You're standing in the middle of a storm. Maybe it’s a career that’s hitting a rough patch, a relationship that feels like a sinking ship, or a stock portfolio that’s bleeding red. Someone pats you on the shoulder and says, "Just ride it out."
It sounds simple. Almost too simple.
But ride it out meaning isn’t just about sitting still while the world falls apart around you. It’s actually a nautical term. Sailors used it to describe a ship staying afloat during a gale by heading into the wind or dropping anchor and waiting for the swell to pass. It’s active. It’s tactical. It is definitely not passive.
Most people treat "riding it out" like they’re a piece of driftwood. They just float and hope they don't hit a rock. That’s how you get wrecked. If you want to actually survive a difficult period, you have to understand the nuance of endurance versus avoidance.
The psychology behind the ride it out meaning
Why do we say this? Psychologically, it taps into what researchers often call "resilience" or "grit," terms popularized by psychologists like Angela Duckworth. But there is a darker side to this. Sometimes, "riding it out" is a coping mechanism for the Sunk Cost Fallacy. This is that nagging feeling that because you’ve already put five years into a job, you have to stay, even if the building is figuratively on fire.
Honestly, it’s a gamble.
When you decide to ride it out, you are making a conscious bet that the current situation is temporary. You are betting that the "storm" has a finite end and that your resources—emotional, financial, or physical—will outlast the pressure. If the storm is permanent, riding it out is just a slow way to lose everything.
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Take the 2008 financial crisis, for example. Many homeowners were told to ride out the housing market crash. For some, who had stable jobs and could keep paying their mortgages, that was the right move. By 2013, their home values had often recovered. But for those who lost their income, "riding it out" meant draining their retirement accounts only to lose the house anyway. The context is everything.
When endurance becomes a trap
We need to talk about the "okay, this is fine" meme. You know the one—the dog sitting in a room full of flames with a coffee mug. That is the toxic version of the ride it out meaning.
If you are in a situation where the fundamentals are broken, waiting is a mistake. In the business world, this is often seen in "zombie companies." These are firms that earn just enough money to continue operating and service their debt but cannot pay off their debt. They are riding out a market shift that they should be pivoting away from.
- Relationship Red Flags: If a partner is abusive or fundamentally incompatible, there is no "out" to ride to. The storm is the climate, not the weather.
- The Market Myth: Investors often say "time in the market beats timing the market." While generally true for index funds, it’s a death sentence for individual penny stocks that are headed to zero.
- Burnout: You can’t ride out clinical burnout by just working more. That’s like trying to put out a fire with gasoline.
How to actually ride it out (The Strategy)
So, how do you do it right? First, you need a "hull check."
Is your foundation solid? If you’re trying to ride out a recession, do you have an emergency fund? If you’re riding out a rough patch in a marriage, do both people still want to be there? Without a solid foundation, the "ride it out" strategy is just a delay of the inevitable.
Next, you have to manage your "energy expenditure." Sailors don't try to go full speed in a hurricane. They reef the sails. They do the bare minimum to stay upright and on course. In real life, this looks like cutting expenses, saying no to extra social obligations, and focusing strictly on the essentials.
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The 3-Month Rule
Expert career coaches often suggest a 90-day window. If you’re miserable at work, tell yourself you will ride it out for exactly three months. During that time, you don't complain. You don't slack off. You observe. If, at the end of those 90 days, the "storm" hasn't let up or you haven't seen a break in the clouds, you change your strategy. You stop riding and start rowing in a different direction.
Real-world examples of successful endurance
Think about Netflix in 2011. They decided to split their DVD-by-mail service and their streaming service into two separate entities, Qwikster and Netflix. It was a PR disaster. They lost 800,000 subscribers. Their stock price cratered.
Reed Hastings, the CEO, didn't panic and reverse everything immediately just to please the crowd. He apologized for the communication but held the line on the transition to streaming. He rode out the massive wave of public hatred because he knew the "weather" (consumer habits) was shifting permanently toward digital. He was right.
Then there's the story of the Trans-Siberian Orchestra. Before they were a multi-platinum holiday staple, they were basically a progressive rock experiment that didn't fit anywhere. They spent years playing small shows, barely breaking even, and being told their "rock opera" concept was weird. They chose to ride it out, believing that their niche audience would eventually grow. It took nearly a decade for the "storm" of obscurity to break.
The linguistic roots
It’s kinda funny how we use these words. "Ride" implies a horse or a vehicle. It suggests momentum. But the ride it out meaning is actually about the lack of forward momentum. It’s about static resilience.
In Old English and Middle English, "riding" was often used in the context of ships "riding at anchor." If a ship is riding at anchor, it’s staying in one place despite the current. It’s a battle of wills between the anchor’s grip and the ocean’s pull.
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When you tell someone to ride it out, you’re basically telling them to be an anchor.
Actionable steps for the "Waiting Room"
If you’re currently in the middle of a "ride it out" phase, you can't just scroll on your phone and wait for things to get better. You need a protocol.
- Define the "End State": What does the end of the storm actually look like? Is it a specific date? A specific dollar amount in your bank account? A change in someone else's behavior? If you can't define the end, you're not riding it out; you're just lost.
- Information Blackouts: When things are bad, watching the news or checking your 401k every five minutes increases your cortisol. This leads to "fatigue failure"—the point where you snap and make a desperate, bad decision just to make the tension stop. Limit your check-ins.
- Micro-Wins: Find something you can control. Even if your industry is collapsing, you can control your morning routine. You can control your workout. These small wins prevent the "learned helplessness" that often comes with long periods of endurance.
- Acknowledge the Toll: Endurance is expensive. It costs mental bandwidth. It costs sleep. Don't pretend it's not happening. Admit that "riding it out" is hard work.
Final verdict on the strategy
Is riding it out a valid strategy? Yes. But it’s a high-level one. It requires more discipline than quitting and more patience than attacking.
The biggest mistake is confusing "riding it out" with "doing nothing." Doing nothing is what happens when you’re paralyzed by fear. Riding it out is what happens when you’ve assessed the situation, determined that the storm is temporary, and made the tactical choice to hold your ground.
Stop looking for the easy way out. Sometimes there isn't one. There is only through.
Next Steps for Implementation:
Identify one area of your life where you are currently "waiting." Ask yourself: Is this a temporary storm or a permanent climate change? If it’s a storm, list the three resources you need to protect most to make it to the other side. If it’s a climate change, stop riding and start moving. Assess your "anchor"—the one thing keeping you stable right now—and ensure it’s strong enough to hold if the wind picks up.