A cliched quote whose meaning I have only just begun to truly understand. Perseverance and grit are not about one contiguous period of attempts. Nor is it about bullheaded stubbornness to keep trying where we failed before.

I cooked my first meal after starting my first job. To say my cooking was sporadic would be an understatement. Fast forward to 8 years later and I am a consistent cook whose regularity and enjoyment have improved beyond my wildest expectations.

I have found a combination of 4 pillars to be effective in my perseverance attempts.

• Purpose. Why is this important to you? If the significance and relevance are consistent or grow over time, it is an indication that the effort is worth it.
• Self awareness. This is key to understanding if there is any change in our approach and feelings with each subsequent attempt at the same task.
• Self compassion. It is okay to fail. More importantly, to fail after succeeding once.
• Knowing when to quit. Quitting has a bad rep but sometimes it is the right thing to do. Also, quitting now does not always mean that we are quitting forever. Your future self may have the right tools which your current self does not.

Succeeding at anything is a marathon, not a sprint. It is about the journey as much as it is about the end result.