Quitter

Ok, here’s the question for you this week: do you consider yourself a quitter? When faced with challenges, do you find it posing no difficulty to fight by way of them or sneak out the back door? Not sure, well let me give you a few scenarios and you tell me what you would’ve done.

Scenario #1: Grappler A’s (GA) has been training for all of 2 months and goes out of town and decides to visit another academy. The instructor puts GA with a senior level guy that’s already had a few pro-MMA matches and he hyper-extends GA’s elbow with an armbar so fast there was no time for GA to tap, just scream. As GA sat on the sparetime activity icing his injure elbow, he questioned why he ever wanted to do that stuff.

Scenario #2: Grappler B (GB) has been training for when it comes to three years and gets injure while rolling so severely that he has a torn MCL, meniscus, and stretched ACL (like stretching the elastic band in a sock almost to the point of breaking) just short of a full ACL tear. After his knee surgery and being told that he’s an moron for continuing to put himself in harm’s way at age 35 to roll on the ground with grown men and ought to give it up. GB wonders if everyone is right and if quitting is in his best interest, in particular when his pain medication starts to wear off!

Scenario #3: Grappler C (GC) is getting ready for a no-gi tourney and rolls his ankle (hard sufficient that he can’t walk off the mat on it and has to be moved off by a good deal of teammates) 10 days before the tourney. Five days before the tourney, GC asks his coach if he must think compete or not, hoping the coach would make the decision for him. But the coach left the decision up to GC to make and made a recommendation on how to rest, wrap it, and keep preparing for the tourney in case GC decisive to do it as a tournament-day decision. The day before the tourney, GC decides to wrap that ankle tightly and compete. GC goes out, gets 2nd place at the tourney and doesn’t irritate the ankle injury in the process

Now, what do those three scenarios have in common? Well, there all:

- adverse training injuries (intentional and unintentional)

- injuries were painful sufficient to admonish each grappler from

pursuing the goal they had in front of them at the time

- they all staged probabilities for doubt in regards to the importance

and likelihood of achieving their goal

- they were put into situations where outsiders told them

their goals were absurd and not worth their health

- they all staged an prospect for each grappler to quit

- I was the grappler in each of those scenarios

In each scenario, a goal that I had set was being challenged by a series of adverse events and I had to make a lot of hard conclusions to see if I in truth wanted to achieve those goals. In the original two scenarios, I had to determine if I was going to carry on training and achieve my goal of getting a BJJ BB. The pains from those injuries were more severe than the ankle injury, particularly the knee surgery, and I actually had to talk myself into staying in the game. The introductory one in all probability wouldn’t have been as bad if it didn’t take place the basi two months of my training and at the hands of a guy that was fighting pro-MMA back in the day where the injury happened.

The third scenario goal was decelerating down my goal of getting a grappling champion. I had competed in 9 tournaments at that point without ever having placed original and I was determined to do it because I had never won at anything in my entire life! I didn’t place introductory in that tournament, but the selfassurance that I got from going out there with the ankle (not the smartest thing to do in hindsight) rather of sitting out because I was worried it might get injure again helped me place original the next four tourneys after that

one.

Now, the scenarios may be a bit uttermost because of the injuries, but that’s what makes the point. Since I was in pain in each of those scenarios, quitting would’ve been very easy for me and no one would’ve held it versus me if I had quit…except me.

In each of our lives, we’ve all had tough obstacles that have staged themselves before us. And there were times when we sneaked out the back door and quit. Quitting removes the prompt anxiety that you may be facing when you’re forced to make that kind of decision, but then the shame of quitting creeps up on you and it never goes away. It just stays in your subconscious and beats you over the head repeatedly.

When I go back to what the leadership guru said to me last weekend, he was so right! If you set a goal and you’re persistent with regards to achieving it, even when failure seems certain, if you just keep your eyes on the goals and press forward, you’ll achieve your goals.

It worked for me, what in regards to you?

Quitter

Have you ever felt caught amid the tension of a day occupation and a dream job? That gap among what you have to do and what you’d love to do?

I have.

At basi I thought I was the only one who felt that way, but then I started to talk to persons and realized we’re getting the I’m, but generation. When we talk when it comes to what we do for a living we inevitably say, I’m a teacher, but I want to be an artist. I’m a CPA, but I’d love to commence my own business.

I’m a _____, but I want to be a ______.

All too often, we listen that dreaming big means you quit your day job, trade everything you own, and move to Guam. But what if there were a dissimilar way?

What if you could blow up your dream without blowing up your life?

What if you could go for broke without going broke?

What if you could commence today?

What if you already have everything you need to begin?

From figuring out what your dream is to quitting in a way that exponential increments your probability of success, Quitter is full of inspiring stories and actionable advice. This book is based on 12 years of cubicle living and my true story of cultivating a dream occupation that changed my life and the world in the process.

