When to Stop

October 12, 2007 by jacquie.

Back when I was a kid, we lived on a lake where we often wrestled on a big inner tube. We’d try to stand on it, with little success or we’d play King of the Mountain. Such activities mean falling into the water—a lot. It was fun. We were kids. We had unlimited energy. Some fifty years later, energy is considerably more limited. How many times do I fall in the water before I realize that I’m just too tired to keep climbing back on that unstable surface, regardless of how much I enjoy the splashing around? When do I recognize that I’m too tired to try again?

Of course, I’m not talking about inner tubes, but possibly I am talking about playing King of the Mountain. I’m talking about the desire to accomplish something, only to experience more splashing than success. When is it sensible to stop trying? When does one simply stop? Surely when you are out of energy, you stop, but maybe it’s wise to stop sooner.

Jim and I have been facing financial reality ever since Jim retired last December. We have a good plan and the resources to live our current lifestyle until we’re 100. One hundred seems like a comfortable cushion. Basically, our plan is working – with one exception. Marketing expenses are playing havoc with our ability to live within our monthly money allotment. In a follow-up meeting with our financial planner, we recognized that if we just stopped spending money on marketing, we’d be in fat city!

Jim markets his music group and I market my coaching business. We know that you often have to spend money to make money. The question we’re asking right now is this: when do we stop marketing and just live with what we’ve got? What does stopping marketing mean in the grand scheme of things? Here are a few questions we’re asking ourselves about what we’re marketing:

• Is it fun right now?
• Is it likely to be fun in the future?
• Who would be affected if I eased myself out of what I’ve been doing? How?
• If my every dream came true about what I am marketing, would I be happier than I am now?
• Would individuals be different? Would the world be different?
• If I didn’t have these commitments, what might I accomplish instead?

You know, those questions are rather enlightening. I think they are good to ask about any project I engage in, whether it’s marketing my coaching business or weeding the garden. The most intriguing question for me is the last one. What might I accomplish if I put my energy somewhere else? I believe it’s always good to evaluate the direction I am going. It’s time to stop when what I’m doing isn’t what I want to be doing. It’s always good to ask.

©2007, Jacqueline Hale

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