The Surprising Benefits of Quitting

YesYou may have been told to “hold on” throughout your childhood, as illustrated by a kitten hanging from a rope. But it turns out that quitting smoking is often the healthiest option.

Researchers have long sought to understand how perseverance relates to personal well-being and human evolution in general. One poorly supported theory posited that our ancestors were so intent on catching prey that they ran for long periods of time in hot, dry environments.

More recent data suggests that giving up hard-to-achieve goals can actually be good for us. According to a review of more than 230 studies recently published in the journal Human behavioradjusting our goals in response to stress or challenges, rather than persevering, is often “a more appropriate and beneficial response.”

The authors of this extensive meta-analysis reviewed 235 studies spanning diverse fields, including psychology, health, and social sciences, that detailed how people change their goals after encountering obstacles to success. The researchers wanted to consolidate this “fragmented” information and observe how goal adjustment relates not only to psychological well-being but also to physical health, social functioning and future ambitions. This allowed them to establish a “road map” of objectives.

Read more: »We can be heroes»

“Sticking to impossible goals can have far-reaching consequences, with previous research suggesting it can lead to higher stress, poorer well-being and even physical health costs such as illness,” study author Hugh Riddell, a professor at the School of Population Health at Curtin University in Australia, said in a statement. “But it was found that letting go and, above all, re-engaging with new goals, restored meaning and well-being.”

The team used statistical analysis to shed light on what causes people to give up, adjust, or recommit to achieving their goals. Disengagement from goals, for example, was more strongly linked to negative feedback on these ideas and a “crisis of action” arising from the individual’s inability to overcome associated obstacles. Our personalities can also play a major role in these types of decisions: optimism tends to be strongly linked to the willingness to revise a goal to better fit one’s skills and resources. “These findings indicate that flexibility in goal pursuit is more likely to emerge when individuals feel secure, demonstrate stable regulation, and possess emotional resilience,” the paper notes.

The scientists also analyzed the impacts of these decisions. Giving up on goals was significantly linked to reduced stress, anxiety and depression, for example. And adopting new ones was strongly associated with high social and physical functioning. The pursuit of new goals was also accompanied by moderate to large benefits on psychological functioning, sense of purpose in life, satisfaction, and personal growth.

This analysis has limitations, the authors acknowledge, due to observational data collected at specific times and risks of bias in individual articles. The next step, they write, is to identify the precise moment when people should rethink their dreams or keep breathing. “Finding out exactly when people should stick to their goals or change course, without giving up too early, is really the next piece of the puzzle,” Riddell said in the release.

So whether you’re the type to stick with it until the end or change course when you sense trouble ahead, there may be an optimal method to help you achieve or change your goals.

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Main image: eamesBot / Shutterstock

• Molly Glick

  Published on November 17, 2025

  Molly Glick is the newsletter editor of Nautilus.