“Patience and perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish.” John Quincy Adams
Patience and perseverance—these two “Ps” pack a lot of punch, don’t they? And yet so often they are seen as a bit dull and lackluster. Let’s change that!
Patience—“quiet perseverance”—interestingly, this is how my trusty New Century Dictionary defines this calm and soothing word.
Perseverance—“steady persistence in a course of action”—that’s one definition for this invaluable quality.
When we put them together—these two twin stars of success—what do we come up with?
Quiet, steady persistence in a course of action. Like calm, flowing water, patience and perseverance can eventually smooth even the roughest stone. And as John Quincy says, they “have a magical effect”—“difficulties disappear” and “obstacles vanish” before them.
So, can we work a little quiet magic today? Whatever difficulties crop up or obstacles seem to stand in our way, can we flow over, around, under, and through them like water? Can we bring a sense of ease and poise to the work at hand, however challenging it seems?
Of course we can? But will we? That’s the question? So often we see difficulties we encounter as excuses for drama—for acting out instead of hunkering down, for giving up instead of going quietly forward.
Can we break this pattern even if it’s long-standing? As my friend and mentor Dr. Rob Gilbert says, can we get fascinated instead of frustrated by the challenges we face? Yes, we can! It make take some time to shift our attitude, but we can make it happen.
When we get fascinated instead of frustrated, we ignite our ingenuity! We approach whatever roadblock we face with a calm, can-do mindset that lets our creativity blossom. Instead of shutting down, we open up—and when we do, as John Quincy says so well, magic happens.
So let’s enlist the two “Ps” today. Let’s harness patience and perseverance to our plows and cut those furrows deep and long as we all write on!
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