You’re probably working on something right now that feels like a total slog. Maybe it's a startup, a fitness goal, or a new career path. At first, it was exciting. Now? It’s just hard. This is exactly what Seth Godin warned us about years ago.
The Dip by Seth Godin isn't just a book; it’s a tiny manifesto about the physics of success. Most people think winners never quit. That’s a lie. Winners quit all the time. They just quit the right stuff at the right time.
If you’re stuck in the messy middle, you need to figure out if you're in a temporary setback or a dead end. Seriously. Staying in the wrong thing is just as dangerous as leaving the right thing too early.
The Brutal Reality of the Curve
Godin breaks the world into three curves. Most of us are stuck on the wrong one.
First, there’s The Dip. This is the long, hard stretch between starting and mastery. It’s where the "beginner’s luck" wears off and the real work begins. If you’re trying to become the best in the world at something, the Dip is your best friend. Why? Because it keeps your competitors out. If it were easy, everyone would do it, and your success wouldn't be worth anything. The value is created by the scarcity that the Dip produces.
Then you have The Cul-de-Sac. This is French for "dead end." You work and work, but nothing changes. It doesn’t get better, and it doesn't get worse. It just is. This is where most people waste their lives. They stay in a job they hate or a business that’s stagnating because they’re afraid to quit. Godin is blunt here: if you’re in a Cul-de-Sac, you need to get out immediately. Every minute you spend there is a minute you aren't investing in a Dip that matters.
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Finally, there’s The Cliff. This is rare but dangerous. Think of something like smoking. It feels good right up until the moment it kills you. There’s no reward at the end, just a sudden drop.
Why Quitting is a Strategic Move
We’ve been brainwashed to think quitting is for losers. It’s not. Quitting is a tool.
If you realize you don't have the resources, the passion, or the market opportunity to become "best in the world," quitting is the smartest thing you can do. Honestly, if you can’t make it through the Dip to reach the top, you shouldn't have started in the first place. That sounds harsh, but it's true.
Strategic quitting is about focus. By quitting the things where you’re just "average," you free up the emotional and physical energy to push through the Dip in the one area where you can actually excel.
Average is for losers.
In a world of infinite choice, nobody looks for the "pretty good" plumber or the "okay" software architect. We want the best. The rewards for being #1 are 10x or 100x greater than being #10. If you aren't aiming for the top of your specific niche, you're just taking up space and wasting your own potential.
How to Tell if You Should Walk Away
Deciding to quit is emotional. We have "sunk cost bias," which is a fancy way of saying we don't want to admit we wasted time. But that time is gone anyway.
Before you quit, ask yourself three questions:
- Am I panicking? Never quit when you’re panicking. Panic is an emotion, not a strategy. The best time to decide to quit is before you even start, or when things are going relatively okay and you can see the path ahead clearly.
- Who am I trying to influence? If you’re trying to influence one person (like a bad boss), they might never change. That’s a Cul-de-Sac. If you’re trying to influence a market (like selling a product), the market is much more logical over the long term.
- Is there measurable progress? Even if it’s slow, are you moving forward? If the answer is no, and hasn't been for a long time, you're likely not in a Dip.
The "Best in the World" Fallacy
People get hung up on the "world" part. You don't have to be the best on the entire planet. You just have to be the best for the person looking for a solution right now.
If I'm looking for a vegan bakery in downtown Austin, I don't care who the best baker in Paris is. I want the best one in my "world" at that moment. You can define your world by geography, by niche, or by a specific problem.
The smaller the niche, the easier it is to get through the Dip and become the leader. Once you're the leader, you get the lions' share of the rewards, which gives you the resources to tackle an even bigger Dip later.
Specific Examples of the Dip in Action
Look at organic chemistry for pre-med students. It’s a classic Dip. It’s incredibly hard, and its primary job is to filter out people who aren't committed enough to be doctors. If you can't get past "O-Chem," you don't get to be a surgeon. The difficulty of the class is what makes the medical profession prestigious and high-paying.
In business, think about a startup's "Product-Market Fit" phase. You have a version 1.0. It’s buggy. Nobody's buying. This is the Dip. The founders who quit here are forgotten. The ones who lean in, pivot, and grind until they hit that hockey-stick growth are the ones we read about in Fast Company.
But wait. What about Microsoft’s Zune? That was a Cul-de-Sac. They poured millions into it, but it was never going to beat the iPod. They stayed in it way too long because of ego. They should have quit sooner and moved those engineers to something that actually had a chance to lead a market.
How to Handle the Stress of the Middle
The middle is lonely. It’s where the cheering stops.
To survive The Dip by Seth Godin, you have to change your relationship with pain. Most people see pain as a sign to stop. You need to see it as a sign that you’re doing the work that scares others away.
- Write down your quitting conditions before you start. "I will quit if I don't hit X revenue by Y date."
- Find a Sherpa. Talk to someone who has been through this specific Dip before. They can tell you if the view at the top is worth it.
- Don't settle for "fine." Fine is the enemy of great. If you’re just coasting, you’re in a Cul-de-Sac.
Actionable Steps to Master Your Career
Stop being a generalist. Generalists get crushed in the Dip because they spread their energy too thin across five different curves. Pick one.
- Audit your current projects. List everything you’re working on. Label them: Dip, Cul-de-Sac, or Cliff.
- Quit the Cul-de-Sacs today. Seriously. Send the email. Close the project. It will feel like a failure for five minutes, and then it will feel like a massive weight has been lifted off your shoulders.
- Lean into your Dip. Take the energy you saved from quitting the dead ends and pour it into your primary goal. If the Dip is what creates value, then you should be looking for ways to make the Dip even deeper for your competitors.
- Identify your "World." Define exactly who you want to be the best for. Shrink the market until you are the undisputed #1, then expand from there.
- Differentiate between "Short-term Pain" and "Long-term Prospects." If the pain is just because the work is hard, keep going. If the pain is because there is no light at the end of the tunnel, get out.
The secret to success isn't just "grit." It’s the ability to distinguish between a temporary struggle and a permanent dead end. When you find the right Dip, don't just walk through it. Run. The rewards on the other side are reserved for the few who refuse to quit when everyone else does.