The Perseverance Hack?
Growing up I never really appreciated the lessons that a younger brother gains wrestling with his two older and stronger brothers.?At times I thought it was more torment than training.?My brother Joe would pin me between his legs and punch my deltoids gleefully smirking and stating, “I’m making you tough!”?Now decades from those lessons I can connect the dots, more importantly than making me tough - those wrestling matches gave me endurance, I became a very patient person, I learned to plan my escape, I learned that pain and being slightly uncomfortable is a valuable motivator, and I became a student of my opponent.?In short, these lessons taught me perseverance.?More importantly, I took these lessons into life - some more overtly than others - but those wrestling matches prepared me and provide insight to the value of perseverance.?The perseverance hack leverages the lessons of patience, planning, pain and sizing up the?obstacles that manifests in one's life.?
Patience is key to making well thought out strategies and plans that lead to success.?When I think of patience and industry I think of the Oracle from Omaha, Warren Buffett, value investing,?and the value of stocks that can be bought cheap relative to the underlying fundamentals (low price-to-book, price-to-earnings, or price-to-cash flow values) and held for nearly forever.?Once procured, held, the value of an investment grows over time like a properly stored red wine, a valuable Renoir painting, or a rare book.?No one can debate that the "Buffett Way" is valuable. It also requires patience. Thomas Edison is renowned for his patience to stay with an invention and accept numerous failures before success.??True to both Buffett and Edison approaches is the importance of sweating the details.?Caring about details requires patience.?The Program Manager and the Accountant both know patience and the necessity of paying attention to the details.?Patience is key to perseverance.?
I sometimes confuse endurance and perseverance.?Endurance is the ability to persist through adverse conditions (physical, emotional or mental) that have been set upon one by an outside authority such as a marathon race coordinator.?Perseverance is the ability to make progress towards an end state and overcoming challenges and unforeseen malaise.?I am an endurance runner but in reality I need both endurance and perseverance to run 50k or escape from my brother's grasp.?The?physical, emotional or mental challenges are wasted without patience to create a plan for obstacles, manage setbacks in pace or nutrition.? A runner I respect once told me that have patience and let the race come to you, have a plan, but be prepared to endure the obstacles and suffering.?Prepare by putting in the appropriate training.?Plan for rest and aid.? Recruit a good crew. In March 2022 I completed the Blackbeard’s Revenge 100 Miler; it was a grueling experience for myself but after failing to complete the same distance four other times - perseverance and a good Crew got me across the finish line.? The year prior to this race I ran the Blackbeard’s Revenge 100K. There I learned how the race was supported, what conditions to expect and what Crew support I needed.?So often I draw parallels between my profession as a program manager and endurance running.?As per the definition of perseverance, we made progress towards an end state, overcame challenges and unforeseen malaise.? An analogy between perseverance and program management is a natural extension.?
Crews, pacers and training partners for those races proceeding Blackbeard's Revenge 100 Miler including 4 failed attempts before! Thank you all!
Since 2000 I have made a living providing program and project management to Department of Defense.?Much like an ultramarathon, a project has many facets and requires planning, flexibility, and persistence to overcome challenges and?despondency.?Within a project there is the forming of a strategy to succeed, selection of a capable crew, an assessment of schedule, training necessary to get the team to the next level and flexibility plus leadership to pull the team across obstacles.?Mitigation plans are formed for risks, some risks are accepted, some risks transfer and some risks turn into issues like a blister in a long race.?Being prepared for blisters in?Blackbeard’s Revenge 100 Miler saved time and kept us on pace.?Similarly, when night fell and as we ran through the night we came prepared with energy drinks to help with the exhaustion and lack of sleep.?At the time, I was a couple months from 59 years old when I ran this race, I had a “Dad Bod” and I was not particular genetically inclined to be a runner.?But these obstacles were not unsurpassable.?As daylight came during this race, the next milestones to the project manager that has perseverance.?? ?
So that is it for the "Perseverance Hack." Understanding that elements of perseverance are lessons that can be used for success for the entrepreneur, the inventor, the investor, the program manager, the athlete and almost any role or position.?The key to perseverance is understanding it starts with a plan, it requires patience, understand obstacles and uncomfortable movements will need to be crushed, and it will not always be pleasant -?But if the goal is important enough - then it is important enough to persevere.?
On March 27th 2022 the Challenge 2022 Team completed Running 2022 Miles 4 Explosive Ordnance Disposal Warrior Foundation, raised $24.2K for the foundation and championed 18 months of awareness to Veterans suicide. Shipmates we have the Watch!
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Success is not final, failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that counts.
--Winston Churchill (1874-1965), former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
I was taught the way of progress is neither swift nor easy.
--Marie Curie (1867-1934), French physicist and two-time winner of the Nobel Prize
The Warren Buffett Way?Hardcover – September 30, 2013
What Thomas Edison Can Teach You About Perseverance
Indra Raj Pathak May 16, 2020
https://medium.com/illumination/what-thomas-edison-can-teach-you-about-perseverance-3c6d05caa57d
Business & Infrastructure Lead/OPSO/Security POC @ PMA-213 NATMS, NAVAIR, Patuxent River, MD
2 年Congratulations again on completing the race. Great article Jim, thanks for sharing.