The importance of persistence in achieving goals. – why does it make all the difference in having success or having no success in life?
Persistence has been the essential trait for all the goals I have set out for myself and it will help you stick to yours and be successful too! Whether you want to:
- Get a promotion
- Launch a new business venture
- Reach a personal milestone
- Get up earlier in the morning
- Practice more self-care
,,, long-term success often boils down to one thing: persistence. But why is persistence so important and how can you learn to not give up so quickly?
The good news is that persistence isn’t something you either have or don’t have – persistence for success is a skill you can LEARN.
Think of it like working out; the more you do, the stronger and better your results will be!
It wasn’t easy for me become more persistent in life but once I was over the hump, I started reaching my goals in no time!
Today I want to share with you the importance of persistence in achieving goals and how you can become a motivated person who doesn’t give up on their goals.
Understanding the importance of perseverance to achieve goals is your first step to success!
The Importance Of Persistence In Achieving Goals
Why is persistence so important? Persistence is key because you can’t change the fact that you will face obstacles and hard times in life.
But do you know what you can change?
The way you react to these kind of situations. Do you want to either:
- Give up and throw everything away?
- Learn and grow from your setbacks and keep going?
I know what you’re thinking. Of course you want to do #2 but it’s just so hard to remain positive and show this strength all the time! Am I right?
It won’t always be easy, that’s for sure, but persistence is the key to success.
Further below, I’ll be talking about how to develop persistence so you can learn and grow from hard times instead of giving up on your goals.
Because starting all over again is so much more exhausting than having a short break and then keep on going.
Let’s set the base first and talk about this question; what is the importance of goals in life?
If you know the answer to this one, it’ll be easier for you to understand importance of perseverance and persistence in achieving goals.
Disclaimer: Some of the links here are affiliate links and I may earn if you click on them, AT NO EXTRA cost to you. Hope you find the information here useful! Thanks.
Why Setting Goals Is Important For Success
Do you ever think, “What is the point of it all?” It’s a common question that not only you struggle to answer (I used to think this too).
The answer is… goals! The importance of goals in life is what gets you started in the first place.
Find out how you can set monthly goals in 3 simple ways.
This sounds cheesy, but goals act as a compass for your life. They give you direction and motivation when you need it most.
They also provide you with something to work for and strive towards.
These things can ultimately lead to greater fulfillment in life. (And happiness too!)
Can you see the importance of having goals?
That said, it’s important to remember that goals aren’t enough; you must be persistent to achieve them. That’s why persistence in achieving goals is the key factor!
The importance of achieving goals is just as meaningful as setting them in the first place. Because what’s the point of having a goal if you will never reach it?
Let’s look at how you can become more persistent with your goals. This will boost your confidence and stamina immensely.
Why Is Persistence Important To Achieve Goals?
While many factors play a role in the success you will experience throughout your life, persistence is arguably one of, if not the most important, when it comes to achieving your goals.
Persistence in life remains the same whether you have:
- Short-term goals
- Long-term goals
- Mini-goals
It’s what separates those who succeed and those who give up.
And I don’t want you to be the one who gives up! I want you to be the person who wins, living your dream life and being fulfilled and content!
The Importance Of Persistence In Achieving Goals OR How Is Persistence Helpful In Achieving A Goal?
So now, why is persistence important for success? Here are seven reasons that explain the importance of perseverance to achieve goals.
#1 – Stay Focused On Your Goals
Think back to the last time you set a goal. How did you feel?
I bet you felt excited and motivated to get started! That is how most goals start, after all.
But as time went on:
- How did your feelings shift or change?
- Did you lose that excitement?
- Did you lose the consistency that you started with?
Sounds too familiar? Yep, I know, it sucks . . .
Don’t, worry, it’s completely normal because any goal you set – no matter how big or small – requires a lot of consistency and focus to succeed.
And that’s why it is so important to be persistent and stay focused on your goals, no matter how long it takes.
The power of persistence comes from staying focused on what you want to achieve and taking consistent action toward it.
This is the best way to stay motivated and accomplish your goal! Especially when you’re trying to make long-term changes and keep the course.
Trust me; when you remain persistent, you’ll find that your goals will become a lot more achievable!
Read these affirmations for self-discipline daily – I like to do it during my morning routine.
#2 – Learn New Skills
Sometimes, achieving a goal requires you to learn an important skill. This could be anything from:
- Learning how to code
- Starting a podcast
- Mastering the art of drawing a figure that looks like a person
No matter what it is, the only way to learn something new is through persistent practice and repetition.
This means you must commit to learning the skill and put in the time and effort needed.
While this may seem daunting at first, it’s important to remember that the more you practice, the better you will get and the closer you will be to achieving your goal (and you’ll become a lot faster at it too).
