“It’s a very funny thing about life; if you refuse to accept anything
but the best, you very often get it.”—Prolific author, William Somerset Maugham
Note: All quotes,
unless otherwise labeled, are from verybestquotes.com
Who is
likely to get what they want in the long run? Pampered young adults with trust
funds? The smartest? The healthiest? The most aggressive? Individuals given the
most advantages in childhood? The “in” crowd at school or work?
I would say
that any of the above can boost a person’s success, but they can’t guarantee long-term achievement. Please see my
two previous posts on determination here
and here,
which discuss how victory often comes to those who simply refuse to let adverse
circumstances dictate their lives.
Please
notice my brief descriptions of the individuals quoted below. They are, or
were, some of the most well-known people in their fields. However, their road
to success was long and arduous. One doesn’t become an athlete; a nationally
known author and motivational speaker; a politician; or a famous inventor or
philosopher after just a few lessons, or a couple of hard knocks.
Quotes About Determination
“Determination is the wake-up call to the
human will.”—Prominent motivational speaker and author, Anthony Robbins
************
“Obstacles don’t have to stop you. If you run into a wall, don’t
turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work
around it.”—Basketball legend, Michael
Jordan
************
“What this power is I can’t say;
all I know is that it exists and it becomes available only when a man is in a
state of mind in which he knows exactly what he wants and is fully determined
not to quit until he finds it.”—Iconic inventor of the first patented telephone,
Alexander Graham Bell
************
“I am not discouraged, because every
wrong attempt discarded is another step forward.—Inventor of the longest-lasting
filament for lightbulbs and holder of over 1,200 patents, Thomas Alva Edison
************
“He who has a why to live for can
bear almost any how”—World-reknown philosopher and scholar, Friedrich Nietzche
************
“Nothing in the 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 alone
will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and
determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan, “press on”, has solved and
always will solve the problems of the human race.”—Politician and father of the
30th U.S President, Calvin Coolidge, John Calvin Coolidge (emphasis added)
The Bible
“Know ye not that they
which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may
obtain. And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things.
Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. I
therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the
air. But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection…” I Corinthians 9:
24-27
My Conclusion
“It takes a little
courage, and a little self-control, and some grim determination, if you want to
reach the goal. It takes a great
deal of striving, and a firm and stern-set chin. No matter what the battle, if
you really want to win, there’s no easy path to glory. There is no road to
fame. Life, however we may view it, is no simple parlor game; but its prizes
call for fight; for endurance and for grit; for a rugged disposition that will
not quit”—Navy SEAL Masterchief (slightly
edited from the original)
For more on
determination, please see my book, Accept No Trash Talk: Overcoming the Odds.
What obstacles
have you overcome with a little perseverance?
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