How Determination And Persistence Can Pave the Way for Greatness

“Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not: nothing is more common than unsuccessful men 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.”
– Calvin Coolidge

Did you read the whole quote through? Or did you skim past the italics to read the main content?

You might not feel this way now, but the words written above can change your point of view on leadership and life. That is because many of us feel that you need heaps of talent, intelligence, and luck to become a leader. Apart from that, it also depends on the connections you have that can pull you through the upper ranks of society. Isn’t that so?

While this all may be true to some extent, the former president Calvin Coolidge had a completely different opinion on greatness. He believed that the world was filled with graduates, geniuses, and talented men that lead unsuccessful lives. But bad luck wasn’t the reason why they failed. Rather it was all due to lack of determination and persistence on their part.

Why do these qualities matter? If you observe your peers you will notice one thing. The ones that are actually doing something in their life are keen souls that are determined to do all that it takes to make things work. On the other hand, the ones who are wasting their life complaining and grumbling about the system, they are the people who gave up without a fight.

Hence, this clearly shows how focused minds have a strength that doesn’t waver at the slightest distress. Rather they get charged up under pressure and consistently work to achieve their goals. Thus, they stand out from the crowd and get appointed at as supervisors and team leaders. These posts are stepping stones for their path to greatness.

How can you become one of them?

There are only a few great personalities that were born leaders. Others really put in the hard work to accomplish this title. You too can be one of them if you start honing yourself to become more steadfast in your goals.

Here are some simple ways to do instill a stronger willpower:

• Live your life according to a purpose that motivates you to get up and move on with life.
• Remember that it doesn’t always have to be about money. We know that you’d like to pay the bills but doing something that you love is better than becoming a corporate machine.
• Stop holding grudges and moaning about how unsatisfactorily your situation is. You can write your own story by forgetting the past and working on your own future.
• Stand by your values and opinion and don’t let them dissolve in the rat race. This will help you to have lesser regrets and guilt-ridden days.
• Always get up after you fall. Know that failure is part of life and change can occur at any moment.
• In the end, your determination and persistence can definitely help you lead a life with dignity and respect. And once you earn that you will surely be able to gain everything else that you want in your life.

Read the quote again.

Were we able to change your outlook on greatness?