What Gets You Going?
Written By JB Owen
Wouldn’t it be great if we all had a button we could push to fire up our engines and get our motors going? Imagine if humans had a key that started them in motion and empowered them to put themselves into gear. Wouldn’t it be great if there was an easy way to stoke the fire? A systematic stream that kept our wheels turning and churning? A wiring mechanism that kept us producing non-stop, and effortlessly? Oh, the joy if humans could just start themselves up, stay on track, and work consistently!
Yet that isn’t in our making, nor how we were designed. Instead, our ‘inner workings’ come into play and there are a million intricate pieces that ensure we run efficiently; that we keep going and don’t give up. The mind, our emotions, and our thoughts, concerns, past experiences, anticipations, and insecurities are just a few of the opposing forces that can run havoc on our system. We think a lot. We ponder even more. We forecast what might happen and dream up all kinds of reasons why we can’t, why we shouldn’t, or why it might not happen.
Samuel Johnston, one of the greatest figures of 18th-century life, said, “Great works are performed not by strength but by perseverance.”
Never stop fighting until you arrive at your destined place.
On a similar theme, A. P. J. Abdul Kalam, an Indian aerospace scientist and politician who served as the 11th President of India, said, “Never stop fighting until you arrive at your destined place — that is, the unique you. Have an aim in life, continuously acquire knowledge, work hard, and have perseverance to realise the great life.”
These men cite perseverance as a quality that is fundamental to both accomplishment and success. The great life, great works, and inner greatness are synonymous with perseverance. It is the quality of persisting that enables us to turn an idea into a product, a dream into a reality, and a wish into so much more.
When we cite perseverance in our own lives, we get to where we are going. Perseverance has us getting up early, staying up late, and dedicated to our goal for all the hours in between. It doesn’t have to be grand, audacious, nor over the top and the best of the best. Perseverance simply gets you there. It makes sure you make it. It pushes you through all the tough times and keeps the embers lit.
Perseverance is not the flash in the pan or the shot right out of the gate; it is the constant and the consistent. It’s what you use to hang onto when you’re hanging by a thread and what you find when you feel lost in the dark.
This month’s issue of the Ignite Possibilities self-mastery program brings you ideas on how to work the muscles of perseverance. Each contributor shows how you can nurture the gift of perseverance and grow the gains that come from making perseverance your fuel of ignition. You’ll learn it isn’t quite as hard as we all thought, and once you get the hang of it… persevering feels truly incredible. Perseverance is available to all of us. When you really embrace it… look out! Anything and everything soon becomes possible!
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