Hardheaded

Yesterday, one more rejection letter came in the mail.  Another grant panel thought the project was just not quite suitable for their program.  Commence instinctual desire to vomit.

Precisely, Lloyd. Precisely…

However, within moments, my mother’s voice reverberates in the back of my brain: “Why are you so hardheaded?!”  The same stubborn personality that got me into trouble as a teenager is now the foundation of my relentless energy as an artist and writer.  (Oh, and she knew why.  It’s genetic.)

Success requires tenacity.

Thomas Edison knew it.

Mike Tyson knew it.

After all, “tenacity” is just a polite synonym for “stubborn mule.”

I do not think there is any other quality so essential to success of any kind as the quality of perseverance. It overcomes almost everything, even nature.

–John D. Rockefeller

Square your shoulders.  Let the obstacles slide past you.  Cling tight to your core message.  Pursue your goals relentlessly.  Don’t be afraid to put in your 10,000 hours and then some.

And smile.  No one can take away your certainty that this goal will happen.

Need some inspiration in your quest to be a stubborn mule?  These folks will put a fire under ya:

• Regularity, Tenacity and Perserverance: Criteria for Success
• Beware of Potential
• Leadership Caffeine: 5 Ideas for Creating a Tenacious Culture

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