It’s time to close the gap amid your day occupation and your dream job.

It’s time to be a Quitter.

About the AuthorJon Acuff employed to be a Serial Quitter. He had eight jobs in eight years, constantly hoping the next one will be different. From writing promotion for The Home Depot, to branding for companies like Bose and Staples, he s no stranger to the cubicle. This book is the result of that 12-year adventure in closing the gap amongst a day occupation and a dream job, something Jon did when he joined the Dave Ramsey team in 2010 to become a full-time author. He s a contributor to CNN.com, speaks nationally on the subject of social media, and is the author of Gazelles, Baby Steps And 37 Other Things Dave Ramsey Taught Me About Debt; and Stuff Christians Like. He lives in Nashville with his wife and two daughters.

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Most helpful customer reviews

45 of 45 people found the following review helpful.
Buy Quitter now
By slamb817
I feel like a jerk telling you to read this book. I loved reading it but hated the implications. Jon Acuff cuts right through all the crappy excuses that we put between us and our dreams. This book haunts me a month after I finished it. I can’t fritter away time on the internet anymore with a clear conscience. I wake up earlier so I can take time to write and focus my thoughts for the day. I find myself trying harder and doing more work at work. It sucks. I miss my life as a slacker.

Acuff writes from his own experiences not in a show off way but in a clever way that gives him credibility. I laughed and cried a little, but in a cool way, not an overly emotional wreck kind of way. Acuff is ridiculously likable which is probably best for him because if I didn’t like him, I might try to kick him in the shins for suggesting that a work ethic in your current job will help you prepare for your future dream job.

If you’re taking time to read this review, you obviously have time to read something more substantial like a book. Go ahead and buy Quitter. Read it yourself. Give it to your whiny friends who can’t figure out why they’re not living their dreams. Call your brother or sister and read it to them over the phone. Give it to your kid in the basement who thinks it’s normal to live with parents 10 years after graduating from college. You could also do what I did and give this book away with a break up note to your boyfriend, gently implying the relationship is doomed because he won’t put away the X Box and become a grownup. So yeah, buy Quitter once, buy it twice, buy an entire case of books. I know you know people who should read it. My guess is you might be one of them, too.

57 of 59 people found the following review helpful.
An Honest, Inspiring Account Every Dreamer Should Read
By bryan r allain
I received an advanced copy of this book and blew through it in a weekend. It was fantastic.

The reason? Jon delivers a ton of wisdom in a very compelling voice.

Why is his voice compelling? Because he’s “been there, done that”. He’s taken the path from his day job to his dream job. He’s made the tough decisions, fought through the mistakes, and lived to tell about it.

Why else is his voice compelling? Because he’s hilarious. It’s so much easier to digest the wisdom Jon brings when it’s broken up with absurd pop culture references and great anecdotes from his own life.

Why do I keep talking in questions? Who knows.

But here’s the bottom line: If you’re looking for an honest account of what it’s like to make the transition from your day job to your dream job, this book is for you. Jon won’t sugarcoat the journey or convince you that it’s worth making stupid decisions now that you’ll pay for later. He stays grounded in reality while inspiring you to truly connect with the things you’re passionate about, and he gives you hope and a plan for getting there yourself.

Can’t recommend it enough.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful.
A New Way to Dream…Review of the book Quitter
By chuckbakerisright
The new book by the national bestseller and creator of the blog Stuff Christians Like, Jonathan Acuff will be on sale starting May 10th. The book is called “Quitter: Closing the Gap Between Your Day Job & Your Dream Job.” I was honored to be one of just a few people to get a chance to read an advance copy of the book. Today I would like to give you my review of the book.

Quitter is the story of how Jonathan Acuff was able to turn his dream job into his day job. Jonathan was working for Auto Trader as a tech writer, but what he wanted to be was a book author. Jonathan talks about some on the struggles of realizing his dream job without destroying his life. The book encourages people to find ways to reach their goals and look for unique ways to do what they love. The two ideas that I found the most helpful were “Removing the `I’m’ from Your `But’” and “Falling in Like with a Job You don’t Love.”

Jonathan found that when he was talking to people about what they did for a living or for life they would say, “I’m a ____, but I want to be ______. I know for me that I’ve said at times that I’m only doing this job, until I can get a real job. And in some of my jobs I’ve thought were dream jobs, turned out to be nightmares. This book has helped me look at my career, my profession, and my dreams in new ways. And the chapter on falling in like with your job has encouraged me to see my job and career as a tool to my dreams.

I think this book is great for those who just feel they are spinning their wheels in their job. It can be an encouragement to spouses who want to support their loved ones with their dreams. And it is a fun read about how someone worked hard to reach their dreams. I encourage you to give it a read.

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