Persistence: the fact of continuing in an opinion or course of action in spite of difficulty or opposition.
Persistence is the essential difference between success and failure, so it would make sense to spend some time developing the vital quality of persistence. Here are a few steps to help you on your way….
Decide what you want to achieve and set goals. We’ve all heard how important goal setting is for achieving success, so it is vital to spend some time figuring out what you want. Whether that is to run a marathon, lose 5 kilo’s, be a business success, set clear and concise goals if you want to succeed.
Prepare for the inevitable obstacles. There will be obstacles, and there will be setbacks. Nothing great was ever accomplished without adversity and setbacks along the way. Henry Ford went bankrupt three times before he finally designed the first car and in his words: “Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again, this time more intelligently.” When we become overwhelmed with the challenges along our journey we don’t have the time to then develop the persistence necessary to overcome that obstacle. Therefore, if we plan in advance for the inevitable ups and downs that the universe throws at us, we will be ready to tackle the challenges, learn from them and persevere.
Take the first step. Most of us have experienced the art of procrastination as well as the paralysing fear of failure, and the truth is that you will never fail if you don’t try! However, you won’t succeed either. Be brave, be courageous, and take the first step.
Review, re-evaluate and revise. A lot of the time things don’t work out the way we had hoped they would. This presents a great opportunity to review the steps and procedures followed, to re-evaluate what went wrong and to revise and improve your current strategy. Asking the right questions will provide illuminating findings which will then set you up for a more comprehensive plan going forward.
Maintain focus. One of the biggest challenges we face on the path to success is losing motivation and focus. A fantastic tool to use is to visualise yourself achieving your goal. See, smell, taste and embody that success. Focus on the language you choose to describe your particular endeavour and start to tweak negative statements from “I can’t do this” to something more positive such as “I have not mastered this yet.”
Enjoy it! Great feelings of accomplishment stem from the knowledge that you have overcome and conquered some epic adversities along the road to achieving your goal. Knowing what it took to get there makes the prize at the end exponentially more satisfying!
Beethoven is a beautiful example that illustrates how obstacles and challenges should not prevent you from accomplishing greatness. He composed most of his famous works after he became deaf at the age of 30.
Courageous persistence is the vital quality that will guarantee success.
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