How to Persevere

Persevere:  to stick to a task or purpose, no matter how hard or troublesome: persist (Webster's Dictionary).

To persevere one must have persistence and patience.  You cannot quit, you cannot stop, you must stay the course.  If something isn't working right you have to keep trying over and over again.  Thomas Edison who held 1,093 U.S. Patents, the founder of General Electric was diagnosed with a hearing problem early on.  His mother believed in him unconditionally which was a crucial stone in his personal foundation.  Her love encouraged him to persevere for he did not want to disappoint her.  After 9,000 attempts at trying to invent the light bulb, he was asked by a reporter if he felt like a failure.  He responded, "Young man why would I feel like a failure?  And why would I ever give up?"  I now know definitively over 9,000 ways that an electric light bulb will not work.  Success is almost in my grasp."  He was successful after 10,000 attempts.  Kind of puts things in perspective.

Below is just a small list of individuals who have persevered in their lives.

One of my favorites is Ludwig Van Beethoven.  He continued to compose, conduct and perform even after he was completely deaf.  Beethoven published/unpublished over 200 works.  He was a true musical genius.

Ray Charles who was completely blind by the age of 7 went on to win 17 Grammy's and a host of other prestigious awards.

Helen Keller who was both deaf and blind was the first deaf/blind person to earn a Bachelor of Arts at the age of 24 from Radcliffe.  She would go on to become a world famous speaker and author.  Helen Keller also met every president from Grover Cleveland to Lyndon B. Johnson.  She never used her handicap as an excuse.  She also persevered in the Woman's Suffrage movement.

Franklin D. Roosevelt our 32nd President, who was paralyzed from the waist down at age 39, went on to serve 4 presidential terms.

Martin Luther King, Jr. who in 1960 was the leader of the Civil Rights movement persevered when so much was against him.  This was a time of terrible discrimination and racial prejudice but because of him, his vision, his perseverance,  our country is a much better place.



NEVER QUIT !


ALWAYS START WHAT YOU FINISH!


KEEP TRYING, EVEN IF IT DOESN'T WORK RIGHT THE 1ST TIME, 2ND TIME, 3RD TIME, ETC...(Remember it took Thomas Edison 10,000 attempts."


DON'T GIVE UP!

"Our greatest glory is not never failing, but rising up every time we fail."  

Ralph Waldo Emerson