A Secret to Success
How often do we give up before the finish and then stand back and think – “You know what? I could have got there if I had just stayed a bit longer”! If this doesn’t apply to you – then you are one of the lucky ones that have managed to get through life by making choices and sticking to them until their natural conclusion. However, if you are like most of us – this will resonate with you. Sometimes we give up too soon.
There are many components to becoming successful in any goal. Some require training, knowledge and experience but one that stands out, one that many of us have in varying degrees and requires no special aptitude is stubbornness. Yep – you got it, plain old fashioned, dumb stubbornness! This human trait is often portrayed as a negative – well I’m here to say it is a positive – this is especially so when it comes to achieving goals!
Do you know how many times Walt Disney applied for a loan to start Disneyland? The answer is one hundred! He had a dream at a time when money was in very short supply – the Great Depression of the 1930’s. It was a good idea but no one would fund it – the common banker response “who will go to a fun park when they have no money to eat”!
How many times would you present yourself to a banker to be rejected, a couple, maybe six or even a dozen times? After a while you would acquire the common thought pattern that was presented to you – “dumb idea” and give up. Saying to yourself “well I gave it a try, it didn’t work and so many people told me it was a dumb idea, I guess they were right”!
The world is a richer place because Walt Disney had the ability to stick at his dream. Call it stubbornness; I call it Sticktoedness, the ability to stay the course. If something is a good idea or is worthwhile – then it remains so – regardless of what others might say or do.
Now Sticktoedness for the sake of just being stubborn is not what I am arguing here. Stubbornness of this type is not a very complimentary human trait. However, when we decide to stick at something – our decision needs to be grounded in quality thinking, preparation, good planning, sensible execution and a well thought out conclusion or outcome to the goal. In other words, we have a goal that has been well prepared and deserves its best chance to succeed.
So the next time the “going” gets hard. Ask yourself “can I take another step, go one more round, stand up another time, start again or just plain hang on until the end”?
If the answer is yes – then you have just applied Sticktoedness to your cause!