Perseverance is not a long race; it is many short races one after another. – Walter Elliott
Perseverance is the commitment you make to yourself to do whatever is necessary to accomplish your most treasured dreams and goals. Perseverance means you refuse to give up in spite of the difficulty that may surround you and in spite those who tell you that your goal is unattainable. Perseverance is a fundamental attribute of a winning character.
To accomplish something that is easy is something anyone can do. However, to accomplish that which is difficult – even seemingly impossible – is something that sets you apart.
Steps to Improving Your Perseverance
1. Don’t Give Up!
When you are working toward a goal and someone or something offers you an excuse to give up, say “NO.” So many people are living lesser lives today than what they could have had if only that had not allowed someone or something to steal their dreams.
2. Overcome Fear with Faith.
Do not let fear dictate who you are or what you are able to accomplish. Have faith in yourself; know that God has a plan for your life and that it is He who places opportunities in your life fully expecting that you will make the most of them.
3. Learn from your Failures.
Each of us experiences failures along life’s journey. There is a reason for this: within every failure there is the seed of a lesson well learned. Each failure we experience reinforces an emerging solid character trait. It is our failures that contribute most intensely to our character development.
4. Welcome Difficult Times.
Recent studies in psychology and biology, are confirming what our grandparents knew intuitively: exposure to difficult times makes us stronger, and psychologically more resilient.
5. Be Totally Committed to your Goals.
Whatever you embark upon do it with all of your heart. Invest your whole self in each project. If you cannot make a 100% to a goal, you should come to terms with the fact that it is unattainable. Extraordinary success demands extraordinary commitment.
6. Always Do your Best.
Never make the mistake of thinking that something less than your best will due, it will not. There is an old adage that will forever be true: Do your best and the best will be returned to you. This is another law of the universe that is immutable. Use it to your advantage.
7. Meet the Challenge.
This requires discipline and hard work, but doing whatever is required to meet the challenge is exactly what it takes to succeed. There are no shortcuts, no side steps, and no cheats.
8. Never Give Up.
In the words of Norman Vincent Peale, author of The Power of Positive Thinking, “If you want to get somewhere, you have to know where you want to go, and how to get there, and then never, never, never give up!
