How To Keep Commitments (Even When They SUCK): An Overachiever’s Strategy To Pull Through Pain

Wanna know how to keep commitments when everything in you is dying to quit? This post is dedicated to helping you pull through the brutal, soul-sucking dip in the middle: the part where motivation dies, doubt creeps in, and your once-exciting commitments feel like a mistake.

If you’ve ever found yourself thinking, Why did I even start this?– you are in the Dip. That nasty, unavoidable stretch where progress slows down, resistance ramps up, and quitting feels like the most logical choice. We overachievers know this feeling too well. We love taking on big goals, set high expectations, and believe in sheer willpower. But discipline feels like garbage when you’re knee-deep in struggles and have nothing concrete to show for all your effort.

What you’re going to learn is how to survive the Dip without losing your dream, and sanity in the process, You’ll learn to separate real struggle from dead ends, reframe pain into purpose, and actually train your brain to embrace the suck. We’ll talk about long-term thinking and how to keep your future self in focus, as well as the practical tricks that get you through the pain when quitting feels like the only way to end all this pain.

After you’ve learned to pull yourself through this slog, you’ll be able to stay committed to the projects & people that are worth your effort, without burning yourself out or getting trapped into something that is just a dead end. You’ll feel more in charge of the challenge, more aligned with your long-term vision, and way more capable of handling the messy middle of any worthwhile goal.

This post is all about how to keep commitments so you can get through to the other side: the place where results, momentum, and real success live.

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How To Keep Commitments

There’s no sugarcoating it: the Dip is an excruciating hell-loop. It’s where you start to doubt whether or not your effort is actually worth it. When your brain is in chaos, your nervous system yells inside, rooting for you to escape the discomfort as fast as possible. That’s why quitting feels so logical! When you’re stuck in this place, your whole brain & nervous system operate in this low-vibe panic state. It starts prioritizing short-term reliefs over long-term success, tempting you to cave.

For this post, we’re gonna assume that you’ve chosen an actual worthwhile goal and not a dead-end. On top of that, I’m gonna assume that you’ve prepared your non-negotiables and keep your boundaries solid here. Because!!! I really don’t want you to pull through something painful that’s not truthfully deserving your effort & energy. In case you’re not sure what this emotional homework is about, check out this one:

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This post won’t promise you that everything will magically improve if you just hold on. No fluff, no false hope, I won’t do that to you. What you’re in right now SUCKS. So. HARD. But just because there is no magic fairy dust to sprinkle over the pain, doesn’t mean that improvement isn’t coming.

Pulling yourself through this Dip is worth it. If you survive this stretch, if you push past the mental war, then what’s on the other side is more than just success. It’s proof that you can handle more pain than you initially realised. That you are on the way to unlocking even more potential. And that is what builds unstoppable resilience.

The Dip Is Supposed To Suck … So. Stop Expecting It To Be Easy!

One of the biggest mistakes we fall prey to? Thinking the Dip is some kind of problem instead of seeing it for what it truly is. PROOF that you’re on the right track. In his book ‘The Dip’ Seth Godin states that anything worth doing has a phase where it gets harder before it gets better. Nothing to do about it. Just how the process works.

Think about hiking a long distance trail with tons of mountains. First few miles are exciting, right? You’re energized, excited, and feel strong. But then. That climb. The air things, your legs burn, and suddenly, this amazing adventure feels like the stupidest decision you’ve made so far! That is the Dip. And it’s where most people quit.

Doubt will always show up in this stage. Guaranteed, your brain will whisper you every excuse. Maybe this just isn’t for you, maybe you should focus on something else, or, maybe quitting is actually self-care. Ignore it! Doubt in the Dip is normal, and this is one of the rare situations where denial can actually be your best buddy for once. Unless you’re forcing a dead end or ignoring your non-negotiables, keep going! This moment of doubt is resistance trying to get the upper hand.

Keep in mind that pain doesn’t mean something is wrong. If the climb were easy, everyone would do it, and the view at the top wouldn’t be worth ANYTHING. The same applies for your commitment. The Dip is what creates values. The fact that it’s a hard thing to do, makes the success so rare.

