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Persistence
Today you will encounter countless opportunities to
quit. It might be that a business proposal you hoped would come through will
fizzle. You might have an argument with your spouse. You might lose an
investment. Disaster might knock on your door any one of a thousand different
ways. The only question is what you are going to do about it.
Will you pick up your marbles, go home and declare that the game is unfair?
Will you believe that you must just not be meant for success — that you are a
loser that can’t get a break? Or will you decide to persist in your struggle,
educate yourself and seek the answers you need?
It is impossible to succeed without developing the discipline of
persistence. Persistence is the voice that commands you forward when everything
inside screams at you to quit. It is the tenacity you need to see a project to
the end. It is the immovable resolve that causes you to follow through.
Everyone has desire; few have persistence. In any given endeavor, much of
your competition will be eliminated simply because they did not persist.
How many people begin an exercise regimen only to abandon it after a few
months? How many people begin to change their diet, learn a foreign language or
save some money, only to give up when it becomes difficult? How many people
read a book, apply its principles for a few weeks and slip back into the same
old mental ruts?
So, how does one develop persistence?
First, choose which efforts or actions are worth continuing. Is there a
reward if you persist? There is no value or virtue in persisting in an action
that will only bring harm. Who would do such a thing, you ask?
How many people are, at this very moment, in destructive and dangerous
relationships simply because they feel if they just wait a little longer, it
will get better? How many people are in dead-end jobs because they believe it’s
not right to quit a job?
After you determine that persisting in an action is worth your effort,
decide to continue. It’s that simple. When you eliminate the option of
quitting, it makes persisting much easier.
Easier, but never easy. Sometimes persistence is a daily
decision; sometimes it’s hourly. But it’s important to remember that
persistence is a habit that can be learned. As you develop the trait of
persistence, you will unlearn the tendency to quit and find it natural to
continue.
Deep within you, buried far down in your soul, is an iron will, a piece of
steel that you can access anytime you reach deep enough. It will lend you the
strength to persist until you are victorious. Harden your will. Strengthen
your resolve. Put one foot in front of the other until you have conquered.
© 2004 Charles Marshall. Charles Marshall is a motivational speaker, motivational author and president of M Power Resources, LLC. Visit his Web site at www.MPowerResources.com or contact him via e-mail at charles@MPowerResources.com.
