursue, it’ll always require long and difficult work.
If you don’t want to do that work because you don’t like it like you thought you would, well, that’s a different story. One we’ll talk about below.
Let’s talk about when quitting is the right move.
1. If it doesn’t feel right in your gut anymore
Photo by Andrej Lišakov on UnsplashOur gut is usually right about things. While you can never explain why you feel good or bad about something, it’s always best to listen to it.
“Don’t go against your inner knowing. Just don’t. Trust yourself.”— Maria Erving
If your intuition is telling you it’s time to give up, then listen to it and trust your inner voice. It’s okay to feel like something isn’t right for you anymore and want to pursue something new.
You don’t have to hold on to everything that comes into your life. Some things are only meant to be a part of your life for a little while.
Before I discontinued my blog, something in me told me I had nothing left to say about this and more to say about everything else. That stage in my life had served its purpose. I had to move on to bigger and better things.
2. You’re tired of it
I love writing, but there are days when it stresses me out, and it pisses me off that I have to write again.
However, it’s stress I’m willing to deal with because I enjoy writing that much. Bad days are a part of any process, and I happen to work in the right process.
Then, there are things you do that you dread and aren’t worth it anymore. For me, that was my old freelancing gig, where I wrote about viral videos.
After nearly two years, I was done. It was the last thing I did every day because I dreaded it. I didn’t enjoy it anymore, and not even the money was worth it.
If your job or this idea you’re trying to chase is stressing you out to the point where you fall into bed every night, grateful to get away from reality, move on.
If you don’t know how much longer you can take it, and you dread your day, it’s okay to call it quits and try something new that lights your fire again.
Screw the headaches and tears. Try something that’ll make your chest feel light again.
3. You’re not passionate about it anymore
Photo by Silvestri Matteo on UnsplashEveryone talks about finding your one true passion in life, the one thing you want to do until the day you die.
You don’t need to stick to one passion. There’s so much in life you can pursue.
If you’ve been writing for the past twenty years, that doesn’t mean you can’t pursue your other dream of becoming a famous actress or chef. If you went to school to be a psychologist, but now you realize you want to be a famous singer, then do that.
Don’t put me in a f*cking box.— Gary Vaynerchuk
If you’re not passionate about what you do anymore, then try something new. You deserve to go after a different passion.
So you fell out of love — no big deal! Life isn’t over just yet, so do the other things you were meant to do. Learn about the different activities you’re curious about, buy some books, and take some classes,
Find what you love, and then do something about it.
4. You genuinely don’t like it
When I was a senior in high school, I took a web design class, and I fell in love with it. I enjoyed it so much that I decided that I wanted to be a web designer after high school.
So, I started watching Wordpress classes on Skillshare all the time. The new platform looked exciting, so after graduation, my dad and I tried building my website on Wordpress.
It got boring after a while. I disliked it so much that I eventually left all the designing to my dad — who’d always enjoyed web design.
I knew then that I had to let go of my dream of becoming a web designer. How was I going to work on something I didn’t enjoy?
Same goes for you. Even if it’s only been a couple of weeks, if you genuinely don’t like your work, then, by all means, give something else a go.
5. You need new challenges
Photo by Jackman Chiu on UnsplashPart of the reason I had to move on from my first blog was that I’d learned everything I had from it, and I needed something new.
I love challenging myself and doing things that scare me, and that blog wasn’t doing it for me anymore. It was the same old schedule, work, and words. I took the lessons I learned from there and applied them to my next venture.
Perhaps you need to move on because you’ve succeeded.
These past few years, you’ve done incredible things, and you’re proud of yourself, but now you want something new. You’re ready for a new adventure with risks and excitement.
Never be afraid to try something new. Because life gets boring when you stay within the limits of what you already know.— Unknown
What’s life without a new adventure now and then?
On a final note
Don’t feel like you’re failing yourself or others because you feel the urge to move on. Giving up for the right reasons is not failing.
Comments / 0