Quitting

Day 116. Quitting.

The sweet taste of success. Professional or personal, nothing quite like the feeling you get when you find yourself at the top. Not necessarily the top of the tallest mountain, but at least the top of some mountain. It's a rough road: cluttered with the junk we tossed out of the car the first time we tried, a flat tire or five along the way back up. That's what makes it sweeter, having tried more than one and completing the climb. Give up, and you achieve nothing.

It’s not when you start that makes your success in the world, but when you quit. Richard Bach, Nothing By Chance.

Never.Ever.Quit. Ever. Nobody likes a quitter, and you won't like yourself much if you become one. You'll always wonder "what if," and you can't move forward if you're looking back at that failure. Why do we give up? Do we really think that's an attractive quality? Are people around us going to say "bless her heart, she tried," and then respect us as if we won? Probably not. Failure in others reminds us that we ourselves fail, and nobody likes to be reminded of that.

I know people that have accomplished great things. Defeated cancer. Performed live onstage with musical superstars. Spoke in front of huge crowds. Become a parent after years of trying. Won sports championships. Not one of them ever looked in the mirror and said "you know, today I quit." They might've felt the constant pressure, the public scrutiny, but not one ever quit. Risk nothing, gain nothing, remember how that goes?

The things that happen to us in life aren't meant to tear us down, make us fail. They're meant to build us up, boost our confidence, give us wings. Baseball fans all know "it all starts with a base hit." Same with anything else: every challenge starts with a single step.

Lesson One Hundred Sixteen: Buckle up, buttercup. Nobody said this would be easy. Nothing worth it ever is.

614 to go...