What is Persistence?

In my Rich Habits study I tracked over 360 data points on the differences between the rich and poor. To my surprise, the vast majority of these data points were daily habits.

Out of all of those data points, one stood out as the most important determinant of success – persistence. Those with the most persistence were the most successful in life and accumulated the most wealth.

But what does persistence really mean?

• Persistence means never quitting on your dream. Self-made millionaires will pursue a dream until they die or become incapacitated. Not even bankruptcy or divorce stops them from pursuing their dream.
• Persistence means taking action every day on the goals behind your dreams, whether you feel like it or not.
• Persistence means never giving in to your doubts. Some days go your way, but most of the days in pursuit of a dream will not go your way. When things don’t go your way, those are the days your mind is filled with doubt. Self-made millionaires persist even when life does not cooperate.
• Persistence means you stay on task despite making costly mistakes. Successful people view mistakes as learning experiences and nothing else.
• Persistence means you pick yourself up after suffering devastating failure. You only fail when you quit.
• Persistence means not letting rejection or being ignored stop you from moving forward. When you are pursuing a dream you will be faced with rejection and you will be ignored. It’s part of the process. You cannot take it personally. You need to take emotion out of it. When you get rejected or ignored just say “NEXT” and move on.
• Persistence means not allowing distractions to shift your focus. It’s easy to let distractions get in the way. Successful people push aside distractions and focus on what’s important. They have a big picture view that acts like a force field, deflecting all distractions from their path.
• Persistence means not letting fear stop you in your tracks. Fear is the main reason most quit on a dream. Self-made millionaires make a habit of being fearless.