John Calipari is a hall of fame college basketball coach for the University of Kentucky. He has won a national championship and fostered the transition of dozens of basketball players from the college ranks into the NBA to become millionaires. I recently posted my thoughts on leading intense, talented groups titled, 'The Lead Nut in the Nuthouse'. Coach Calipari is the nuttiest nut in the crazy nuthouse that is Kentucky basketball. The fans are nuts, the school is nuts, the players are nuts, but Calipari is nuttier. Calipari, in his book 'Players First', says that the most important thing a coach does is teach their players to never let go of the rope. The imagery that I get from that statement is an action hero type character hanging on to a rope while dangling off a cliff. Letting go or holding on is the difference between life and death. Coach Calipari understands that no matter how talented you are, a relentlessness that appears insane is the ultimate difference maker between failure and success. President Calvin Coolidge said as much when he said, 'persistence alone is omnipotent.'
I believe that persistence can be nurtured and there are things that can be done that prepare a person to be intensely persistent. Too often people associate persistence with a gut-wrenching one time effort. Real-life persistence is much different than that. True, meaningful persistence is demonstrated in the mundane drudgery of daily commitment.
Here are a couple of ways to fuel your ability to hold on to the rope when you’d rather let go of it...
The 'say it out loud test' - Sports talk show host, Colin Cowherd, has a great bit about the power of just saying something out loud to give you clarity on a matter. When you feel the urge to quit, just say it out loud. Literally. It's amazing how mad you'll get at yourself when say out loud that you want to quit on something. Guess what happens when you get mad at yourself for saying it out loud? You don't quit. Speaking of getting mad...
The appropriate use of anger - Financial guru, Dave Ramsey, believes nobody can get themselves out of debt until they get angry at the fact that they got into debt. Anger is a tool in our lives similar to an air compressed nail gun. They are very effective when pointed in the right direction. Point your anger at things that entice you to let go of the rope and fire away. Is the tv enticing you to skip a workout? Unplug it. Is the credit card enticing you to purchase things you can't afford? Cut it up. Are the chocolate chip cookies enticing you to cheat on your low sugar diet? Throw the whole box out. Get angry at the things that entice you to let go then aim and fire away.
Take action, constantly - It is amazing how little we think about quitting when we just keep showing up, keep working, and keep going. Constant action has a way of filling our mind and time with laser like focus on what we are trying to attain. It also has a way of suppressing that annoying, tired little voice in your head listing the reasons you should let go of the rope. It is when we take our foot off the gas that we begin to succumb to distractions, discouragement, and detractors. Keep yourself so busy moving forward that you don't have time to think about stopping, or quitting.
Legendary composer, Beethoven, composed his most acclaimed symphonies AFTER losing his hearing. Consider his 'hold on to the rope' mentality in this letter he wrote to his brother after Beethoven was informed there was nothing his doctor could do to restore his hearing:
'Day by day I am approaching the goal which I apprehend yet cannot describe. I will take fate by the throat, it will not wholly overcome me. Oh it so beautiful to live, to live a thousand times! I feel that I am not made for a quiet life.'
Hold on to the rope and keep on, keepin' on, everyone!
‘Bite Down and Don’t Let Go’ is a collection of writings on being intentional about life in a way that produces great persistence. Read about it more here.
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