Lean Quote: Leadership Requires Persistence

On Fridays I will post a Lean related Quote. Throughout our lifetimes many people touch our lives and leave us with words of wisdom. These can both be a source of new learning and also a point to pause and reflect upon lessons we have learned. Within Lean active learning is an important aspect on this journey because without learning we can not improve.

"If you live long enough, you'll make mistakes. But if you learn from them, you'll be a better person. It's how you handle adversity, not how it affects you. The main thing is never quit, never quit, never quit." — Bill Clinton

Persistence means not giving up when faced with a challenge. It is the ability to stick with a difficult task and cope with frustration.

Nowhere is the importance of persistence more relevant than in leadership
Effective leaders never give up because something runs into obstacles, faces challenges or is difficult. They evaluate the idea or program, and if they feel it is important, they take every possible step to bring it to fruition. This may be difficult because they will face the naysayers who tell them to give up or forget about it, and that is often demotivating.

Achieving any great goal cannot be done overnight. It takes hard work. There will undoubtedly be obstacles that must be overcome. Someone must hold the vision and inspire others by rolling up his or her sleeves and working to make progress. Someone must lead.

Persistence is often related to positive attitude. Someone without strong beliefs or lacking confidence will generally stop fighting for ideals. True leaders realize that it is only by fighting for, and not giving up on ideals, that they can ever be a true effective leader.

What may separate leaders among others, is their persistence to do the right things - even if these are not what they want, even if they don't feel like doing it and even if all seems to be against them.

Persistence to do the right things - will not be that easy. It will require your inner will power. Mere brute force will not do it for you - it will be a game of the mind. The stronger your resolve, the more you will persist - and the more your chances of success.

I think above all us, leadership requires persistence.



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