LEARNING TO STAY THE COURSE – Part 2

Perseverance isn’t a gift or talent, like being an artist or mathematician. It is a character quality we have to develop. Perhaps that’s why it’s not so widely sought after – because it doesn’t yield immediate gratification. It is a process we continue in until we get good at it. That’s why we call it a journey.

Let’s look at four more enemies of perseverance so that we can know how to eliminate the things that get in our way of achieving long-term success.

The second enemy of perseverance is A Wrong Belief that Life Should be Easy. Having the right expectations going into anything is half the battle. While it may be common to think that life shouldn’t be so difficult, our expectations often don’t match reality.

When we are faced with tough situations, feel like life isn’t fair, or we don’t always get the results we want in a certain time frame, we have two choices. We can either give up, or we can dig in and get down in the trenches. Perseverance is choosing the trenches.

Another enemy of perseverance is A Wrong Belief that Success is a Destination. According to Maxwell, success isn’t a destination. Rather, it’s a path we choose to walk down each day. Each day! Every day that we wake up we get to choose the path we are going to take. Every day is a new opportunity to put into action what you are learning on your weight loss journey.

 Each of us constantly has the chance to learn, grow and move forward, no matter our age, education or financial resources. With a bit of perseverance, we can move through open doors, because when you develop the skill of perseverance, it becomes a character trait that affects every area of your life – not just weight loss.

A fourth enemy of perseverance is A Lack of Resiliency. We can’t let circumstances or failures cause us to be dry, brittle or inflexible. We have to determine to bounce back, no matter how we feel. We can’t allow feelings to dictate our decisions. Do the right thing and the feelings will follow.

 Pushing through a tough time will actually be an important part of developing your character trait of perseverance. You will be so happy with yourself on the other side of that meal, too, vs. being depressed, feeling guilty, frustrated or defeated.

Finally, the 5^th enemy of perseverance is A Lack of Vision. Having a vision provides a sense of purpose and direction for our lives. Your vision will help you define your short and long-term goals and guide the decisions you make along the way. Having a vision will give you the conviction that your dream can actually be achieved. It will inspire you with encouragement and a path forward to accomplish your goal.

Really think about what your vision is as it pertains to weight loss and to your health. Write it down. Let that be your guiding light as you persevere through the less desirable moments in your life. Know that by developing the character trait of perseverance, your capacity will be made stronger and you will ultimately reap the great benefits in the end.

Take the time to think through which of these 5 enemies is hindering your ability to persevere, because once you identify your stronghold, you will be able to rise above your situation and accomplish your goal. This is a very important step, because you can’t defeat an enemy that you can’t identify and name.