Persistence is the key to success

Article Research Association

It's popular this time of year to hear a lot of wise advice about future goals and winning the races of life, especially in commencement speeches around the country.

Successful businessman and international speaker Harvey Mackay is no stranger to offering sound advice, as evidenced by his string of best-selling inspirational business books.

According to Mackay, winning the race doesn't necessarily mean being the first to finish. In fact, many people who are now considered successful were once viewed as failures. Mackay says they won by not competing with any one person, but by beating the little voice inside us that constantly says, "Stop."

In his latest book, "Pushing the Envelope: All the Way to the Top," Mackay notes that Sylvester Stallone was failing as an actor, until he decided to write his own movie script. Stallone also insisted on playing the lead, and "Rocky" became a huge commercial hit. Coca-Cola sold only 400 sodas in its first year of business. Apple Computer was rejected by Hewlett-Packard and Atari.

Mackay says the key to their success was determination. Successful people are often not any more talented than unsuccessful people. The difference is successful people do the jobs unsuccessful people don't want to do, and they stick to it until they're finished.

In today's culture of instant gratification, the attributes of patience and determination can be lacking.

Another thing you shouldn't quit is learning. Mackay says his parents always encouraged him to learn as much as he could, and not necessarily in a classroom setting.

Taking the initiative to learn something new carries with it the possibility of failure. But you don't have to be the best at everything you learn. Going into a new experience knowing that you're a beginner lessens the pressure. You can enjoy what you're learning, do something a little better than you did it before, make new contacts, and take pleasure in working hard and discovering something different.

Woody Allen said that 80 percent of life was showing up. But as long as you're going to show up, why not make the best of it?

Mackay says that while running the race, instead of forgetting everything in pursuit of being first, concentrate on the multitude of other benefits, including:

having fun
making the attempt
having the support of friends and family
testing your limits
breaking through to new levels of performance
sharing the experience
encouraging others.
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