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Simon Sinek - What to Do When You Want to Give Up | Simon Sinek

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Author: Simon Sinek
Categories: Productivity History Psychology
Tags: productivity, history, psychology
Views: 2 · Last viewed: 2026-10-16 00:55 UTC

Short Summary

Main recommendation: when you feel like giving up on a hard task, don't quit alone; reach out to someone who will stand with you and remind you why you committed. Simon Sinek describes nearly abandoning Leaders Eat Last, then calling a friend in the Air Force Special Forces whose advice, "This is what you signed up for," together with the reassurance that he would be there, turned him around and kept him writing.

Key Points

  • Sinek had missed multiple deadlines on Leaders Eat Last, had decided to quit, and was already planning his exit, including returning the publisher's advance.
  • He rationalized quitting by noting that about 10,000 books are published each year and that no one would miss one more.
  • He called a friend, a former helicopter pilot, and asked "What do you do when you can't complete the mission?" rather than talking through his decision alone.
  • The friend's own story: he once considered leaving the Air Force until he read Start With Why, which kept him in service and made him a better leader.
  • The most important part of the friend's message was support: "I will be here with you" and "I've got your back," not the harsh line itself.
  • Sinek finished the book months later and never considered quitting again once he knew someone had his back.

Details Worth Noting

  • Concrete instructions: When you feel like quitting, call a trusted person instead of deciding alone, and ask them directly what to do when you cannot complete the task. Make sure they know you can contact them at any time. Use their reassurance to return to the work and keep going.
  • The friend's mission example: a suicide mission in Afghanistan where the wingman asked whether to refuse; the friend answered "This is what we signed up for. We go."
  • The friend's advice reframed the choice: the speaker had no choice because he had committed to the work.
  • Sinek returned to his desk and finished the book, but not that night; it took months.
  • The anecdote is personal and anecdotal; the video presents it as Sinek's experience, not as research.

Bottom Line

Quitting feels easier when you face it alone, but a single supportive person who commits to standing with you can be enough to make you finish what you started.