Success Requires Persistance

Success Requires Persistence

By Michelle L. Casto

What do you think makes someone successful? Do you believe them to be lucky? Do they have the perfect product to market? Are they exceptionally smart? While it is true that a little luck, a solid product and being smarts helps, true success comes from one thing: persistence. A dictionary definition of persistence is “to continue steadfastly or often annoyingly, esp. in spite of opposition; to be tenacious.” When someone is persistent, they are able to take obstacles in stride and even jump over them, they see failure as an essential part of the learning process, and remain committed to their goals, dreams, and aspirations.
Successful people use seemingly “negative” experiences to guide them on their path to success, rather than seeing mis-stakes as proof of their failure to achieve. In fact, some of the best and brightest in our nation’s history failed many times over. Thomas Edison who said, “If we all did the things we were capable of doing, we would literally astound ourselves.” This comes from the same man who invented and patented more things than any other living soul, and who is best known for creating the light bulb. He literally lit up the world, and only did so because he kept trying. In fact, it is reputed that it took him over 1000 experiments before he found the right combination!
Success is more about what is on the inside of the person than what you see on the outside. It is what they are made up of: a strong will, positive belief system, faith in a higher power, dedication, commitment, and a persistent, even stubborn nature. They won’t take no for an answer! They have made up their minds to succeed no matter what. They stay with the course until the end. And most always, they do and re-do, practice, and polish until they get it just right. They understand that success is a process.
It is important that you are aware that you decide for yourself the level of success you think you deserve. It is all a mindset. “What you believe and conceive, you can achieve” is a maxim of the success-minded. Your thoughts influence your feelings, and your feelings influence your actions---all of which have brought you to where you are today.

There is a man we all know who represents what I am talking about:
Read this story and see if you know who it is…….

2 years old when his infant brother died
7 years old, he almost drowned
Mother died when he was 9
At 10, a horse kicked him and he nearly died
He was 16 years old when he took a job to support his family
19, when his older sister died in childbirth
Lost his job at 23
Defeated for the state legislature at 23
Failed in business at 24
Elected to state legislature at 25
Overcame the death of his sweetheart at 26
Reelected to state legislature at 27
Had a nervous breakdown at 28
Defeated for Speaker at 29
Reelected to state legislature at 29
Reelected to state legislature at 31
Filed for bankruptcy at 31
Filed bankruptcy at 31
Lost a congressional race at 34
Lost re-nomination at 39
Rejected for land office at 40
When he was 41, his son died
When he was 42, his father died
Lost senatorial race at 45
Defeated for nomination for Vice President at 47
Lost a senatorial race at 49
***Elected President of the United States at 52 and reelected for a 2nd term at 56

He was one of our greatest leaders, Abraham Lincoln.

Despite what many people think, success is much more about hard work, knowledge, resourcefulness, and perseverance than anything else. People who experience success in their lives know what they want and they go after it with passion, conviction, and hard work. In fact, someone once said, The only place you find success before work is in the dictionary. In other words, if you want to be successful, you are going to have to work for it.
What is success and how do you achieve it? Success can be defined as the progressive realization of a predetermined, worthwhile goal or dream. This definition of success underlies the importance of having goals. You can’t achieve success without developing goals. Goals give life meaning. As humans, we are designed for achievement and accomplishment. H.L. Hunt, who was at one time the richest man in the world, said that he had discovered three steps that would lead to success. 1). Decide what you really want out of life. 2). Develop a plan of action for achieving it. 3). Act, with great enthusiasm.

When you review the life history of Abraham Lincoln, you can see a similar pattern. He knew what he wanted, he developed a plan, and acted with enthusiasm and persistence. In the end, he accomplished a great deal and left the world in better shape than he found it. If we all could follow our vision, and work with purpose, just think how different the world could be. Now it is time to for you to take the lead and become a success in your own time.

***This article adapted from Life Strategy 101: How to live by vision, work with purpose, and achieve more success by Michelle L. Casto