Are you a quitter? Do you start something in high spirits and halfway through, watching that one series is suddenly much more important than finishing your project? Have you wanted to write a book for years? Have you really wanted to lose weight for years? Have you wanted to quit smoking for years and have been dropping out? Are you almost balking at yourself that you can't seem to get anything off the ground?
In that case, this is a blog you really should read. I delve into what perseverance is and how you can increase it.
What is perseverance?
Perseverance actually means staying committed to achieving a certain goal or realizing a certain vision. Synonyms of perseverance also include persistence, toughness, tenacious, persistence which does show what it means.
Persevering means not quitting when you get bored. Persevering means that even when circumstances are difficult you continue doing what you want to do.
For certain jobs, having perseverance is very important. For example, top actors say that if you don't believe in yourself it can get in the way of your career. Matt Damon once said in an interview that when friends ask him if they too can become an actor he always says no. Only if you really have the dream do you go after it, no matter what others say. And as an actor you very often get told no.
Perseverance does not mean that what you want to achieve will succeed, but it does mean that you can get back up after a fall. The author of the Harry Potter books also received many rejections before they were published, and perseverance was very important for that.
Learning Perseverance
Fortunately for those who sometimes give up, perseverance can be learned. First of all, it is important to know the characteristics of someone who has a lot of perseverance. This can help you take steps to increase your perseverance yourself.
Some key characteristics of go-getters:
- A clear vision of where you want to go.
- Inner confidence that you can do it.
- Well-developed habits.
- Adaptability.
- Your lifelong desire to learn.
- Role models.
Many of these habits you can learn or encourage for yourself. That's why I've come up with some exercises that will help make you a go-getter.
Exercises to increase perseverance
For each feature, I have 1 exercise for you to use to increase your perseverance.
Visualize your goal
Whether you want success in your job, want to lose weight, quit smoking or just want to find the right partner it is important to have a clear vision of your goal. With that clear vision, the steps toward it can also become clearer.
Self-hypnosis is a good state to visualize your goal. Initially, you sit or lie down somewhere comfortable. You close your eyes and focus on your breathing.
If you are properly relaxed, you can visualize your goal. Here it is not only important to see the picture in front of you. Visualize also the feeling you have with your goal, how you move when you have reached your goal and what facial expression you have then and how other people react to it.
- If you have achieved your goal you feel..... (fill in for yourself).
- If you have achieved your goal you move....
- If you achieved your goal check out....
- If you have achieved your goal, everyone responds....
If you can add more elements of your own to this visualization about your goal, that's only better. The more you can crystallize your goal the better.
Increase self-confidence
Inner self-confidence is important for perseverance. If you are convinced that you are a top actor you will keep going over all the auditions until someone recognizes your talent. Remember that many top actors did not break through until after the age of 40.
For increasing self-confidence, you can also use self-hypnosis.
Like visualizing, you start with a relaxation exercise where you first focus on your breathing. When you are nice and relaxed you can repeat the following suggestions to yourself:
- I can.
- I have many capabilities.
- I have learned what I need to know and can learn otherwise.
- I'm smart.
- I can make me mentally stronger.
- I am strong.
Strengthening habits
Strong habits that help you be persistent and persevere are an important trait of people with perseverance. This is also called discipline by some people. Learning a habit is sometimes more difficult than applying self-hypnosis. It takes an average of 28 days to learn a habit, this is also one of the reasons why the 30-day-challenges are so popular for people who want to do something about their health.
However, this challenge is suitable for more than just green smoothies and your daily workout . Other habits, such as reading daily or dedicating a certain amount of time daily to personal development can also be used.
Decide for yourself a habit you want to develop and repeat it for 30 days in a row.
For example, if you want to make a habit of reading an informative book, you can determine that you will read from a particular book for at least 15 minutes to half an hour daily for 30 consecutive days. Should you finish the book before those 30 days, make sure you have another book ready to complete the challenge and in this way make reading a real habit.
If your goal is to live healthier, you can follow an exercise challenge or a diet challenge, such as with the green smoothies.
Improving Adaptability
Recent times have seen many changes that show that adaptability is lacking in some people. The world around us is constantly changing. You cannot always assume that everything will stay as it was. This can mean that sometimes you are blown off course by those changes, but if you have perseverance you are able to adapt to the new situation to still achieve your goal.
Because every day is different and to train yourself to see the good points of change is one of the simplest exercises of dealing with change and being able to adapt to see the best in a situation.
Therefore, at the end of each day, you can name the three best, fun things that happened or that you did. Even if the day was super boring or if you dealt with a setback that day. By doing this, you determine the emotions you have after setbacks.
At the end of the day, name the 3 positive things about that day.
If you have a setback or made a mistake, it is not an immediate problem. Grades in school also mean nothing in themselves, because you can learn something even from a failing grade. If you have failed once, you can figure out what you did wrong and what lessons you can learn from that setback. This will ensure that you adjust your course and don't make that mistake again.
After a mistake or setback, determine what you can do differently next time.
Lifelong learning
As you continue to learn about a particular topic, you will find each time that there is more to learn. As a result, at some point you may find that you know a lot and at the same time know nothing. Having this realization is actually a very good thing. In fact, this can motivate you to always keep learning.
For continued learning, you can also take advantage of the 30-day challenge.
Defining Role Models
When the first sheep crosses the dam, more will follow. Just who is the first sheep you want to follow? Having a role model is important to inspire you. Whatever goal you have, seeing that someone else has already achieved it or has at least come far also shows you to yourself that nothing is impossible as long as you do your best and keep trying.
So determine who is your role model for the goal you have.
Also, possibly delve into your role model. Has he or she written books about achieving the goal you want more perseverance for? Has he or she made videos explaining more about achieving the goal?
As you can see, some exercises have overlap with each other. You can learn from your role model, the 30 day challenge can be used for multiple goals and even for developing a strategy to apply self-hypnosis daily to strengthen your self-confidence and visualization of your goal. In the process, all these exercises strengthen your self-confidence which helps to strengthen your perseverance.
Want to learn more about mental techniques that can help you make life more successful? Then come to a seminar or check out Hypnosis Institute Netherlands' training courses.
Sources:
https://www.fastcompany.com/3044531/7-habits-of-highly-persistent-people
