Words to Live By #1-Perseverance

A major part of our job – perhaps the most important part – is helping people reach their financial goals in life.  Over the course of our careers, we’ve discovered that while things like planning, saving, and investing are crucial, it’s equally important to look beyond the numbers.  Achievement is about more than just spreadsheets or quarterly statements.  It’s about perseverance.  Hard work.  Willingness to change.  Gratitude.  Teamwork.

Sometimes, whenever the road to our goals seems long or daunting, it’s good to follow the example of those who came before.  So, over the next few months, we would like to share a few quotes that have inspired us in our own journey.  We call it Words to Live By, and we hope they’ll move you as much as they’ve moved us.

Let’s start with:

Words to Live By #1
Perseverance

What is perseverance?

“Perseverance is failing nineteen times and succeeding the twentieth.” – Julie Andrews

“Perseverance is the secret of all triumphs.”  – Victor Hugo

We can’t tell you how many times we’ve seen a client work so hard at something, only to come up short.  A degree.  A promotion. A new job.  An award.  Retirement.  You name it, we’ve seen it.

What we can tell you is that the clients who then pick themselves up, dust themselves off, and try again – and who do it every time – are the same ones enjoying their achievements right now.

What good does perseverance do?

“Patience and perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish.” – John Quincy Adams

In our lives, we will face almost constant obstacles.  Financial hardship, poor health, unfortunate circumstances, even other people will stand in the way of who we want to be, where we want to go, and what we want to do.

“A lot of people are going to try to do the same thing you want to do.  You just have to decide if you’re one of the people who quits.”  – Shea Serrano

The road to our goals will often seem treacherous.  The obstacles will seem insurmountable, and the going unbearably slow.  But if the destination is what we truly want, it will be worth the mileage.  That’s why our favorite quite about perseverance comes from none other than Abraham Lincoln, who said:

“I may walk slowly, but I never walk backward.” 

As you progress towards your goals in life, always remember that the ability to keep walking, no matter how slowly, is what will get you there.  It matters more than talent.  It matters more than wealth.  Those things can certainly make the road easier.

But perseverance is what makes the distance shorter.