The Art of Quitting - A College Student's Perspective

We are always told to never give up, never quit. We will be successful if we just keep trying and put our best foot forward. However, I don't believe this is true, at least not most of the time. I am considered a quitter -- I gave up on my major within the first semester of my Freshman year. I started college as an Elementary Education major, hoping to teach the first grade. I had been planning this for years, even taking designated educational track classes in high school and joining clubs of aspiring teachers. I realized quickly after I arrived at the University of Wisconsin La Crosse that I was not being challenged enough, and I felt like I was just gliding by. Peers told me to "Just keep going," that I'm "Only a freshman, I'll start to feel challenged soon." This may have been true; However, I quit. I started taking "What should I major in?" quizzes online and settled on Marketing as an impulse decision. Since then, I realized I was meant to be a marketing major and perhaps quitting was the best choice I made throughout my entire undergraduate education.

Now this was a fairly large example of quitting, but I have experienced multiple instances of quitting throughout my education. As I am closing in on my last semester as a college student, I have accumulated advice that I would give to underclassmen as they navigate through their college education. Read further to hear what I have to say, a senior marketing student at a state school in Wisconsin. Trust me, it's good advice.

1. Quit now, try it again later.

Ever since I developed my niche for creative marketing and design, I have discovered that you aren't always going to have the best ideas. I will try to create multiple pieces of content in one sitting and start watching the design quality worsen as I continue to whip out the graphics. Then I'll be hit with creative block -- I run out of creative ideas. This is when I choose to quit. I know that by giving my mind a break, I'll think of a new idea later and make a better piece of content tomorrow.

This can be applied in non-creative contexts as well. Have you ever experienced that brain block while writing a paper? Once your mind hits that wall, you need to quit and allow your thoughts to regenerate, giving you better topics and content later. Designing powerpoint slides for group projects is the same idea. Some slides are designed great and effectively communicate the content from your report. Then some slides look terrible, and you just can't figure out how to fix them. Quit. Quitting doesn't always mean failure, it means giving your mind a break.

2. Knowing WHEN to quit.

Most college students know how it feels when work starts to pile up and the overwhelming sense that you're not going to get everything done finally hits. I have felt this way many times during final exam week, trying to study for multiple exams at once and staying up late to cover all of the information. In the long run, I don't find this technique helpful at all. Trying to study content as my eyes are slowly shutting is not effective, and I would be better off quitting so that I can get quality sleep and feel refreshed the next day. Something that I was told that really helped me was, "If you don't know it now, you're not going to know it tomorrow." Staying up late to try and teach yourself a topic isn't going to help and you will just forget it later. Quitting and trying again the next day is going to be the most beneficial.

There have been times I have found myself running on the high of stress, feeling my body be on the verge of shutting down. I never want to stop putting all of my energy into my work, trying to create the best that I can. As I mentioned before, I am type A. Surprising, I know. Throughout my undergrad education, I took on way too many roles and created a detailed, strict schedule for every single day, ensuring that I got everything completed. This mindset is great, but only to an extent. If the stress of the workload you have acquired is impacting your mental health, relationships, sleep schedule, etc. then it's time to quit.

I found that slow mornings help me keep an ease of mind. This was great for the fall semester of my senior year when I had afternoon classes -- however, not everyone gets this lucky. I love waking up early, but I needed to recognize that I didn't need to get everything done before 10 am. Exercise when your body wants to, study when your mind is ready. Stop trying to control every minute of the day and start going with the flow.

Of course, always get your work done by the deadline, but if these tasks can be moved aside to allow time for your mental health to regenerate, then it's time to quit. Sometimes you need to accept a 'good enough' grade to prioritize your mental and physical health, because in the long run, that's what's keeping you alive, not the 95% you received on your Accounting exam. Move your body, make tea, take a nap -- you will thank yourself later.

3. Sometimes quitting means letting other people have a chance.

I know, I have a type A personality. I want things done when I decide they should be done, and sometimes other people don't share the same mindset. Group projects were especially hard, as most of my group mates wanted to complete assignments the night they were due. I developed the habit over the years to take control and finish most of the work for my group because I didn't feel like waiting. When complaining of this situation to my family, they proposed the thought, "Did you give them a chance to work on it?" The answer was no. I was so eager to stay on top of my work that I accomplished the tasks before my teammates had the chance, and then complained about it later.

This is a situation where I should have quit. I should have recognized my situation, realized that I have plenty of time and that the work was not all my responsibility. I should have designated a section to myself, completed only that section, and let my group finish their work when they had the chance. I needed to quit while I was ahead, because this led to insane levels of stress and overwhelm.

4. Quit that workout plan -- figure out what works for your body.

Taking the conversation away from educational topics, I want to touch on the physical activity experience that many college students struggle with. Right away when I entered college, I began lifting and exercising more than I ever had before. I learned routines from my roommates, becoming extremely dedicated to weightlifting as this was their advice. I rarely took days off, and saw myself improving and lifting heavier as time went on. I was proud of this progress and how I had adopted this habit that many of my peers had inflicted upon me.

However, this only lasted so long. I barely saw change in my physical appearance after the first and second year of this habit and began experiencing wear out with my routine. I started lifting heavier, working out harder, quitting cardio to only focus on lifting. Still, no change. How could I not be reaching new goals with how dedicated I was?

That's when I realized I needed to quit. This workout plan was not designed for me, it was created by my peers who have different body types and had been involved in sports their whole lives, when I was not. Our muscles had different needs -- and mine needed cardio. I fell in love with running, cycling, the stair master, and any exercise that made me sweat. I felt better than I ever had and was making significant progress that I was proud of and improved my overall mood and productivity. When I found myself in the depths of stress, running was what pulled me back to reality. I realized this whole time I had needed to quit thinking that there is one workout plan that fits all.

If you are being told that you need to exercise in a certain way and you need to change what you think works for you, then don't listen. Quit trying to be like everyone else and start listening to what your body needs. College is a time of rapid change and getting used to being an independent adult, and I believe that exercise is a huge part of how to create a healthy relationship with yourself. The right workout plan will help you excel and clear your mind, that's why it's important to quit old habits and find what works for you.

Quitting doesn't mean failure. In many cases, quitting is what led me to experiencing personal growth and reaching that next step of success. Remember that to be the best version of yourself, you have to let go of the pressure that is holding you back. in other words, you have to make those small quits.

To conclude, my favorite quote is as follows:

It's simple, it's basic, but it gets to the point. If you're an undergraduate college student or just someone who needs advice on how to properly quit bad habits, I hope this found you well.

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