Have you ever been to the point of wanting to give up?

You’ve gone through a series of struggles, trials, tribulations and just want to say “ENOUGH! I GIVE UP”?

You feel like you’ve fought the good fight, done your best, and simply stopped fighting and sat down?

Then looked back and wondered to yourself …

“I wonder where I’d be now if I hadn’t given up”?

I will be the first to say that there are times when surrendering in the face of overwhelming circumstances is the best course of action. But surrendering and giving up are two different things.

Surrendering is to abandon oneself entirely (to a powerful emotion or influence); give into

Giving Up is to cease making an effort; resign oneself to failure

Do you see the difference?

Once I understood the distinction between the two, I understood why I felt so awful about those times I gave up!

Giving Up is showing that I have disbelief in myself and what I am capable of. It’s telling myself that nothing will change to make my situation better. And when I look back at the times I did this, I see now what a terrible thing I did to myself!

Why did I give up?

Oh my, here’s a partial list of excuses I used:

1. I’m too tired.
2. It’s too hard to learn.
3. I live in the country and only successful people are in the city.
4. I’m not getting the ‘breaks’ others get.
5. That last mistake cost too much!
6. I’m too old for this.
7. I’m too socially backward for this!
8. I can’t do sales.

Any of these familiar to you?

Today, and every day, I have chosen to not Give Up.

I have committed to staying the course to achieve my vision for my business and my life. Because I am doing this, opportunities have been presented to me that will help along that course. Of course, there are opportunities that I’ve had to say “No Thanks” to, but only because they would be a distraction — they wouldn’t serve my ultimate purpose, my ultimate goal. As a result, I am not nearly as anxious about tomorrow. Nor am I desperate to make more sales. The marketing I have in place combined with the relationships I’ve been focusing on building and nurturing are working together to grow my business.

Today:

Yes, I’m making sales — As a strategist that helps businesses and individuals get clarity on their vision and the way forward.

Yes, I’m making sales — people are joining the Mastermind Groups I facilitate; people are hiring me to help them outline a format and marketing plan for their group; people are hiring me to train them on how to facilitate a group.

Yes, I’m making sales — finding information for business such as…current number of franchisees, their locations, their staff numbers, their costs, and a few details (known as a business profile) in a specific market (think home care OR cleaning service OR massage services).

Yes, I’m making sales — ebooks, training programs of my own, products I’ve created when collaborating with others.

What about you?
Are you about to Give Up?
Are you willing to ask yourself “What Happens If I Don’t Give Up?”

Are you ready to take a step back, take a breath and say “NO! I will NOT Give Up?”

I’d love to know your thoughts.