Many of us struggle with the idea of persistence but it's one of the most important qualities you can have. If you want to achieve something, you need to persist. However, as humans we find this very hard to do.
We often rely on motivation and inspiration to do something. However, it's never enough. I heard a great quote from a YouTuber who said: “motivation is fleeting.” This quote resonated with me and made me think about everything I had ever done in my life.
Often pure passion, inspiration and motivation were not the only things that drove me to finish something. It was often other things like money, getting a qualification or the satisfaction of finishing something. Being persistent and committed is what helped me achieve my goals.
1.Get through the door
Using pure inspiration to stay committed isn’t sustainable. We’re emotional beings and our emotions fluctuate and lack objectivity.
Because of this, we need to use methods and tools that help form habits and minimise the amount of emotion required.
An effective way to approach something is to just “get through the door.” What this means is, just show up and do something. That could be simply opening a book or turning on your computer. Once you are there, you will find that you will take the next step and start the task.
2.Small consistent steps
After you get through the door, you want to finish the task. It's easy to get overwhelmed so you want to set a small and achievable goal.
A small goal could be: “I will work on this task for 25 minutes.” If you can do that and do it consistently, you’re taking small steps toward your goal.
As your consistency and commitment to these smaller goals increases, you can start to increase the amount of time you spend on something. It's about working your way up to bigger things, but it’s always good to start small.
3.Block out negativity
Don’t let any form of negativity get to you. This is easier said than done, but some good ways to do this is are:
- remind yourself of your goals,
- have faith in the process,
- don’t compare yourself to others,
- know your worth,
- understand and value your unique skills and experience,
- be patient with yourself,
- be kind to yourself,
- surround yourself with positive people who support and encourage you, and
- block out negative information, thoughts and ideas.
4.Don’t over do it
Don’t push yourself too hard. Hard work is good and important but know your limits. Make sure you take breaks and don’t burn yourself out. If you burn yourself out, you will lose the desire to keep going.
5.Conclusion
This blog does not discuss anything technical about coding or programming. It’s something I want to share about my journey. It's about knowing how to:
- follow a plan, and
- turn my passion for coding into something tangible.
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