Quitting
by Doug Reese TTNL
Fred Dixon ran the decathlon back in the 1970's. Fred was an excellent athlete, in fact he qualified and made the U.S. Olympic Team in 1976 in Montreal.
Dixon had high hopes going into the Olympic Games, but as Dixon competed in the first event he did not do so well. In the second event he didn't perform well either. In the third event, Dixon even did more poorly. By the fifth event, he realized he was hoplessly unable to win, so Fred Dixon quit.
Alone with his thoughts, and struggling with what that meant, and knowing that it went against the grain of his heart, Dixon realized, "Someday I am going to have children, and they are going to read about the events in the Montreal Olympics. And they're going to read their daddy quit." With some strong, firm, consistent talking, Dixon convinced the Olympic race officials into letting him finish the decathlon.

The second day of the competition, Dixon finished all of the events. In 1977, Dixon became the number one ranked athlete in the decathlon in the United States. In 1980, Dixon once again made the Olympic Team. Fred Dixon endured.

Athletic Principle

There is an old saying in sports, "It's not over 'til the fat lady sings." In other words - never, never quit. Momentum can change in a heartbeat. One big play can change the entire complexion of a competition: a turnover in football; a three-point shot followed by a steal in basketball; a couple of walks, then an error, then a shot over the left field fence in baseball; a knockout punch can be landed at any moment.
"I hated every minute of the training, but I said, 'Don't quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion." - Muhammed Ali, World Champion Boxer
Now matter what happens in business, life or sports, don't quit! Quitters are losers; they have the bad habit of giving up before it's over. Winners set goals and work hard; they don't let anything stop them from reaching their goal. The only true way to fail to reach your goal is to quit. It makes sense that the more time you spend in preparation, the more you will want to win. Why? Because you have more of yourself invested in the process. When you develop the habit of winning, you will do anything not to lose or quit.

Quitting can sound easy, but it isn't. If you aren't in condition or you have not sacrificed, it will be a lot easier to quit because you will have little to lose. If you don't have losts of pride, or take the time to develop it, it will be easier for you to walk away and quit, because you will have little motivation to win.

The less time you spend on preparation, the less you have sacrificed, or "paid the price"; and the less pride you will have - making it easier to quit. Quitters are good losers because they have developed the habit.

It is logical that the more you commit yourself to what you are doing, the more you will want to win. Likewise, the more you can't stand losing, the harder it will be to quit.

Winners have a strong mental attitude which refuses to let them give up. Some coaches call this "heart." But there are times when you do lose - even the great champions do on occassion. When you lose, lose with pride and with style and grace. Go down swinging. Take your best shot and Don't Quit!

God's Performance Principle