Good morning!
I hope this finds you well.
Welcome to another edition of The Matt Viera Newsletter.
The newsletter with the goal to inspire you to invest in life experiences.
Thank you for your continued support.
Grab your FREE copy of The Beginner’s Guide to Mini-Retirements by clicking here.
Last week, I wrote about the simple rule most people ignore.
Shortly after the article was published, I received an email from a subscriber asking an honest question:
“Sometimes isn’t giving up the best thing to do?”
The subscriber added that people may “find themselves stuck in situations and experiences they probably should have left a long time ago.”
What’s funny is that earlier that same morning, I had been thinking about two moments in my own life when I did exactly that.
I gave up.
Or more accurately, I quit.
And in both cases, quitting turned out to be the best decision I could have made.
The first was when I decided to leave the Army.
Long story short, I found myself assigned to a job I absolutely did not enjoy. It was the kind of role where I dreaded waking up every morning. The hours were long, the work drained me, and I felt completely stuck.
In the Army, you can’t just submit a two-week notice.
So I stayed until my time was up.
And when it ended, I made the decision to leave.
That decision wasn’t easy because I loved the Army. If not for that one assignment, I probably would have stayed for a full career. But I knew continuing down that path meant ignoring what I already felt deep down.
So I left with an honorable discharge and moved on.
The plan at the time was simple: finish college and eventually return to the Army.
But life had other plans.
I moved to Miami, finished school, and instead chose a completely different path.
I went to law school and became an attorney.
Which leads to the second time I quit.
I graduated law school in 2008, during the height of the Great Recession. Entry-level legal jobs were difficult to find, but I eventually landed positions. I left the first job for another, hoping things would improve.
They didn’t.
Long hours. Minimal time off. A constant feeling that my life existed almost entirely inside an office.
Eventually, I made another difficult decision.
I quit practicing law.
In both cases, I walked away because I recognized something important:
I felt like I was wasting time.
I couldn’t see where either path was ultimately leading.
I couldn’t see growth, fulfillment, or a future that aligned with the life I wanted to live.
And because life is short, I chose to step away and explore something different.
Today, I’m in year fifteen of my current career.
I have stability. I’m comfortable financially. I’ve grown professionally.
Most importantly, I don’t dread waking up in the morning.
And no matter how challenging a day might be, I always have time away from work to look forward to.
The Lesson
Persistence is powerful.
But persistence without direction can quietly become self-imposed suffering.
There’s an important difference between quitting because something is hard and quitting because something is wrong.
One requires resilience.
The other requires honesty.
Sometimes the real courage isn’t holding on longer.
Sometimes it’s recognizing when a chapter has run its course.
What’s the Point of All This?
The point is to emphasize that many people stay in situations far longer than they should because leaving feels like failure.
Careers. Relationships. Commitments.
We’re taught that success belongs to the people who never quit.
Everyone knows the saying, “Quitters never win and winners never quit.”
But what often gets overlooked is that growth sometimes requires letting go of paths that no longer lead where you want to go.
When you begin to feel consistently stuck, when you cannot see progress or purpose, and when the cost to your mental, physical, or emotional well-being keeps rising, that feeling deserves attention.
Quitting isn’t always losing.
Sometimes it’s course correction.
The Final Point
Yes, there are moments when pushing through is the right decision.
But there are also moments when walking away is how you win.
The key question isn’t, “Am I giving up?”
The better question is:
“Is this still leading me where I want to go?”
Because sometimes the best decision you can make is not to endure indefinitely, but to choose your time, your energy, and your life more intentionally.
And sometimes, quitting is exactly how you move forward.
Quotes that caught my attention:
"You don't fail by walking away; you fail by staying somewhere you've outgrown."
—Unknown
"Success does not lie in sticking to things. It lies in picking the right thing to stick to and quitting the rest."
—Annie Duke
You can find the collection of financial tools & resources that helped me grow from a 6-figure debt to a 6-figure net worth by clicking here.
Thanks for reading!
Please feel free to reply to this email with suggestions, questions, or comments.
I read every email.
If you have a question about personal finance, travel, or mini-retirements, email me and ask and I’ll discuss the answer in a future article.
If you enjoy The Matt Viera Newsletter, please forward this email to one person you believe would enjoy reading this.
I’m ready to follow you on X (formerly known as Twitter)!
I definitely want to read past articles of The Matt Viera Newsletter!
I’m not a subscriber to The Matt Viera Newsletter and I’m ready to subscribe!
