“Fall seven times, stand up eight.” — Japanese proverb
“Just don’t give up trying to do what you want to do. Where there’s love and inspiration, I don’t think you can go wrong.” — Ella Fitzgerald
Life can be regarded as a series of choices. Each day’s journey presents challenges, obstacles, and opposition. As each challenge presents itself, so does an opportunity — to persist, reaching toward your goals and dreams; or to give up, allowing discouragement to take you down. Persistence is an exercise in character-building. The act of engaging in persistence creates courage, resilience, and personal power. As you persevere in the face of obstacles and adversity, you learn how to strengthen resolve and muster enthusiasm.
If you stick with anything long enough, you will have a breakthrough. There are no “born winners” or “born losers” in life. The real comparison is between those who persist, who never give up or give in, who stay the course…and those who succumb to disappointment and cease to push forward toward the goal. Persistence differs from stubborness in that it is flexible. Those who are stubborn are rigid and close-minded, while those who persist are open and honest, open to new ideas and inspiration along the way to accomplishing the objective. Stay loose, and hang in there.
As you practice persistence, you will discover new reservoirs of talent, creativity, and the discipline to complete the many small tasks which pave the way to the greatest gains and accomplishments. Practice the application of perseverance as a process, and love and inspiration will appear to cheer you on. Engage in the conscious act of Knowing — explore and increase your self-knowledge, learn to recognize where you come from and where you are headed on life’s highway. As you stay the path, your self-confidence, poise, and inner resolve will increase exponentially — you will discover new purpose and meaning in your life. Allow these discoveries to act as a spiritual GPS, helping you navigate through life’s twists and turns.
Amazing things happen when you persist in believing in yourself, your goals and dreams. The situation in Egypt is a terrific example of persistence paying off. Peaceful protesters took to the streets for 18 days, and they persisted in the face of overwhelming opposition, violence, and and media naysayers. Persistent citizens brought down a stubborn dictator, and now they have a chance at freedom from oppression. If they had given up on day 16, or day 17 of their struggle, history would be different. Instead, they persisted till day 18 and won out. http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Foreign-Policy/2011/0211/Hosni-Mubarak-steps-down.-How-will-transition-begin
No matter how many mistakes you have made, opposition you face, or obstacles you must overcome, persist! Your breakthrough lies ahead — it may be only a few small tasks beyond the next big obstacle.