When Is It Time To Throw In The Towel?

No matter which way you lean politically, watching Hillary Rodham Clinton’s almost endless battle to become the Democratic presidential nominee might remind you of an important question for all of us, especially entrepreneurs: When is it time to throw in the towel?

If you’ve ever put dollar after dollar into a new business, or fought day and night to keep a struggling business alive, you know how hard it is to decide when the time is right to say, “Enough!” The same, of course, is true when you wrestle with personal questions such as how long to stay in a going-nowhere relationship, bad marriage or unsatisfying job.

Most of us have a hard time figuring out when it’s time to pull the plug on anything we’ve put our heart and soul into.

We know we need to give any undertaking a reasonable chance to develop, mature and build momentum. New businesses, for instance, usually take from two to five years to become profitable. If we’re too quick to quit, we’ll never make a go of anything. And we’ve heard stories of millionaires — if not billionaires — who were deep in debt, down to their last dollar, but because they believed in their dream, were finally able to succeed.

But there’s a big difference between giving something enough time to grow and holding on when there’s no real future. Next time you’re in one of those 3 a.m. heart-to-heart sessions with yourself — wondering whether it’s finally time to get out of a business, project, partnership or relationship — ask yourself:

• Are you really devoted to making this work or are you just afraid of, or unwilling to, change?

Face it, most of us don’t make the hard decisions because we’re just plain afraid of making changes. We resist change until our lives are so uncomfortable or our bills so overwhelming that we’re forced to.

• What direction have things generally been going?

Is there energy and positive movement, but you’re having a momentary downturn in an otherwise positive picture? Or are you facing just one more loss in a long series of defeats? If things are stagnant — and they’ve been stagnant for a long time — is this really what you want for yourself? Be brave enough to be honest.

• Are you learning or improving?

Sometimes, a specific project may not be a huge success, but the increased knowledge or skills are worth the effort. This particular experience may be positioning you to succeed in your next effort, and the costs are a relative inexpensive way to learn some critical skills.

• What is your “opportunity cost”?

If you weren’t involved with this project/business/relationship, what could you be doing with your energy, time, money instead? Are you willing to devote more time, resources and energy on this rather than moving in a new direction?

• What effect is this situation having on you and your family and friends?

You may be willing to forge ahead, but at what price to others and your own emotional and physical well being? If everyone is managing to handle the stress well, then you may have the option of sticking with it longer.

• Finally, take a good hard look in the mirror and ask yourself whether there’s truly a reasonable chance, not just a last-ditch hope that things are going to get better.

Can you truly get the customers you need? If not, maybe it’s time to make the tough choice.

Perhaps it’s finally time to throw in the towel — and get on with your life.

Rhonda Abrams is the author of “Six-Week Start-Up” and “What Business Should I Start?”