The Power of Persistence in the New Work World
On Monday, January 10, the Georgia Bulldogs defeated the Alabama Crimson Tide, 33–18, to win the NCAA football championship. The game’s most iconic moment was Bulldogs quarterback Stetson Bennett IV’s emotional reaction to victory.
According to his father, Bennett had a burning desire to play for the Bulldogs from the age of three. But while he was passionate and talented and had a good track record of achievement and accolades, he didn’t receive a single scholarship offer from any SEC schools. Yet his unrelenting desire to play for the Bulldogs would not let him give up, and in 2017, Bennett tried out for the team as a walk-on. Four and a half years later, he led the Bulldogs to victory.
Bennett’s story reminds me of something my father always told me growing up: “If you have a burning desire to achieve something and you work hard enough at it, no matter how many times you fail, your chances of succeeding will be high.”
Every dream faces its own challenges, and Bennett is one of many whose stories are proof of the power of persistence in realizing our dreams. Let’s look at how others have handled such challenges and see what lessons we can learn to help us change our mindsets and move forward in the New Work World.
Be the quarterback of your own life.
In modern American football, the quarterback is usually considered the leader of the offense since they call the plays and touch the ball in almost every offensive play. As quarterback for the Georgia Bulldogs, Bennett is a great example of someone who didn’t let obstacles hold him back. He didn’t let a lack of scholarship from an SEC school keep him from achieving his passionate dreams and goals. Instead, he used his determination to succeed to take the lead in his life through hard work and the refusal to take no for an answer.
These same principles can apply in the New Work World. Whether you’re facing rejection letters in a job search or an inability to advance in your current role, keep your mindset strong and seize the lead in your career so you can achieve your goals.
What can you help others see or hear?
Helen Keller became deaf and blind at nineteen months due to a serious illness. Yet she would become the first deaf-blind person to obtain a university degree in the arts—and she didn’t stop there. She later became a published writer, collaborated with the American Foundation for the Blind, and actively promoted women’s suffrage and workers’ rights. Despite the challenging times she lived in, Keller helped make a decent life possible for all people with different abilities.
Like Keller, keep others in mind as you grow your career. What might you be able to do for those you work with or people in your personal life that could help improve their day-to-day lives? By improving the lives of others, you might find your own life and career improved, whether through connections, positive mindset, or improved work conditions.
It’s never too late to do what you love.
Rising star Misty Copeland made history in 2015 as the first African American woman to be promoted to principal dancer by the prestigious American Ballet Theatre (ABT). In an art form in which professionally aspiring individuals generally begin training as early as six, Copeland started late at thirteen. Yet she didn’t let her late start or difficult personal transitions stand in the way of doing what she loved. Through determination, practice, resilience, and perseverance, she began winning awards as early as two years later and first performed with ABT two years after that.
If you find yourself at a standstill in your current career and are seeking something more stimulating, learn a dance step from Copeland and recognize that it is never too late to do what you love.
Life is an adventure. Embrace it!
Marie Skłodowska Curie is probably the most famous female scientist of all time. She was a Polish-born, French-naturalized physicist and chemist who pioneered the field of radioactivity (a term she coined herself). Throughout her esteemed career, she discovered two new elements (radium and polonium), won two Nobel Prizes, and became the first female professor at the University of Paris. And she did all this while raising a family with her equally esteemed husband, Pierre Curie. Given the age in which she grew up, working as a scientist was a huge undertaking for Marie, but she was determined to succeed in a field dominated by men. It has been noted that her spirit of adventure and strong determination helped her create a method for isolating radioactive isotopes.
If your industry isn’t thriving, how might you transform your mindset from doom and gloom to claiming or even creating a new career path where you might be able to thrive? Consider a “new adventure” and embrace the expansive awareness that may come with such a major change!
I am forever grateful to my father for always encouraging me to work hard, face challenges, and contribute to the greater good. I believe the New Work World is full of opportunities for those willing to do the work to become their own success stories. You, too, can be the quarterback of your own life; help others see and hear new things; do what you love, no matter how late it might seem; and embrace the adventure of your life with a positive mindset and the power of persistence.
Mary Ann Faremouth has been a regular contributor to The Price of Business since August of 2019.
Kevin Price, the host of The Price of Business, is known for getting the big interviews — New York Times Best Selling Authors, Multi-Billionaires, National News Personalities, and More. Price is a multi-award winning journalist, author, speaker, columnist, and business news media personality.
The Price of Business is one of the longest running business shows in the country. It is nationally syndicated and distributed by USA Business Radio.