Every year, like clockwork, National Quitters Day sneaks up on us, typically landing sometime in mid-January. For the uninitiated, National Quitters Day is the moment when society collectively gives up on New Year’s resolutions, admitting we were never going to become shredded or fluent in conversational Mandarin while meal-prepping kale smoothies for the week. Don’t even get me started on all the attempts to be the better version of yourself; “New Year-New You." Here is a little secret: you weren’t that much improved these past couple of weeks, so let that one slide. It’s not an official holiday, of course, but then again, neither is Talk Like a Pirate Day, and look how far that’s come. ARRR'ent you glad I mentioned that one?
This annual festival of futility marks the glorious occasion when we collectively stop pretending to be better versions of ourselves and return to being the lovable and sometimes insufferable messes we were born to be. Statistically speaking, most of us give up on our resolutions around the second week of January. Scientists, who have nothing better to study (probably because they quit their own New Year’s resolutions), have identified this day as the "peak quitting moment"—kind of like a lunar eclipse but sadder and with less dramatic lighting.
A Time-Honored Tradition of Giving Up
The origins of National Quitters Day are unclear, but I like to imagine it began in ancient times when an overambitious caveman named Grog declared, “This year, I will invent fire AND stop eating so many fermented berries.” By mid-January, Grog had achieved neither. Instead, he spent his days gnawing on cold mastodon meat and blaming his lack of fire on “bad rocks.” Grog in this case may have shared my Surname.
In modern times, National Quitters Day is most visible at gyms, which transform overnight from bustling hubs of optimism to desolate wastelands of forgotten water bottles and faint echoes of failed burpees. Fitness centers love January because it’s when millions of people sign up for memberships with the kind of enthusiasm usually reserved for winning the lottery. By the time Quitters Day rolls around, these new members are long gone, leaving behind nothing but unscanned key fobs and the faint scent of eucalyptus and a locker room filled with uneaten protein bars. One can only imagine being shamelessly left behind for a replacement glazed donut.
The Resolutions We Quit
We’ve all made resolutions we had no intention of keeping. Let’s review a few classics:
1. “I’m going to get in shape!”
This is the gold standard of resolutions. It usually involves buying expensive yoga pants and posting sweaty selfies with captions like, “New Year, New Me!” By Quitters Day, the yoga pants are exclusively used for binge-watching crime dramas, and the gym selfies have been replaced with photos of pets.
2. “I’ll save more money this year!”
This resolution typically lasts until you stumble upon an online sale. Sure, you need a third air fryer because this one comes in “matte avocado.”
3. “I’ll be more organized!”
People who make this resolution spend the first week of January buying color-coded planners and label makers. By Quitters Day, the planners are buried under a pile of unopened Amazon packages, and the label maker has been used exactly once—to label the drawer where you keep the label maker.
4. “I’ll stop doomscrolling!”
This one usually involves deleting social media apps... and then immediately re-downloading them because you can’t remember your Aunt Karen’s lasagna recipe and she only shares it on Facebook.
A Day to Celebrate
But here’s the thing: National Quitters Day isn’t a day to feel bad about yourself. Quite the opposite! It’s a day to embrace the fact that you’re human, which means you’re messy, inconsistent, and sometimes you quit things.
Besides, quitting isn’t always a bad thing. Maybe you quit a diet that made you miserable, or a hobby you realized you only started because it looked cool on Instagram. Maybe you quit trying to force yourself to read “Ulysses” and decided to just watch that Netflix series you have also been procrastinating about instead. Good for you!
However, if I can be so bold, I would like to provide you with a tool that has altered my life significantly the last five years. A friend and person I have tremendous admiration for, Jessie Itzler, created a program that not only places your life achievements within the proper perspective (the top of the list), but he has also developed an easy method to achieve completion and a year of fulfillment. I have no affiliation with this system other than to let you know I use it and have gifted it to many, and to date there is a zero-failure rate and a 100% life-altering rate. I will not share the program details here but encourage you to go to the link and make 2025 the greatest year for you and your loved ones.
I can only hope you did not “Quit” reading this before the end.
Bonus tips for those that read to the end:
Set a meaningful goal. If it doesn't truly mean something to you, it's easy to give up.
Break it down. Running a marathon is scary, but running a mile isn't (at least not as scary). Focus on one mile at a time and let the small wins build.
Expect the challenge. It's the whole point. Obstacles will come. Otherwise, why even bother? You will overcome. Action always removes doubt.
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