Finishers Persist

If you are pushing to the edge of your industry, or your position, or your career choice, there must be something to push against.

Finishers Persist, even flourish, when the Way gets harder.

As the line from "A League of Their Own" goes, "Of course baseball is hard. It is the hard that makes it great. If it wasn't hard, everybody would do it."

How do you learn to persist when The Forces of Mediocrity (a recent Seth Godin Post) start dumbing down your remarkable plan?

First you have to fail and learn by failing. In tennis, getting to and winning a third set or a fifth set (if you happen to be in a Grand Slam), is a big hurdle. Some players feel the pressure and learn to focus on the details and plans. Other players get off track, lose focus and even though they won the second set by playing better than their opponent, lose the third 6-0.

You have to lose a few third sets before you start to figure out how to win them.

Great Finishers Learn to Fail.


Persistence does not Mean chasing down every attack

Many years ago when I loved cycling I was watching a stage of The Tour De France. A rider was in the leader's yellow jersey and the elite riders in the race were at the front of the big field. This leader was a very good rider, but he did not have a strong team. As the road went up a huge mountain, the other leaders of other teams began attacking. One after another they launched attacks trying to get away from the yellow jersey. Each time someone attacked, the leader of the race tried to chase them down. The problem was, as soon as he chased one down, another attacked. Within 15 or 20 minutes, he was unable to chase the attacks and was left behind.

The smarter thing would have been for him to rely on people who had an interest in the outcome as well. "If you want him to win the race, let him go...I'm not chasing him down."

Persistence does not mean chasing down every attack. Sometimes there are people who can and will help you out because their interests align with yours (even if only temporarily).

So, as Seth Godin implores...persist. If you are struggling it is because you are pushing.