The gentle art of giving up

I recently saw a post from a friend proclaiming that his business was failing but that he would “never, ever submit to giving up.”

That makes a good sound bite and a wonderful rallying cry for a movie script, but a lousy approach to business. Of course it is OK to give up. Let’s discuss that today.

The Drucker approach to giving up

When I was in grad school, I had the chance to sit with Peter Drucker for an entire semester to hear his approach to new business startups. His book Innovation and Entrepreneurship is a classic, and one of the most important books I have ever read.

Dr. Drucker maintained that knowing when to hang it up was an essential part of making it as an entrepreneur. “It is OK to make mistakes, ” he said. “It’s OK to fail. Just don’t fail so badly that you put yourself in a hole you can never get out of.”

That is a really important idea. Most business ideas fail. But to keep coming back and trying again, you have to give yourself a chance at another shot.

The best option for the business?

My friend Chris Brogan once wrote:

“There are plenty of occasions where quitting saves the company (and everyone) time and money.