It takes the hammer of persistence to drive the nail of success.
–John Mason, writer
How well do you manage failure, missed deliverables, obstacles, and even difficult people?
As leaders we can expect that not everything will go as planned, and despite possibly feeling dejected, we need to persist and persevere.
We need to manage our feelings and each situation that challenges us, and we need to persist, which we’ll define as “the quality of continuing steadily despite problems or difficulties”.
Expect and plan for obstacles; they’re going to happen! Be purposeful in your efforts and analyze what went awry, and have trust in yourself that you CAN make things better and get back on course. We hope you find these failures inspiring:
Abraham Lincoln – Experienced 12 major failures before being elected the 16th U.S. President
Albert Einstein – His teachers said “he wouldn’t amount to much”
Ludwig van Beethoven – His music teacher once said “as a composer, he is hopeless”
Thomas Edison – was said to have tried 9,999 times to perfect the light bulb. His response was “I didn’t fail; I just discovered another way not to invent the electric light bulb.”
Colonel Sanders – (founder of Kentucky Fried Chicken) As a military retiree, all he had was his mother’s chicken recipe. He tried selling her recipe and was turned down 1,007 times before he received his first yes
Steve Jobs – He felt he was a public failure when he was fired from Apple
Walt Disney – Was fired from a newspaper for his lack of imagination
The Beatles – In 1962 they were told they “had no future in show business” and that “groups with guitars are on the way out”.
Diana Nyad – In her fifth try (at the age of 64), became the 1st person to swim from Cuba to Florida without a shark cage.
Why persist? Because successful leaders are clear about what they want to achieve, and set clear strategies and direction to obtain the results they desire, regardless of any obstacles they encounter.
Positivity, confidence, and persistence are key in life, so never give up on yourself.–Khalid