The Dip...steps to Paradise

By Dale Shumaker
4spirit@gmail.com

The Dip... the little book that teaches you when to quit (and when to stick) by Seth Godin.

It is a short book, but like these book summaries, right to the point. As Seth says, "Write less is better." It seems more books carry a proverbial style like the Dip.

Quitting is wise when you quit when you should. Winners never quit is simply not true explains Godin. "They just quit the wrong stuff at the right time."
"Quit the wrong stuff."
"Stick with the right stuff."
"Have the guts to do one or the other."

Target doing one thing.
Be the best in the world at something.
Find that something that's you.
Godin points out the difference of being #1 compared to 2, 3, 4.... is at least double in most cases. "Pick the right thing and do it all the way." In a free market, the exceptional gets much more.

Strategic quitting is the secret of successful organizations. First, understand situations that should cause you to quit. This decision comes to head in the dip.

Curve 1, the dip is the long slog between starting (when things go well, or are going). Successful people who know what they are doing is right "lean into the dip, push harder, change the rules."

Curve 2 is the cul-de-sac.
This is a dead end so the decision to get out is obvious, but obviously many don't see how obvious it is. When in it, don't embrace it. Get out fast.

Curve 3 is the cliff.
Some things start off smoking, climb to great heights, that fall off like falling off a cliff. Like smoking cigarettes. You can't quit until you fall off... and die from it. If it's worth doing, there's probably a time you face a decision to get out or move over.

Cul-de-sacs are boring, cliffs are exciting but neither gets through the dip... they lead to failure.

The remedy... know about the dip before you start. If you know it's right, the brave thing is to press through. If it's not right, don't even start. "Simply put, if you can't make it through the Dip, don't start."

When you are doing what's right, being the best in the world, capturing the market you target, you run away from your competition. Why? In the dip, most quit, so your competition dwindles. Then guess what... you're so far ahead, no one can catch you. "The goal of any competitor is to create a Dip so long and so deep that the nascent competition can't catch up."

So quit dead ends in pursuits, avoid heading to cliffs and merge from the dip. Embrace the drip and treat it as the opportunity it really is. The Dip makes the project worthwhile.

Why might you fail to be the best in the world... run out of time, money, get scared, not serious about it, lose interest, focus on short-term, pick the wrong thing you can be the best in the world... and quit.

Eight Dip Curves: (See the Dip coming.)
Manufacturing Dip... your garage is not big enough for the large scale production equipment and processes.
Sales Dip... sales needs to be professional caliber.
Education Dip... must hone new business skills to compete at greater levels.
Risk Dip... must rent the bigger building, get more sophisticated investment injection.
Relationship Dip... building relationships all along the way. Old toes stomped on will come back to kick you in the rear.
Conceptual Dip... reinvention is necessary.
Ego Dip... must have control over everything. Need to relinquish control to others to handle developing areas.
Distribution Dip... getting connected with powerful distributors is harder.
The moral of the Dip story is... before you start know your Dips. They come with growth. If you don't want to face it, press through, be the best in the world, don't start.

Dips can be a "go up opportunity." Quit what you don't care about, are mediocre at. Otherwise buckle your seat belt and enjoy the bumpy ride of the dip for a while.

Serial quitting is also bad. It's jumping line to get in another line that looks faster. Serial quitters jump lines quickly thinking they will have a faster line to success. As serial quitters drop out as soon as they hit another dip, you begin gaining and leaving them farther behind. They then become less a threat as serious competition. Those who face the Dip end up being the winners.

When you get through the dip the others are too far behind to catch up. The market rewards dip travelers.

The opposite of quitting is "re-dedication... an invigorating new strategy to break the problems apart."

When should you quit.
Quitting at the right time for the right reason is good. Quit when you are in a cul-de-sac, approaching a cliff, when the rewards are not worth it, when your time, passion, resources can't make you reach being the best in the world. So quitting is a recommended, admirable strategy.

Why quit?
It frees you to put full energy into something else. Don't let pride of "I'm not a quitter!" keep you from quitting.
Ask these questions:
1. Am I panicking? Decide in advance when you will quit, so it's not the stress of the dip or emotions that make you quit.
2. Who am I trying to influence? If it's a person you must influence, and there is no way to change that... then quit. But if it's a market, then a constant effort gets the "right people" talking and you eventually find them.
"Different people in the market are seeking different things. Sergey Brin, co-founder of Google, told me."
"We knew that Google was going to get better every single day we worked on it.... The later you tried it, the better for us.... So we were never in a big hurry to get you to use it today. Tomorrow would be better."
3. What sort of measurable progress am I making? Continuing without any sign of forward progress is a waste. Quitting is then good. But, if you have a few happy customers, they can eventually lead you to more. Are conditions still favorable? If you see progress in new, or redirected areas, the rewards are worth it, then continue maneuvering through the dip.