The Dip Is A TEST. Most People Fail (But Not You, Right!?)

Time for some actual strategy, starting with a fresh perspective … Ever considered that this pain is actually providing purpose? The Dip isn’t just a rough patch! It’s a FILTER! It separates those who say they want success from those strong enough to earn it. The struggle you’re feeling right now? That’s the thing keeping your competition small.

Most people give up in this period, which is exactly WHY pulling through makes you stand out in the long game. It creates scarcity. The harder it is to get through, the fewer people make it. And the fewer people who make it, the more valuable the reward. Not to bore you with economics 101, but you can see how this is exactly what we overachievers thrive on right? You don’t just want to finish and achieve. You want to be one of the special rare ones who actually make it!

Every major success story has a Dip. The athletes, the artists, the entrepreneurs: they all faced moments where quitting made so much more sense. But the difference between them and the rest, is that they didn’t (Duhhh). They understood that on the other side of struggle is exclusivity. You’re already proving you’re on this right track, so, please, hold on! I know this stretch is excruciating and aggravating, and that’s super valid. But try to find reassurance in the thought that you’re actually on the road of setting yourself apart.

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Visualize Your Upcoming Success Relentlessly: Your Brain Needs To See It To Believe It

You probably already know this, but your brain struggles with just as much with long-term commitments, because it can not see the reward. This is partly why the Dip feels so endless. Your mind isn’t convinced that the effort will actually pay off. And the key, of course, is to make your success visible before you even get there.

Picture yourself on the other side and try to imagine the sensory experience. Feel the excitement already of hitting that milestone, winning the prize, and proving that you were strong enough to pull through the Dip. See the details. What you’ll feel, how life will look, the way others will recognize what you’ve accomplished. Make sure it’s real in your mind, and your brain will start treating it as inevitable.

I know it’s a bit of a silly exercise, but as I mentioned before, denial is your buddy in the Dip. Reinforce it as much as you can. Write it down, create a vision board, or track your progress visually so you see movement even when it feels slow. I also highly recommend making ‘the wall’. This way, when doubt creeps in, you can pull yourself up on that mental image of success and remind yourself: I’m already on my way. It’s only a matter of time. I just need to keep going.

Shift Your Structure & Strategy, Not The Commitment

As the last piece of advice to survive this trying period, I would like to try thinking in adjustments. Most people quit in the Dip, not because they can’t succeed, but because they don’t adjust their approach. They assume that if one strategy fails, the entire thing is doomed. But that’s a misconception. The key isn’t changing the goal. It’s changing the plan.

Step back and analyze. Consider some out of the box thinking too. Is the struggle due to a missing skill, lack of structure, or external resistance? Are you overwhelmed and captivated by time anxiety? Because if something isn’t working, you should tweak it. Successful people aren’t the ones who never struggle (even tho it always looks like that from the outside). In reality, they’re the ones who refuse to let a setback define the outcome.

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The Dip isn’t telling you to quit. Only dead ends and crossing the boundaries of your non-negotiables should allow you to do that. So, instead of questioning your commitment, try questioning your method first. When you shift your strategy, you regain control over the situation. And that is what gets you through.

How To Keep Commitments (Summary)

The Dip is the ultimate overachiever test. If you wat to keep your commitments, it’s time to embrace the suck. The Dip isn’t a mistake. It’s the process of elimination. Recognize it for what it is and pull yourself through the dirt to get to the gold. Face the test. You know now that it’s filtering out the ones who aren’t strong enough to keep going. Prove that YOU do.

Visualize your success. Make the reward real in your mind so your brain starts to believe it’s possible. Finally, adjust the strategy if needed. If something’s not working, tweak the approach, but don’t change the big goal. Success IS on the other side of the Dip. Your only job is to stay standing, and get there.

This post was all about how to keep commitments so you can get through to the other side: the place where results, momentum, and real success live.

We aim to help you out as much as possible, but please keep in mind that the content is for general informational and educational purposes only. It's not a substitute for professional advice.