#3 – Get Through Difficult Times
In life, you will have to navigate difficult situations, whether working towards big goals or sitting on the couch with no goals.
Who would you rather be?
I often talk myself out of goals because I don’t want to face those hard times. I bet you do the same too?!
But the truth of life is that you will meet them no matter what. So why not be the person out there building the life of their dreams?
But you don’t have to do it alone. Persistence will be your guide!
Remember that you can get through them. If you remain persistent, you can find a way to make it work.
Even when things don’t go as planned. It’s easy to get discouraged and give up, but don’t let that happen!
Instead of giving up, take a step back and determine what you can learn from the situation.
You will stay on track and eventually reach your goals.
And you know what?
Sometimes you just have to sit it out. The importance of patience in achieving goals is a big one you have to realize.
Success doesn’t happen overnight!
My Tip For Hard Days:
If I have a bad day and can’t be bothered working on my goals, I just do the bare minimum to get one step closer to my end goal.
That way I know I have done something (even if it’s just a small thing) but at the same time I don’t overwork myself.
The next day I have more power to keep going.
#4 – Push Past Negative Thoughts
If you think people like Steve Jobs, JK Rowling, or Dwayne The Rock Johnson have never had negative thoughts, you’d be wrong! VERY wrong!
Every person on the face of this planet has negative thoughts from time to time, and they can be especially hard to push past when you’re pursuing a goal.
Again, this is where persistence can lend you a helping hand!
While persistence won’t give you a positive attitude with the snap of a finger, though wouldn’t that be nice, it will help you push past those negative thoughts and keep going.
It can also help you stay persistent in improving your mindset if that is one of your goals.
#5 – Expand Your Comfort Zone
Think of your comfort zone as a bubble that keeps you safe from the unknown. While this can be helpful in some scenarios, it can become a hindrance when it comes to achieving goals.
If you’re unwilling to step outside your comfort zone and take risks, you won’t ever reach your goal!
Persistence gives you the courage and strength to break out of your comfort zone, try something new, and push yourself to improve.
Now, I won’t lie to you.
This stepping out of your comfort zone will not feel great.
That’s okay and completely normal. But the more times you do it, the easier and less scary it will become.
Eventually, your persistent attitude will ultimately turn you into a pro at stepping out of your comfort zone!
#6 – Long-Term Success
People often get frustrated by the lack of immediate gratification when working to make changes in life. (We can thank this on our society of instant gratification!)
But anything worth having often takes time to build; this is why I stress the importance of persistence in achieving goals so much.
Persistence can help you stay focused on the long-term goal and push through when the results aren’t immediate because they likely won’t be.
Sure, you’ll achieve different milestones along the way, but you must remain persistent to reach your ultimate goal.
Without persistence, it can be easy to give up when the results aren’t immediate. But if you remain persistent and focused on your long-term goal, you will eventually succeed!
#7 – Sense Of Accomplishment
At the end of it all, the most significant benefit of persistence is that feeling of accomplishment when you’ve made it!
And I am not even talking about making it to the destination of your ultimate goal. It applies to all the little steps in between:
- It’s making it out of your comfort zone.
- It’s making it through a difficult situation.
- It’s taking the time to learn a new skill.
To be honest with you, I do a little dance if I can hold up my streak on Duolingo learning Spanish!
That’s persistence for me. Each of these steps is an accomplishment in itself.
And with persistence and dedication to reach your goal, you’ll experience the feeling of accomplishment multiple times throughout your life.
It’s a truly incredible feeling!
It also brings with it the realization of how powerful persistence is – and this can stay with you forever!
You might even become addicted to it (I certainly do because I now know what great things I can achieve over time).
So remember, the importance of persistence when achieving goals cannot be underestimated.
Have you ever looked at your role models and thought, “Wow, if they can do it, so can I!” (If not, you should do it more often).
Because you can! All you need is a bit of persistence and dedication, and you’ll be well on your way to achieving your goals! And why shouldn’t you be able to do it, everyone is only human!
Top 10 Personality Traits Of Persistent People
Why is persistence important for success?
The key to many of our role models achieving their success is that they are genuinely perseverant people.
Sure, they have miseries along the way like any of us do. But they are focused and determined to get through them.
So, what are the personality traits that make persistent people successful?
How To Become More Persistent In Your Life
Here is a list of 10 common characteristics of the most successful people. Be sure to read that twice, then write it down, and look at it everyday:
- They have developed good habits. This means they wake up early, exercise regularly, practice good time management, and focus on their goals.
- They stay organized and are detail-oriented. This means they keep track of their progress and have systems to stay on top of their goals.
