The Dip

The Dip: A Little Book That Teaches You When to Quit (and when to Stick) by Seth Godin        Hardback Book:  96 pages         

This book is a quick read.   Its philosophy is be the best in the world at whatever it is you want to do be it career-wise, hobby-wise or whatever your creative passion might be:  art, drama, writing, etc.   Be the best at whatever it is you want to do and if you can’t be the best,  decide just how much of your time and life you want to devote to whatever it is that you want to do set a limit and stick to it.    If you want to do a thing but you are not fully engaged decide how much of your life you are going to allow the thing to use up then give it up at the end of that time.   Don’t keep yourself in a rut or as Seth Godin calls it a cul-de-sac spinning your wheels but not advancing.   In life he promotes going full out to be the very best at what you do, people will notice and when you have surpassed your competition you will be noticed and you will advance.    He says that depending on what it is, most people will only go so far, then once it gets harder ( exercise, a new career, classes you take, goals you set, resolutions you set, etc.)  whatever it is – most of the competition will go no further than when things begin to get difficult then they will quit.   But if you continue to push yourself to be the best at whatever you are aiming for and you keep at it and push yourself through the dip – that plateau where the weight isn’t falling off fast enough, push through those difficult tasks and projects you are assigned no matter how high the stack, push through a relationship snag even when things get wonky and show you are tough enough to last and to do whatever it takes to make it happen people will see you with new eyes, your loved ones will admire your stick-to- it- tiveness,  your peers will be surprised and sometimes pissed when you go above and beyond when they are only doing enough to get by, your boss may be wary at first but you will earn respect, accolades and perhaps a promotion and juicy raise by showing you are willing to do what it takes to advance (that may mean extra work, extra hours and extra stress to get to the finish line).      The hardest part is to overcome the dip.    The dip is where during the race a lot of the competition will fall off.    When things get hard the majority will drop out.   If it hurts they don’t want it and will stay mediocre which is career suicide, health suicide, relationship suicide and self- esteem suicide.    Winners continue through the dip – the burn that comes before the bounty.   The reward at the end of all the hard work.   You will feel like a winner because you will be a winner while looking back over your shoulder at the quitters who only want to do what is easy.   The pep talks are good, the graphs not so much, but a good read and confidence builder.   If books were characters from films, this one would be Rocky Balboa.