This article by Bruce E. Brown of Proactive Coaching, from the Life Lessons collection, explores endurance as a character trait required to achieve almost anything worthwhile. Drawing excerpts from his books "Teaching Character Through Sport" and "Another 1001 The Seven Essentials of Great Teams," it covers mental toughness, perseverance through adversity, what endurance means for different people, and how endurance is built one day and one challenge at a time.
Introduction
"In the realm of ideas, everything depends on enthusiasm; in the real world, all rests on perseverance." Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Endurance is required to achieve almost anything worthwhile. Success is a marathon, not a sprint. The people who succeed are normally the ones who have learned not to give up easily. Setbacks and failures are part of the learning process, and mistakes are the lifeblood of learning and improvement. People who are so afraid of failure that they do not attempt anything of significance are sentenced to a life of little value. Too often people only try things that they know they can already be successful in; if they never challenge themselves, they will never know their true limits or abilities. People who can endure are dreamers, believers and achievers – they may be the only people who truly reach their potential.