Quit now or Quit Later? Embrace “The Dip” with Seth Godin
To quit or not to quit—that is the question.
I feel like giving up.
My mind has been buzzing with that statement for months lately. Ever since the release of my debut novel, The Last Guardians Of Atlantis, it’s been a crawl-like pace of sales. I’ve been fortunate with selling out during my book signing event at Indigo bookstore and online on Amazon but that’s sums up the extent of my ‘success’.
My dream is to become a successful author with thousands of readers flocking to get my books but I feel like I’m stuck in a rut, unsure if I should continue pursuing the goal or give up and do something else. More questions arise when I think more about my future and where it’s heading:
Am I focusing on the wrong thing? Is this what I truly want? Am I too stubborn to leave this path I followed for months? Should I pivot and move on to something different? Am I a failure?
Luckily, I came across The Dip by Seth Godin and realized the universal truth: Everyone hits roadblocks on the path to their dreams, but the way forward starts with understanding why these challenges exist. See, success isn’t about avoiding difficulties but knowing when to push through them or pivot.
What is “The Dip”?
In certain contexts like business, learning, psychology and personal development—the Dip is also known as “The Valley of Despair”, a specific phase in the creative journey, where motivation and confidence drop when pursuing a goal. You start your journey off with enthusiasm and excitement but as you encounter challenges (lack of sales, recognition, criticism etc…) you hit the valley of despair.
Stage 3: The Valley of Despair.
A deep trough where many brave adventurers go through on their way to success.
According to Seth Godin, the Dip is the tough, discouraging period where progress feels slow or nonexistent. It’s the deep trough where you feel like you’re walking through thick mud, barely making any noticeable movement through it.
I’m currently in the Dip, meandering through the valley’s sludge and wondering if I should drop what I’m doing and change paths. It’s been a slow progress with my debut novel, amongst other challenges like building an audience as a Twitch streamer and gaining traction on my socials like Instagram and TikTok. All this to say that I feel like my dream of success is slipping through my fingers despite the hard working I’m doing.
But after reading Godin’s book, I understood this: that being in the Dip or valley of despair, isn’t a sign of failure—it’s a filter that separates those who are committed to their journey from those who aren’t. Godin encourages us to persevere and push through. By doing so, we build resilience, focus and eventually, achieve success.
We’ll quickly go over 3 insights in Godin’s The Dip:
Focus on the Right Goal
Remember your “Why”
Build Tiny Wins into your Day
“Knowing that you’re facing a Dip is the first step in getting through it.”
1. Focus on the Right Goal
Not every path is worth pursuing. Godin emphasizes quitting (strategically) rather than endlessly grinding without results, is the better option. That’s right. Godin wants you to quit but there’s a good reason for that: quitting the wrong things quickly and focusing on the right goals, gives you the opportunity for success. Quitting frees your time to excel at something else.
But how do we know when to quit?
Whether you’re already in the Dip or just starting on a new venture, you’ll have to ask yourself these questions:
Do you in your heart know you’re meant to be doing this?
Do you feel deeply called into do something?
Is your current project aligned with your passion, purpose and skills?
Do you love the process of doing it?
Will quitting free up time for a better opportunity? What is the cost of NOT quitting?
“Quit the wrong stuff. Stick with the right stuff. Have the guts to do one or the other.”
With these questions, you’re evaluating whether the Dip or valley of despair, is worth staying in. Godin states the Dip is there to help you depending on your answers. He stresses two key points to help clarify:
The Dip is actually the shortest route to your destination because it gets you there faster—if you’re willing to stick it out.
The Dip is your friend because it makes the goal worthwhile. Not everyone can make it through, so if you tough it out, the success will be so rewarding.
In my case—since I do feel strongly about my purpose of becoming a successful author—the dip is to keep my commitment to completing my Atlantis Series books and to continue streaming on Twitch to build a community. This aligns with my dream to inspire and entertain everyone who comes across my book.
