'Knowing when to give up is important'

In the modern management environment, you are bombarded with concepts such as 'positive thinking', 'if there is a will-there is a way', 'effort always wins', 'if you think you can - you will'. This is good because they help unleash latent talent.

'Giving up' is an act that often carries negative connotations. Phrases such as 'never give up or a quitter never wins support' impart these negative connotations but the truth is that you can't win every battle or achieve every goal you set in your life. Successful and powerful people too have failed in certain attempts but successes take precedence in the end. Hence it is as if failure has no place. Failure encountered by some who end up being successful is underplayed thus creating a false notion in the minds of people.

Look for alternatives to succeed

What is critical in life is that, the moment you have enough ground to believe that the original goal cannot be achieved due to some reason, you must then make a strategic move - or even take a U-turn to ensure no more money, time and effort is wasted.

The pace and nature of change is such that those who make the right move at the right time have an edge over the others.

Determining the right time to give up can be very subjective, since all situations should be considered individually to make a judgment. But learning where your personal boundaries and exit points are, can help save time, money and energy. The same is true for business too.

If your attitude is anything like mine, giving up on a goal or project is extremely difficult. You have invested a lot of time and money as well, so you're determined to see it through and that's the right way to do it. Remember failure is an important step to success.

Knowing when to give up is extremely important, because it will impact your ultimate success. In reality, not every goal can be achieved no matter what power you have. It's important to keep assessing the conditions and progress made to decide if the ultimate outcome is going to be success of failure. How do you know when to 'throw in the towel' , (as in boxing jargon) on something that you've been fighting to carry on with, despite finding it really tough? In life we have at one point or another experienced disappointment, rejection, frustration and hurt. The feeling of defeat is inevitable for every human being, no matter what your profile or track record has been.

The same start does not mean the same outcome

Why then would we, in our own paths start at the same point, with the same desire to achieve success reach different levels of success in the end? Regardless of our financial, educational, social status and backgrounds, we have challenges that may lead to disappointment and despair. At the end of the day, it is not what happens that determines the quality of our lives; it is what we choose to achieve.

The idea is to never give up!

If we can succeed in mastering our attitude and consistently build our character, the result will change our course in life. Many times it is not the external circumstances that determine our success in life, it is the ability to control the process of our thinking.

If we are resilient, we can dramatically change our lives for the better. The question is; are we determined to make that change? The change can be giving up the current goal and embracing a new one with greater probability of winning.

Giving up to gain more later is the right thing to do - giving up in such circumstances is not failure but the change needed to succeed. It is not about giving up hope but giving up specific activities and taking on new ones for faster and more beneficial returns.