The Importance of Knowing When to Quit

June 16, 2014 by Christine

Many of us have had the “never give up, no matter what” mentality hammered into our heads for our entire life. But truly great leaders and business people understand that sometimes the wiser decision is to back down from an idea or project rather than to hopelessly push forward with it. How do you know when to pull the plug and when to plow forward?

Here are some scenarios in which you may just have one of those “time to quit” situations arise. Consider these scenarios carefully, and remember them the next time you reach a crossroads with an idea.

1. You're fighting against your own colleagues and teammates in hopes of moving forward.

If you don't have the support of your team, it's going to be an uphill battle for the entire duration of your project. Everyone knows the importance of bringing in the right people for your team, but it's also important to remember that you brought those people in for a purpose; you believe in their abilities to do their jobs well and to give you honest feedback about the direction of your company. If even your team members are against moving forward with a particular project or mission, it is likely a sign that you need to turn back. Or is it? The exception may be if you purposely hired polar opposites to your methods. If your methods were not advancing the company, and now you have a problem with your team making changes – you may be the problem.

2. The benefits of your project are not worth the cost to complete it.

Will your plan give a positive ROI to your business? Or even more simply, do the benefits of completing this project outweigh the costs? If not, it's probably time to reconsider the merits of the project and to put it to rest. Be sure to do a thorough cost-benefit analysis before moving too far into any project you undertake; the last thing you want is to put your business through a major ordeal for some very minimal benefits. Never forget to track everything you do, every decision you make – this helps remove emotions from business decisions.

3. You've failed to properly plan out your project or mission.

This is an area where a nimble small business has an edge, the ability to move quickly. It's also what can inflict operational pain. It's a common problem in business: a brand new project or idea comes in, people get excited about its potential and then the business moves forward without stopping to properly plan it out first. You need to do your due diligence in these situations, otherwise you will likely wind up creating a mess for yourself to have to clean up. If a project has gotten to the point where it looks like your failure to plan has had a major negative impact on its potential to succeed, then it's best to put an end to it before things get truly out of hand. It's easy to point the fingers of blame. It's difficult to look in the mirror to find fault. The latter should be your first reaction. Quitting under this circumstance is like an army regrouping. It's often a symptom of reacting to change versus planning to impact change.

“A goal, without a plan, is just a dream.” ~ Elbert Hubbard

Have you ever encountered any of these scenarios? How did you respond? Let Viral Solutions be your guide whenever one of these scenarios arise.

Watch out elephants! This slayer of business challenges comes with 30 years of record breaking sales, marketing, operations, training and leadership experience . He has worked face-to-face with 100’s of small business owners as well as large firms. His love of creating, communicating, developing and executing results for clients shines with each project, publication and training event. His entrepreneurial spirit, passion, industry experience, education, problem-solving prowess, charismatic personality and been-there-done that attitude leads his client focused approach.

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