- They can set goals and formulate plans to achieve those goals. This means they can assess what needs to be done and take the necessary steps to reach their destination.
- They can keep an open mind and think outside the box. This means they are able to come up with creative solutions and find ways to make things work, even when the odds might be stacked against them.
- They are constantly working on a growth mindset. For some, this means meditating to stay positive and focused. For others, this means having a daily journaling practice.
- They are resilient in the face of challenges, failures, or setbacks. This means that when they encounter a roadblock or difficult task, they don’t give up but rather figure out how to move past it and keep going.
- They can see the bigger picture. This means they can stay focused on the long-term goal rather than getting sidetracked by short-term distractions.
- They know that each step is an integral part of the whole. So, rather than focusing on the destination, they also learn to enjoy the journey.
- They are passionate and motivated. Even when times get tough, they focus on their why and the big picture, which helps them stay motivated.
- They are mindful of their energy and resources. This means they know when to take breaks or step away from a situation and when to double down on their efforts.
As you can see, persistent people have various ways of practicing persistence that help them succeed.
The good news for you is these traits can be developed with practice!
So, don’t fret even if you didn’t resonate with anything on that list. You can start taking small steps today to become more persistent and watch your goals come to fruition.
How To Become A Persistent Person
1. Change Your Mindset
One of the best places to start is with your mindset.
Because even though there are a lot of external factors that we need to navigate in the pursuit of our goals, it’s the internal barriers we often struggle with the most.
Learn about the most common barriers to achieving goals and how to overcome them.
To work on your inner self, take some time each day to focus on developing a growth mindset.
Some good things to try include reading a personal development book, saying affirmations, writing in a journal, or meditating.
Check out these powerful affirmations for achieving goals!
2. Change Your Habits
Another essential part of becoming persistent is developing good habits.
This means carving out time each day to focus on your goals and breaking them up into smaller pieces that are more manageable.
The easiest way for me to change my habits is if I incorporate them into my miracle morning routine or my evening routine.
That way they become a part of my daily routine and it’s easier to get used to them (and STICK to them!).
If you want to start a new habit, you better get prepared for it. What do I mean by that?
Let’s say you want to do Yoga in the morning. The night before, roll out your Yoga mat and choose the clothes you want to wear.
Maybe even select the music you want to listen to for your practice.
Make it as easy as possible for yourself to remember and to actually do the task.
Also: try out Sunday planning so you can prepare your week and plan ahead – this is something I look forward to EVERY weekend!
3. Organization Is Key
It also means having a system to stay organized and track your progress.
This can be anything from writing down tasks on a to do list to using a project management tool like Asana.
You can also just use a planner, bullet journal, or notebook – whichever organizational system you prefer (find out whether a bullet journal or a planner is the better choice for you).
4. Toughen Up
Finally, staying resilient in the face of setbacks and failure is mandatory. Meaning taking a step back, reassessing the situation, and finding a way to move forward.
Understanding the importance of willpower in achieving the goal will set you apart from the people who don’t go through with their goals.
If you’re feeling stuck, it can also help to talk with someone who has been in a similar situation and can provide a third-party perspective.
The Importance Of Persistence In Achieving Goals – Before You Go . . .
I hope you realized that the importance of persistence in achieving goals cannot be underestimated.
Thankfully, persistence in life is something that can be developed over time. So even if you’re not persistent right now, you can be in the future.
And hopefully my guide has given you some valuable insights into how to get there!
You can also work on a goal together with someone else, call it a goal buddy.
It doesn’t have to be the same goal you guys work on, but having a buddy makes you more accountable as you can give each other weekly updates as well as motivate one another when times get tough.
Just an idea 🙂
Good luck!
FAQs to The Importance of Persistence In Achieving Goals
Does Success Require Persistence?
Are you wondering, does success require persistence? Yes, absolutely! No one has become successful overnight without having done anything for it. Most successful people are consistent in what they do, they get up early every day and work on their goals (no matter what obstacle they might face along their way).
Is Persistence More Important Than Motivation?
Are you asking yourself, is persistence more important than motivation? Yes, it is. You can be motivated and excited about reaching a goal all you want, but if you aren’t persistent in working on your goal constantly (even when times get tough), you won’t achieve anything.
Is Persistence A Leadership Skill?
So, is persistence a leadership skill? Yes, it definitely is. A leader needs to be persistent and dedicated to navigate their team through difficult times and keep them happy and motivated to achieve a goal. If a leader doesn’t have the skill of persistence, the team is not going to succeed.
About The Author of The Importance of Persistence In Achieving Goals
Saskia is a mom, blogger, and freelance writer. She loves sharing tips on self-care, personal growth, and productivity & organization. Find out more about her or get in touch with her here.
