The unlikely value of quitting
One thing most of us are taught early in our sales careers is the value of persistence. You might have even heard Winston Churchill quoted at your graduation commencement address: "Never give up. Never give up. Never, never, never, never, never give up."
This is why it may surprise you that I am suggesting we could need to learn how to be better quitters.
What on earth am I talking about?
I am not suggesting that we abandon long-held dreams or walk away from projects that matter to us.
In his little book, The Dip, Seth Godin talks about how to discern the difference between things that require our persistence and those that are draining our time, energy, and resources with no hope of a payoff in the end.
He teaches the difference between what he calls "the dip" and a Cul-de-sac: "The Cul-de-Sac (French for 'dead end') ... is a situation where you work and work and work and nothing much changes," but "The Dip is the long stretch between beginner's luck and real accomplishment."
Sometimes it's not easy to know the difference. Have you ever started something that seemed easy and promising at first but turned into a depressing nightmare before long? Is it time to walk away or does this indicate the need for more focus and persistence?
Here are three questions to consider when sorting this out:
- Why did I start doing this in the first place-has anything changed since then?
- What do I hope to gain in the end-do I really care about the payoff?
- If I were honest, would my time and attention be better used in a different way?
Sometimes these simple questions yield immediate clarity, but other times we are tasked with the need to ask more questions and have patience until the answers become clear.
For example, I may discover that I'm wearing too many hats and I would be much better at my main job if I were to delegate some of the duties I've been clinging to for various reasons. Am I handling administrative or production tasks because I am best qualified to do them, or have I simply developed the habit of trying to control the process and save a little money by doing everything?
As Godin points out in The Dip, the major reward comes to those who know the difference and persist through the sometimes long, difficult period of mastering a thing. He also teaches that when we discover that what we are up to is going to lead us deeper into a cul-de-sac, we owe it to ourselves, our customers, and everyone around us to quit that particular thing as quickly as possible
I think that this comes down to investing time, focus, and resources into our areas of greatest strength rather than attempting to be just "okay" at everything.
As the market changes, we are required to be more nimble and efficient with our distribution of effort. I wonder how many different things we could quit in the next few months and get focused on the "Critical Few" things that will yield the biggest rewards?
If you want to discuss these things or plan something special with me, please drop an email or call me! I am your friend in the mortgage industry and your referrals are the lifeblood of my business.