In addition, the Dips mean I should let go of side projects and/or distractions that don’t serve my purpose. Godin calls these “Cul-de-Sacs” or dead ends (at the moment, I can’t think of any cul-de-sacs but I’m sure if I focus hard enough, I can write down a few that may eventually lead to a dead end).
So, to sum up this point: if you focus on something that you feel strongly connected with then that is the right goal to pursue. And the Dip is the inevitable valley you’ll have to journey across.
2. Remember your “WHY”
After taking action towards the right goal(s), you’ll eventually hit the Dip. It’ll feel like nothing is happening—like you’re stuck. It will feel endless. But this is where you really have to connect with your reasons for starting— your deeper calling. You have to remember your “why”.
Although Godin doesn’t explicitly state knowing your “why” in The Dip but the concept is implied throughout the text: understanding your reasons behind striving for a goal and why it matters to you, is important.
The Dip tests your commitment to your goals and dreams. If your reasons for pursuing something are unclear or purely superficial (like going after money), you’re more likely to give up when the going gets tough. But according to Godin, if you’re deeply connected to your “why”, the first signs of troubles, obstacles or the slightest challenges, won’t faze you at all.
“Winners quit all the time. They just quit the right stuff at the right time.”
Why does it matter?
I might sound like a broken record at this point but your “why” is the core reason you’re putting in the effort. It’s what fuels your passion and gives you meaning to your work. Without that, what’s the point of doing it, right? Godin argues the Dip is the filter that separates those who are in it for the long haul—the ones with the right purpose and reasons in mind—versus those who aren’t.
What I learned from reading books like The Greatness Mindset by Lewis Howes and Diary of a CEO by Steven Bartlett (great books by the way), is that when your purpose is strong and personal, you’ll find the strength and the grit to keep going through the valley of despair.
As a debut author and content creator, I had to connect multiple times to my purpose: to inspire, motivate and bring value and positivity to my audience. I want to make a meaningful impact on my readers and viewers (I call this my meaningful mission). I have to remind myself that low book sales and a slow audience growth isn’t what I’m here to do. I’m here to do good and bring value. That’s it.
3. Build Tiny Wins, Daily
In The Dip, Godin highlights the importance of making measurable progress and setting small milestones. Why? Because it makes the valley of despair bearable. Crossing the Dip requires you to take consistent action and the one way to do that is to implement achievable milestones. This way, you remain motivated and less likely to quit.
For me, my milestones look like:
Drafting 1000 words a day for my second book.
Growing my Twitch channel by engaging with one new viewer daily and authentically.
Experimenting with marketing strategies on social media for The Last Guardians Of Atlantis.
Although not explicitly stated in Godin’s book, reaching each milestone should be celebrated. Reward yourself with something so that you can keep the momentum going and keep your focus steady for treading the Dip.
“Knowing that you’re facing a Dip is the first step in getting through it.”
Where do we go from here?
I had to acknowledge and remind myself (albeit daily), that the struggles I’m facing are real and valid, and are all part of the journey through the Dip. I had to learn that the challenges along the way, aren’t signs of failure—they’re proof that I’m in the valley of despair. And the only way through it, is to persist, endure and take consistent, daily action.
According to Godin, the Dip is where the best people are forged. The Dip is there to filter out the average from the extraordinary. Every bestselling author went through their Dip (like J.K. Rowling being rejected by 12 different publishers) but they didn’t stop.
And neither should we. So let’s keep going—our breakthrough is waiting on the other side! Good luck!
Courtesy The Productivty Game channel.
If you need help or some motivation, join me LIVE on Twitch from Monday to Friday, 10:00 AM - 3:30 PM EST! 📚✍️ I’ll be working on my second book, and together we’ll tackle tasks using the Pomodoro Method for focused work sessions. Bring your to-do list, and let’s boost our productivity side-by-side! 🚀
