[...] distracted type can get there.  As usual, I found the idea of persistence perfectly captured at Genius Types.  I think he got it right when he said, “The reason 20 percent of the people make all the [...]

Being really honest, I see how this principle works in relationships as well. Cultivating relationships with people takes time and patience, and you will not instantly be accepted into any ‘circle’ just because. I really, really, really, really, REALLY hate that it takes so long, but it does teach you some things along the way. The more effort you put into it, the more you will get out of it in the long run. This is a truly awesome post.

Brian,

You’re absolutely right and you make a good point, we hear a lot of people say, “Do what you love – don’t do something you don’t love just for the money.” But, I would guess that many people heard (and/or experienced) some form of this early in their lives: “A job is just a job, you do it for money, not to enjoy yourself – that’s why it’s called work – you have fun and enjoy yourself on the weekends.” And then as they grow older, they begin to explore other possibilities, such as “Do what you love and the money will follow.”

The problem is that later in life it becomes difficult to follow that “do what you love” advice because we have this limiting belief called: “work is work and it shouldn’t be enjoyable” that we got when we were younger, and it has been set in, strengthened and verified many times over many years.

So, we come full circle to your notion of persistence. I especially like your analogy of the huge iron ball. Even to try to follow advice that makes good sense like “do what you love and the money will follow” we must exert a tremendous effort in the beginning (start pushing that iron ball) to overcome limiting beliefs that have the strength of years of confirmation behind them. And these limiting beliefs WILL stand in our way until we make that (sometimes Herculean) effort that is required to overturn them.

Why do we do things that are not good for us? Or, why do we not do the things that are good for us? I think we are getting at some of it.

It is complicated stuff, but we can figure it out.

Chris614

Great contribution, Chris614.

You know, we are all told from a very young age to do what we love instead of what makes the most money, and it’s almost as if we have become numb to it.

Almost no one follows that sacred advice; but as it turns out, you can make more money doing what you love anyway.

Scratch another one up for kindergarten.

This is an excellent article – it bespeaks a very mature attitude and reveleation about how success really works in the real world. Many people are confused about this issue and suffer because of it.

I have recently come to a very similar conclusion about success and I really enjoyed reading this because I was also lost for many years on the “go-from-one-opportunity-to-another” cycle that you describe above. So, thanks for writing this – it definitely helped me.

One comment about the “know when to quit” issue mentioned above: For me, the “maybe I should know when to quit” issue has ALWAYS come up whenever I was pursuing opportunities that had not been proven out by others, but also, and perhaps more importantly, when I was doing things for the wrong reasons, meaning I was pursuing an opportunity because I wanted to get out of debt, or because I wanted to get rich quick, or I wanted power or recognition, or some other such thing. But when I found the thing that I love doing more than anything else, and (trying not to sound like a guidance counselor or Myers Briggs Aptitude question:) would actually do for no money, the “know when to quit” issue has never come up.

So, it is easier for me to persist when I am doing something because I love doing it – it is its own reward, AND because I can envision it being financially successful for me in the future, and it helps a lot when I get little tastes of success along the way.

I hope this contributed something. Sorry it was so long. Cheers.

No problem, KaRiM. Thanks for hanging out.

It’s really very important points in life of most of us .. Thank you for this Article ..

That’s a good point, Ben. That instant gratification is just drilled into us from the beginning of our work years.

You’re right, 60 in 3, it doesn’t help to be persistent if you’re barking up the wrong tree. The way to avoid this is to choose a path that has been proven by someone else.

That being said, lack of persistence steals more dreams than lack of the right path.

I think a lot of it is built into the 9 to 5 work culture. People are so used to getting paid by the hour instead of paid by the value created that they assume money will start rolling in right away.

Although the counter point to your post is “know when to quit.” Sometimes, you do need to stop trying and devote your efforts to something else. The key is knowing when quitting makes sense and when it doesn’t.

When I try something out and it doesn’t work I usually try to figure out why it isn’t working. Is there something I missed? Does it simply need more time? Is there something I’m doing wrong? Sometimes, as you said, it simply needs more time. No problem, I keep plugging away. Other times, you need to stop and devote your energy to more fruitful pursuits.

Gal

Your post reminds me of a great quote by Calvin Coolidge:

“Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful people with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.”

they had just wasted several months of work. If they had just stuck it out, they would have begun to reap what they had sewn. Instead, they start all over again at the beginning on a new project with an entirely new exponential growth curve. Source: http://geniustypes.com

choosing projects carefully. Try to figure out how long and how hard you are going to have to blow before you have a toy that floats. If you don’t have the resources or time to get through those first thousand plus blows, pick a different project. Here