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I am continuing to talk about the book Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill. Today I will discuss the eighth step, Persistence, The Sustained Effort Necessary To Induce Faith. Once you turn belief into faith you will become unstoppable. Faith is an essential ingredient to accomplishing your goals and dreams. These 4 steps to becoming persistent will change your life.
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Persistence
Hill states that persistence is an essential factor in changing desire into its monetary equivalent. The basis of persistence is willpower. Titans of industry are often described as cold-blooded and ruthless. This is because they have the willpower to obtain their objectives. Henry Ford was described this way because of his habit of following through on all his plans with persistence.
Most people will quit and give up on their dreams at the first sign of failure. They lack the willpower and persistence to carry on when things are not going well. Many people are motivated to change their situation, but few have the discipline to work at it day after day without seeing results. The small percentage who live on their terms and have achieved financial independence have persistence.
Your WHY
These are the ones who begin with a desire to change their lives. They have a reason to make that change, the WHY. If their WHY is big enough, they will fight through every obstacle and be persistent in the pursuit of their desire. Persistence, when nothing seems to be working, will build the belief that they can change. As they continue being persistent, their belief will turn into faith. The ones who quit will never know what it is like to have faith. What does persistence mean? It means working on your plan every day until you build faith.
What To Do?
So what do you do if you are weak in persistence? Firstly, you can set up a schedule and make sure that you work toward your desire every day. Doing anything is better than doing nothing. Probably the best method of becoming persistent is to set up a mastermind group. A person or persons in your group will help you stay on track. The group will be able to keep each other accountable.
Your Group
At the beginning of the year, I was very persistent. I was working towards my goals every day. One of the members of my mastermind group and I formed an accountability circle. We would talk every Monday and discuss the things we did during the week towards accomplishing our goals. It made persistence very easy because neither one of us wanted to disappoint the other. What does persistence mean? It means forming a mastermind group to keep each other accountable and on track.
There is no substitute for persistence. It is important to remember at the beginning of your journey towards change. In this time, when everything is difficult and slow, you might experience many failures. Through persistence, you recognize these failures as steppingstones to success. It will keep you from becoming disheartened and giving up, which is the ultimate failure.
Money Mindset
To obtain wealth or financial freedom, you will have to develop a money mindset. If you are struggling financially, it is because you have a poverty mindset. You focus more on bills and debt than you do on ways to increase your income. A money mindset is developed through persistent effort. Thinking, speaking, and visualizing your financial freedom daily will change your situation.
Our subconscious mind works every day, all day. It is working when you are sleeping, and it is working when you are awake. It is picking up your words and thoughts and translating them into your reality. To change your reality, you must be persistent in your words and thoughts. Speaking positive affirmations and wealth affirmations every day will reprogram your subconscious mind.
Discovery
Persistence will lead to the discovery of new techniques and strategies in which to accomplish your desire. Persistent thoughts of wealth will lead to direct discoveries via the Internet or books etc. It will also lead to indirect discoveries such as social media posts, emails, meeting new people, etc. Being persistent in pursuing your desire will open you up to the unlimited universe we live in.
4 Steps To Becoming Persistent
Hill describes four simple steps to develop the habit of persistence. These four little steps can have an enormous change in your lifestyle. The four steps are:
- A WHY. Your definite purpose is coupled with a burning desire to accomplish it.
- A definite plan to which you consistently apply action.
- Closing your mind to all negative and discouraging influences.
- Allying with one or more persons to keep you accountable.
That is it; that is all it takes to develop a habit of persistence. Once you develop this habit, your belief will grow until you develop faith. When you know the feeling of faith you will know that nothing can stop you from achieving your desire. Your life is going to change for the better; it is just a matter of time. Do these 4 Steps To Becoming Persistent. What is the meaning of persistence? It’s quite simple. Persistence equals SUCCESS.
I love this plan! Number 4 especially “Allying with one or more persons to keep you accountable.” People can either keep you down with their excuses or raise you up with their dreams.
Thank you for your wonderful comments. Very true!
This was such an enlightening book….. I read it about 2 years ago and was really impressed not only with the practical steps but all the examples in the book. Thanks for sharing… persistence is indeed if you are to ever achieve your goals.. you have to show up even when you don’t want to and when times are tough. Great post.
Thank you for your thoughtful comments. I read the book every January. I use it as my blueprint.
[…] I was not a good student in college. Consequently, I changed my major five times before I found one that interested me. I struggled and was plagued by procrastination, fear, uncertainty, lack of motivation, and even depression. Failing so many times I didn’t think I would ever complete the requirements for my degree. It took me five and a half years, but I persevered and made it. […]