The major point... know the dip before you get there, and be prepared to navigate creatively, strategically through it.

Godin's final word,
"If it scares you, it might be a good thing to try."
If you have a Dip story, Seth Godin invites you to post it at
www.sethgodin.com/thebestintheworld

The dip is when it seems things aren't right, going as planned, or going as we hoped. When Jesus was killed by his adversaries, many lost hope. Because what they hoped for had been lost... They thought.

Paul the Apostle, felt that when he was put in prison, beaten. But he also knew there was more... to hope for.

Os Hillman shared an experience of his dip. Where he saw himself as a total failure. After his marriage broke up, his business collapsed, lost everything, he felt totally lost.
From a chapter in his book, The Upside of Adversity, Os Hillman shared a meeting he had with Gunnar Olson.
"I recognized his voice from the tape. J. Gunnar Olson—founder and president of the International Christian Chamber of Commerce(ICCC)—was a busy man. He was making final preparations for an international conference of the ICCC that very night."

"To be candid, Mr. Olson, I'm not even sure why the Lord has led me here today. I only know that I feel like a complete failure. I've failed as a businessman, as a husband, as a father, and as a Christian."
(Os Hillman tells Mr. Oslon his story.)
"Oh, you're hardly alone, my friend. In fact, your story fits a pattern so common that I have a name for it: the Joseph Calling. Os, you're not a failure. God has placed a Joseph Calling upon your life." "What's a Joseph Calling?"
"Put simply, this is what it means: Like Joseph, God calls some leaders to experience extraordinary levels of adversity in order to accomplish extraordinary things through them. Why? Because He knows that adversity builds character and produces wisdom in the life of a leader. God will use this adversity for good in your life and in the lives of others. That's the principle of the Joseph Calling."
To read the whole chapter note:
http://www.marketplaceleaders.org/pages.asp?pageid=44704

This is so characteristic of the Spiritual way. The Bible relates numerous stories where when the rewards are the greatest, the sacrifices leading to it are equally great. Suffering, as we may see it, is Spiritual training ground for even greater works of the Spirit in us, and especially for the benefit of many others... in a revolutionary way.

The Passion of Christ movie portrays the earnestness of Jesus to go through with the cross. He knew the extraordinary benefits this would bring to whole mankind... the extravagant rewards. He endured for the sake of this Glory.

Paul the Apostle was a well respected religious leader of his day, but after converting to the message of Jesus he had horrible experiences as he reflected...

"Five different times the Jewish leaders gave me thirty-nine lashes.Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked. Once I spent a whole night and a day adrift at sea. I have traveled on many long journeys. I have faced danger from rivers and from robbers. I have faced danger from my own people, the Jews, as well as from the Gentiles. I have faced danger in the cities, in the deserts, and on the seas. And I have faced danger from men who claim to be believers but are not. I have worked hard and long, enduring many sleepless nights. I have been hungry and thirsty and have often gone without food. I have shivered in the cold, without enough clothing to keep me warm."
(2 Corinthians 11:24-27, NLT)

Why would any sane person live like this?
Why did the Apostle Paul go through all this?
He saw Paradise!

This Paradise was his goal, his reward. To Paul, the effort was worth it.
"I was caught up to the third heaven fourteen years ago.
I was caught up to paradise
and heard things so astounding that
they cannot be expressed in words,
things no human is allowed to tell."
(2 Corinthians 12:2,4, NLT)

This was so astoundingly marvelous, spectacular, Paul could not even talk about it. When we have a vision so strong that we see the unquestionable rewards of it, the dip experiences are worth it.

Jesus referred to Paradise on the cross. He told the one criminal beside him that he would share with Him in Paradise... a real-life Utopian civilization beyond earth we will too experience. With "astounding" rewards for those who press through to complete their assignments while on earth.

Is your vision this strong.
Is your life on a mission about the kingdom of Heaven,
that it is worth whatever you must go through to see it fulfilled.
Is the reward for what you are working toward worth it.

Jesus knew of paradise and even the cross would not stop Him. Paul saw paradise and going from notoriety to suffering in life, could not stop him.

When in Spirit we can taste the Kingdom of Heaven.
Live, dream and be ecstatic in this Paradise.

When we spend time there before our duties of the day, nothing that comes up during the day keeps us from pressing on. It brings gratitude into our hearts, when we have great victories during the day. God will get you through the dips.

"Wait patiently for the Lord.
Be brave and have courage!
Yes, wait patiently for the Lord."
(Psalm 27:14, NLT)

It will drive you through any obstacle, defy setbacks and move you constantly to climb to the mountain top of your vision and dreams Spirit puts on your heart.

As Paul says, "your attitude should be the same as Jesus."

The reward is being raised up to the heights of Heaven
and have the greatest Life Style in the universe along with Jesus.

Is the reward worth it?
Is there any reward greater than living in this Paradise forever!