Persevere

Persevere (v.) - to persist in anything undertaken; maintain a purpose in spite of difficulty, obstacles, or discouragement; continue steadfastly.

In today’s world, it’s very easy to quit. The rarity of today is to finish what you started. Something’s too hard? Too exhausting? Just forget about it. If it was important, it would be done already. This type of mindset is truly a disease that is plaguing humanity as we know it.

Perseverance is a priceless virtue. Many people equate perseverance with determination, and rightfully so. Determination is contained within perseverance. To be perseverant, you must possess the drive, the determination to see through whatever you’re doing to the end. This is something that is not seen enough. I personally believe that to persevere is to stop at nothing to make sure you complete anything in your way. This is to say even after you’ve been shut down in every manner possible. The truly perseverant will find a way to win. They’ll find a way to succeed. Nothing is impossible. If it seems impossible, you’re obviously overlooking something. This is why quitting is ridiculous, because there’s nothing that cannot be finished.

Quitting is a funny thing when thinking about perseverance. This is because there are two particular sayings dealing with quitting. One states that quitters never win. This rings very true, for if you quit, you can’t finish whatever contest in order to win it. But, there’s another that tells people to quit while they’re ahead. That doesn’t seem to make any sense. Yes, it has a poignant meaning in most situations, but the literal meaning goes against all principles of perseverance. If everyone were just to quit while they were ahead, when they were winning, contests of prowess would lose their significance. There’d be no upset endings. There’d be no competition, and no need for competition.

In short, what does it mean to persevere? Perseverance is getting back on the horse after you’ve been kicked in the teeth. Keep trying and trying, because the feeling of winning is much more satisfying than the stigma of quitting. People always tell those they love to keep striving toward their dreams. If you quit, what does that say about your personality? It’s obviously easier to quit than to struggle and succeed. If your dreams seem out of reach, then you just need an extra push. Just think about how great it will feel when you finally make it and those who will be proud of you, and how empty you’d feel if you quit, and those who will be disappointed.

Of course, there will be people doubting you. It happens to everyone. But don’t allow this to tamper with your perseverance. Instead, allow it to feed off of this negativity. I’ve always maintained that half the fun of success is making people proud. The other half is proving people wrong. You cannot do either without being perseverant.

~That is all.