Discretion is the better part of valor yet quitters always lose. When do you give up on a project you love that’s going nowhere and when do you give more to make it work?

Both ideas make sense in different situations. I learned an answer that has worked well for me every time.

Entrepreneurs face such questions all the time. Small companies often walk the line between abject failure and outstanding success. How long do you walk the line before giving up?

The question arises everywhere. Do I stay in this relationship in the hopes it improves or give up? Do I keep working for this terrible boss who might get better or leave? The list goes on.

You leave when you realize you can leave with a sense of gratitude.

When you learned what you can from it and you’ll be happy with what comes next you won’t regret leaving. It means you mastered the situation instead of the other way around.

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• Forget what you have. What can you create? →