Why Quitting Can Be the Smartest Thing You Do

Hey there,

We’ve been told to never quit. To push harder. To grind until our eyes bleed.

But what if quitting was the smartest move you could make?

What if success isn’t about doing more, but doing less of the wrong things?

For most of my life, I lived by this unspoken rule: if I just worked harder, longer, and faster, things would eventually click.

That success was a game of endurance, AKA the last one standing wins.

But endurance only works if you’re running in the right direction. Otherwise, you’re just getting really tired while ending up nowhere.

We’ve turned “never quit” into a religion.

We celebrate founders who sleep under their desks, athletes who train through injuries, and creators who “post daily no matter what.”

Apparently, rest is for people who “don’t want it bad enough.” (Which sounds like a great way to end up exhausted, burnt out, and crying in a Trader Joe’s parking lot.)

But what if quitting isn’t the end of the story?

What if it’s the beginning of something more intentional?

Because quitting isn’t about giving up, it’s about giving back.

Back your time, focus, and energy.

And when you think about it that way, it might actually be one of the most productive things you ever do.

Up until last year, I was running two companies while still working a full-time job.

Six-figure salary, $1.7 million in equity, and a sunny corner office.

On paper, I was killing it.

In reality? I was exhausted.

Hundreds of unread emails, endless meetings, constant travel.

I told myself this was ambition — that juggling 47 things at once was some badge of honor.

But I wasn’t ambitious. I was afraid. Afraid to quit.

Because quitting meant walking away from security, from the salary, the equity, and the “good job” pats on the back.

It meant admitting that what I’d spent years chasing wasn’t what I actually wanted.

So I did the scariest thing I’ve ever done. I quit.

And immediately thought I might throw up.

Because quitting doesn’t feel like freedom at first. It feels like free fall.

But what happened next surprised me...

My life didn’t collapse. I didn’t end up living behind a Starbucks.

Instead, I felt lighter. Like I finally had space to breathe, to think, to work on something that mattered.

We live in a culture that treats quitting like failure.

But what if quitting isn’t failure at all?

What if it’s focus?

Because every time you say “no” to the wrong thing, you’re saying “yes” to something better.

It’s like deleting Candy Crush off your phone. Yeah, you quit, but now you finally have time to call your mom back.

After stepping away from the “never quit” treadmill, I started seeing the ripple effect everywhere.

When I quit planning Pinterest-level family outings, I stopped stressing about whether my daughter would have some magical zoo experience — and started enjoying the churro-sticky meltdown reality of parenting.

When I quit pumping out two podcast episodes a week, I finally made space for creativity.

Suddenly, I was excited to hit record again instead of dreading it like another item on a never-ending checklist.

When I quit measuring my worth by how many hours I could grind, I finally started doing work I was proud of.

Now, before I quit something, I ask myself a few questions:

• Am I staying because of the sunk cost fallacy — just because I’ve already invested so much time and energy?

• Does this align with my values?

• What’s the opportunity cost — what am I missing out on elsewhere?

• Is this making me healthier or worse?

If something is costing you your well-being, it’s not worth the price.

The truth is, quitting isn’t about giving up. It’s about editing.

Think about your life like a film.

You cut the parts that don’t serve the story so the final product is stronger.

When I walked away from the job that looked perfect on paper, it made space for projects that actually mattered to me.

Life is less about adding and more about subtracting.

We’ve been told our whole lives: never quit.

But quitting is part of the process. It’s editing.

And like any good film, the strength isn’t in how much footage you keep, it’s in what you’re willing to cut.

We’re told our lives will be complete once we add more.

But maybe it’s less about adding, and more about subtracting.

Less noise. Less weight. Less stress.

Quit the wrong things so you can focus on the right ones.

If you’re stuck in something that’s draining you, whether it’s a job, a relationship, a side project, a habit, remember…

Quitting doesn’t mean you’ve failed.

It means you’re finally making room for the stuff that matters.

– Scott

P.S. Get more stuff from me (so my wife doesn’t make me go back to a “real” job):

• My podcast

• YouTube

• Instagram

• TikTok