**Episode Summary:** Am I quitting, or am I pivoting? It's a hard question to ask yourself, and it's not always easy to tell the difference. From the outside, they can look exactly the same—you're walking away, changing direction, letting go. But the reason behind it is what matters. **In This Episode:** - Why quitting and pivoting can look identical from the outside - The key difference: quitting is reactive, pivoting is proactive - How the sunk cost fallacy keeps us stuck in the wrong situations - Why pivoting requires just as much courage as starting (maybe more) - The cost of staying too long because you're afraid of "failing" - How to examine your motives: Are you being reactionary or proactive? - Why aligning your plans with long-term goals matters more than short-term comfort - The truth about walking away from something that no longer serves you **Key Takeaway:** Quitting comes from frustration or fear—it's about avoiding discomfort. Pivoting is strategic—it's about honest evaluation, self-awareness, and redirecting your energy toward something that actually aligns with where you want to go. If you're walking away from something that's not serving you and stepping into something that does, that's not failure. That's growth. **Resources:** Ready to explore alternative paths to wealth and freedom? Visit [FlowersCapital.com](https://FlowersCapital.com) to join the list. --- **Full Transcript:** I'm Eric Burns. This is The Bullish Life. There was a question that is admittedly very hard to ask myself. Am I quitting, or am I pivoting? And honestly, it's not always easy to tell the difference because from the outside, they can look the same. You're walking away from something, you're changing direction, you're letting go of what you've been working toward. But the reason behind it is what matters and what I need to examine. I've been thinking about this a lot lately because I've walked away from things before. Sometimes it was the right call, and sometimes I wonder if I gave up too soon. And the hard part is that you don't always know which one it is until you're on the other side of it. Here's my take on it. Quitting usually comes from a place of frustration or fear, and it's reactive. It's when things get hard and I just want it to stop, when I'm tired of the struggle and I convince myself it's not worth it. And the problem with quitting is that it's usually about avoiding discomfort, not about moving toward something better. But pivoting, that's different. Pivoting is strategic. It's when I realize that the path I'm on isn't taking me where I want to go, and I make a conscious decision to adjust. It's not about giving up, it's about being honest with myself about what's working and what's not. And it's about being willing to let go of something that no longer serves me, even if I've already invested time and energy into it. And that investment and time and energy is really a hard pill to swallow. It's tough knowing if I walk away now, everything I put into it is wasted, but I also think that can keep me stuck. Sometimes it's easier to keep going than admit I was on the wrong path. Maybe not easy, but more comfortable. I've stayed in situations longer than I should have because I didn't want to feel like I quit or like I failed. And the cost of that was time, time I could have spent building something that actually aligned with where I wanted to go. And when I finally did walk away, it wasn't because I quit, it was because I pivoted. I made a choice to redirect my energy toward something that made more sense. Quitting is reactive, but pivoting is proactive. The truth is, pivoting requires just as much courage as starting in the first place, maybe more. Because when you start something, you're excited and optimistic. But when you pivot, you're admitting that something was off, and that takes an honest evaluation of the facts and seeing the situation for what it is. It takes self-awareness, and it takes the willingness to let go of the story you've been telling yourself about what success is supposed to look like. It is definitely not an easy question to answer, but here's how I look at the difference. First, I want to know if I'm being reactionary or being proactive. If I'm reacting because the situation is difficult, or I'm burned out or even having a bad day, then I really need to examine my motives. Being proactive is examining the reality of the situation and asking myself if my plans are still aligned with my goals. My plans need to fit my long-term goals or they are not aligned. Maybe the dynamics of the situation have changed. The point is being proactive is accounting for reality and factual information, not reacting to my feelings or temperament. Sometimes that question needs to be answered, but sometimes it's a matter of just knowing what I'm working toward. If I am clear on that question and I'm walking away from something that is not serving me and stepping into something that does, that is not quitting. It's not a failure, it's a pivot, and sometimes pivots mean growth. If you're ready to explore alternative paths to wealth and freedom, visit FlowersCapital.com to join the list. I'm Eric Burns. Live life bullish.
