Just Because It’s Hard, Doesn’t Mean You Quit.

Exhausted because it’s 11 p.m., you return home from practice, legs sore, stomach begging for food. You have homework to do, college coaches to email, practice was rough, you still need to shower, and all you want to do is crawl into bed and sleep. This all feels so stressful. “Maybe I should just quit.”

Or how about this…

You feel stressed out because your club team is falling apart, and you can’t deal with the drama. You don’t know what’s next. “Should I even keep playing? I hate this team so much.”

Or how about this…

You arrive at urgent care dizzy and barely keeping your eyes open, dirt and sweat covering your body, the doctor delivering the news… another concussion. “Should I just quit the sport I’ve been playing my whole life?”

Or how about this…

You get into the backseat after another bad game. Your parents are yelling at you, your coach is upset that you’re letting your team down, and your world begins to cave in on you. “I used to be good, didn’t I? I should just quit.”

Whether you have experienced one of these scenarios or all of them like I have, a common theme is the ending question or conclusion: “I should quit.”

This is a very normal urge—to stop whatever is giving you stress or pain. After experiencing just one of these situations, most sane people would quit. “It’s not worth it.”

But I am here to tell you that it is worth it.

Donald Trump once said:

“Never ever quit. I’ve seen people quitting, and if they would have held out longer, they would have been successful. I’ve seen it so much. I’ve seen some of the most brilliant people in the world that never made it because they were quitters.”

Maybe continuing your sport just isn’t in the cards for you, and that is totally okay. But for the people that have a burning desire to be the best and want to see how far they can go, the answer to any of your tough scenarios is simply: don’t quit.

If your team falls apart: don’t quit.

If you get rejected by a college coach: don’t quit.

If you’re injured: don’t quit.

If you’re exhausted: don’t quit.

If you stay in it long enough, good is going to come your way.

At least once a month, I contemplate quitting because of something that happened, but the answer is always to keep playing.

So if you want to play at the next level, the answer is don’t quit. Even if all the doors are shut, sooner or later one will open.