Why Don't You Quit?

Getting discouraged when you're trying to write is common. It's common whenever you're trying to do anything which is awesome.

But I've asked myself that question over and over when I've felt especially like what I was doing didn't matter any more: "Why don't you quit?"

Why do you keep writing?

What's keeping you from giving up?

You've probably asked yourself the same questions, whether about writing or about something else you're trying to do. Why bother trying, when it's so hard?

So why don't I quit? Why do I keep writing? What's keeping me from giving up?

I keep writing because I have a story to share, several stories that keep bubbling themselves up inside me like hot springs.

 I don't quit because I know, no matter how crazy it may sound, I have something important to tell the world.

And the fact that someone, somewhere, needs to hear what I have to say, even if it's only one person, keeps me from giving up.

Helping that one person is important enough to keep writing.

I'm writing specifically about writing, but if you're striving towards something else, just replace writing with whatever it is you're working for, because the same thing applies.

No one writes like you do.

Your writing springs from something inside you that refuses to be silenced.

Your writing can change the world.

People go on and on about not getting discouraged, how you shouldn't ever feel like you want to give up, but I think that's nonsense. Allow yourself to feel it. Embrace the fact that, sometimes, like anyone who does something amazing, you want to give up.

But don't give up.

There's a world of difference between feeling discouraged and giving up. Galaxies between wanting to quit and actually walking away from it.

Instead, find out why. Why can't you quit? Why are you still writing? What's keeping you from walking away from your dreams?

Because when you know your why, why you continue to do something which at times you hate doing, it's so much easier not to quit next time you're discouraged. And let's be honest, there's going to come hundreds of more times when you want to tear up the notebook and burn it.

So why don't you quit?