Day 35 (thirty-five) of 365 days

Taking the steps necessary to carry out objectives despite difficulties. Developing this virtue helps us to be successful in life - no matter our goals or obstacles we face. From school or learning skills in early years to business later in life, this virtue allows us to look adversity in the eye, overcome the temptation to quit or be distracted, and continue giving 100 percent to achieve our goals.

If we look throughout the world in every industry, in every culture, there's one consistent trend among successful individuals, and that trend is the ability to persevere. It's the ability to stand up and take a step forward when everyone else sits down.The trait of perseverance doesn't always come naturally; luckily you can develop it. This also means that you have a choice to persevere or not.

However, the grit to persevere is lacking in many of us. So how do you gain the perseverance that many leaders have to see failure as a temporary obstacle?

Below are 7 characteristics of persevering leaders that you should imbibe;

Defining of purpose

Have you ever stopped to ask yourself why? Why do you do what you do? What keeps you doing it day in and day out? What makes it important to you? We can only persevere when our why is strong enough.

Desire

You have to really want it, sometimes we don’t want something enough to do the hard work or persevere sufficiently to obtain it.

Self belief

You must truly belief that you have the qualities and skills to achieve your preferred outcome, or that you can acquire them.

Definition of plans

Goal setting is a key aspect of persevering. If you don’t know where you’re going, how can you get there? Even if your plans aren’t perfect, you should have something that you’re loosely aiming for. It provides focus and a level of accountability needed to persevere.

Accurate

Your perseverance should be based on a firm foundation of knowledge.

Will power

You should possess the ability to delay gratification, resisting short term temptations in order to meet long term goals.

Habit

Persistence is the direct result of habit. Our mind absorbs what we feed it. If we repeat acts of courage, and then we will overcome our fears.

So, take inventory of yourself, and determine what factors of persistence you need to develop.