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By Harald Anderson
Walt Disney coined a special phrase for persistence and
determination; he referred to it as sticktoitivity. I
reflected upon this recently, because I stumbled across 20
old business cards from previous business ventures and jobs
I had been associated with over the last twenty-five years.
Those old business cards certainly brought back a museum
full of memories and mixed feelings. I had forgotten about
some of those jobs that shaped my outlook as I pushed
onward and upward. As I look back on all of those
opportunities with the benefit of perspective and age, the
one benefit I have derived is my own personal understanding
of the concept of success and failure.
The majority of people are so petrified of failure that
they paralyze themselves into inaction. The Japanese have
a fascinating way of looking at success, …”Fall seven
times; stand up eight.” A wonderful tribute to
sticktoitivity! I have framed this statement for my office
because it provides a fitting summary of the most important
ingredient to succeed. Perseverance and Commitment.
Life constantly tests us for our level of commitment. As
simple as this may sound it is the one ingredient that
separates the winners from the losers. The one skill that
winners acquire is an understanding that growth is only
possible if you have the courage to change what you have
been doing, if it is not achieving the result you desire.
Sometimes success is learning how to fall and recognizing
that from that fall you will learn to grow. And growth is
what a fulfilling life is all about.
When I worked as an investment broker many years ago I
found that the most successful traders I worked with often
lost on 90% of their trades. Yet in spite of this terrible
win/loss percentage their investments were incredibly
lucrative. Might it be that they knew something about
success that the rest of us only pay lip service to? The
one comment that I recall these superstars reiterating was
that it’s not how much you make when you are right but
rather how little you lose when you are wrong. Imagine
losing on 90% of your trades and still being wildly
successful. Imagine if you can, a perspective that says
you will be wrong 90% of the time but if you push through
you will be wildly successful. That is a fitting example
of sticktoitivity!
My best teachers have been my failures. My failures taught
me that I was so petrified of failure that unfortunately
failure became my focus. Not experiencing failure is quite
different than experiencing success. My focus for years
was on not experiencing failure…. although I would’ve
argued differently!
The most important lessons that I have learned from
successful colleagues are that the road to success is often
a path of experiments and tests. If someone is more
successful than I am, the only reason this is so is because
they have experimented with how to accomplish the objective
they desire more often than I have. The inverse is also
true, that those who are not successful have been too
scared to experiment. My question is, where do you fit in
this equation? What experiments have you been holding back
on because of fear? How are you going to break the mold
and reach your potential?
A good friend of mine has a business that he has worked
diligently on for over five years. He knows that his
business has the potential to increase sales tenfold.
However to do so, he also knows that he has to probably
break the mold that got him where he is today, and create a
different blueprint. While many would envy his current
success, try to imagine the courage it takes to step into
the unknown to pursue a level of growth dictated only by
the intention that you know it is doable. This is a
committed philosophy of perseverance. Sticktoitivity!
Basketball legend Michael Jordan stated it this way in one
of his shoe advertisements: “I’ve missed more than nine
thousand shots in my career. I’ve lost almost three
hundred games. Twenty-six times I’ve been trusted to take
the game winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and
over and over again in my life, and that is why I succeed.”
A fitting tribute to tribute to persistence.
Sticktoitivity!
The one thing I can guarantee is that LIFE will test your
resolve and commitment. It’s the way the universe works.
Here are some examples of famous setbacks that demonstrated
that they understood “sticktoitivity.”
· Decca Records rejected the Beatles claiming they didn’t
like their sound and guitar music was on the way out.
· Fred Smith the founder of Federal Express received a
grade of C on his senior thesis outlining the concept for
Federal Express. The professor claimed the idea was not
feasible.
· When Thomas Edison was a boy his teacher told him he was
too stupid to learn anything.
· F.W. Woolworth got a job in a dry goods store when he was
21, but his employer would not let him wait on customers
because he "didn't have enough good sense."
· Western Union rejected the telephone when Alexander
Graham Bell offered them the rights of manufacture and
distribution. They considered the technology as having too
many shortcomings.
· Dr. Seuss was rejected by numerous publishers who claimed
that verse and fantasy would not sell.
· A newspaper editor fired Walt Disney because he had no
good ideas.
· Winston Churchill failed the 6th grade.
· Steven Spielberg dropped out of high school his sophomore
year. He was persuaded to come back and placed in a
learning disabled class. He lasted a month a dropped out
of school forever.
· Albert Einstein had such poor grades in school that his
teacher asked him to quit telling him that “he would never
amount to anything.”
…”Fall seven times; stand up eight.”
Have you ever defined “success” or “failure” on your own
terms? I highly recommend doing so. It certainly creates
a sense of understanding, focus and purpose in your life.
Sometimes success is learning how to fail. Sometimes
success is overcoming the obstacles that define failure.
Sometimes all you need to succeed is sticktoitivity. The
only failure is not learning anything from the experience.
Here’s to you standing up on the eighth time!
Sticktoitivity!
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