Is It Wrong to Quit?

Ian says: A few months ago, I started playing the clarinet. It’s not that fun, plus it’s really hard. I love soccer, so I’d rather use my free time to join the travel team. My parents don’t want me to quit the clarinet. But they say the choice is up to me. What do I do?

Ian says: I’ve been playing the clarinet for a few months. It’s not that fun. It’s also really hard. I love soccer, so I’d rather use my free time to join the travel team. My parents don’t want me to quit the clarinet. But they say it’s up to me. What do I do? 

Ian says: I’ve been playing the clarinet for a few months now—but it’s not especially enjoyable, and it’s really difficult. I love soccer, so I’d much rather use my free time to join the travel team. My parents don’t want me to quit the clarinet, but they say the choice is mine. What should I do? 

Angelique says: Stick with it!

    When I was 6, I started ballet. I hated it. I wanted to quit, but my mom convinced me not to. I’m so glad she did! I don’t do ballet anymore. But ballet led me to jazz dance, which I love. That’s why you shouldn’t quit yet. The clarinet could lead you to another hobby, like playing the drums or writing songs.

    You say you’d rather be playing soccer. That’s great that you’ve found something you love! But it’s good to try different activities instead of focusing on just one. Imagine that you spend all your free time playing soccer. What if, in a few years, you hate soccer or get injured? I bet you’d wish you had other hobbies then. 

    Think about why you want to quit the clarinet: Is it because it’s hard? That’s not a good reason! Even if you don’t play the clarinet forever, getting better will make you feel proud. And next time you’re challenged, you’ll know you can handle it!

Angelique says: Stick with it!

    When I was 6, I started ballet. I hated it. I wanted to quit, but my mom convinced me not to. I’m so glad she did! I don’t do ballet anymore. But it led me to jazz dance, which I love. The clarinet could lead you to something you love too. You might try the drums. You might write songs.

    It’s great that you love soccer! But it’s good to have different hobbies instead of just one. What if you spent all your free time playing soccer? In a few years, you might hate soccer or get injured. I bet you’d wish you had other hobbies then.

    Think about why you want to quit the clarinet. Is it because it’s hard? That’s not a good reason! You might not play the clarinet forever. But getting better will make you proud. And next time you’re challenged, you’ll know you can handle it!

Angelique says: Stick with it!

    When I started ballet at age 6, I hated it and wanted to quit—but my mom convinced me not to, and I’m so glad she did! Although I don’t do ballet anymore, it led me to jazz dance, which I love. That’s why you shouldn’t quit yet. The clarinet could lead you to another hobby, like playing the drums or writing songs.

    You say you’d rather be playing soccer. It’s wonderful that you’ve found something you love—but it’s also smart to try different activities instead of focusing on just one. What if you gave all of your attention to soccer for years, only to get injured or decide that you don’t like soccer anymore? You’d probably wish you had other hobbies then.

    Think about why you want to quit the clarinet: If it’s just because it’s challenging, you should consider sticking with it. Even if you don’t play the clarinet forever, developing the skill will make you feel proud. And next time you’re challenged, you’ll know you can handle it!

Mike says: It’s time to quit.

    Your parents are giving you a choice, so I say quit the clarinet! I get that you don’t want to disappoint them. But you shouldn’t keep taking lessons if you don’t love playing. To me, it just seems like a huge waste of time and money. You’ve given the clarinet a few months. That’s enough time to know you don’t like it.

    Letting go of things you don’t enjoy is important. Why? It gives you more time to find activities you really love! The clarinet clearly isn’t your passion, but now you can find out what is. Maybe you’ll start painting or learn to skateboard. Maybe you’ll become a soccer superstar. Isn’t it exciting to think about what’s possible?

    Grown-ups always say to me: “Sometimes you have to do stuff you don’t want to do.” I think that’s true for things like eating broccoli and doing math homework. But when it comes to what we do with our free time, I think it’s best to focus on the activities we love.

Mike says: It’s time to quit.

    Your parents are giving you a choice, so I say quit! I get that you don’t want to disappoint them. But you shouldn’t keep taking lessons if you don’t love it. That would be a waste of time and money. You’ve given the clarinet a few months. That’s enough time to know you don’t like it.

    You need to let go of things you don’t enjoy. Why? It gives you time to find out what you really love! The clarinet clearly isn’t your thing. Now you can find out what is. Maybe you’ll start painting or learn to skateboard. Maybe you’ll become a soccer star. 

    Grown-ups always say to me: “Sometimes you have to do stuff you don’t want to do.” That’s true for things like eating broccoli and doing math homework. But in our free time, I think we should do what we love.

Mike says: It’s time to quit.

    Your parents are giving you a choice, so I say quit the clarinet! I get that you don’t want to disappoint them, but to keep taking lessons when you don’t love playing would be a massive waste of time and money. You’ve given the clarinet a few months, and that’s enough time to know you don’t like it.

    Letting go of things you don’t enjoy is important, because it gives you more time to discover activities you really love. The clarinet clearly isn’t your passion, but now you can find out what is. Maybe you’ll start painting or learn to skateboard. Maybe you’ll become a soccer superstar. Isn’t it exciting to think about what’s possible?

    Grown-ups are always telling me, “Sometimes you have to do stuff you don’t want to do.” That makes sense for things like eating broccoli and doing math homework—but when it comes to how we spend our free time, I think we should devote our energy to the activities we love.