This is a quick Friday post about dealing with struggles in life. I’m especially thinking about the struggles of being a writer. For most of us, pursuing our goals is very tough! But this will pertain to other challenges, too.
I’ve been thinking about the power of water. We don’t talk about water as a metaphor for strength. Instead, we talk about an “iron will,” a “steely resolve.” We talk about “going hard.”
Water isn’t hard; it doesn’t even have its own shape. But rushing water is hard to hold back.
When there’s a heavy rain, lakes, ponds, and rivers overflow their banks. What contained them before can no longer contain them. I think when we find our inspiration, we’re like that, too. The old boundaries don’t matter. But unlike the destructive force of a flood, we’re sharing our constructive, creative, uplifting force with more of the world.
Even dripping water is powerful over time. Drop by drop, it can bore a hole straight through solid rock. That’s how persistence works.
If it’s flowing in a stream down a mountain, it’ll hit a bunch of rocks without stopping. It doesn’t even pause. It just flows right around it. I love thinking about our creative lives that way. We don’t have to stop when we hit an obstacle, a disappointment, a rejection. It doesn’t have to have any power over us.
It’s good for us to have the confidence that one way or another, like a river to the sea, we’re going to get to where we’re going.
So many people make up their minds that one publication is their dream publication, one person is their one true soulmate, one job is their perfect job, one particular path is the right path for them. The truth is, there are almost no once-in-a-lifetime chances. There are new opportunities all the time…as long as we find our inspiration, as long as we keep trying, as long as we keep moving forward.
Whatever you’re pursuing, I hope you keep going. In so many situations, nothing can stop you but you.
How do you think about perseverance? Is it something you struggle with? I’d love to hear about it in the comments. Thanks for reading, and have a great weekend!
I love this! And I think, for me at least, perserverance is determined by motivation. When I was a teen, I worked at a summer camp in the mountains. Every day, I would walk up the trails to the top of the mountain. The wife of one of the camp owners told me she admired my perserverance. What she didn’t know was my motivation: I was an introvert who was living in a cabin full of girls and serving campers daily, so climbing that mountain was the only peace I got!
If I’m motivated enough, perserverance comes easily. But when my motivation is like the dripping water you mentioned, it’s a lot harder to maintain that persistence.
Katie, that is such a good point! And focusing on the “why” can make a big difference. 🙂
I agree. Persistence is the key, though at times it feels like I am gazing into an endless tunnel of rejections.
I don’t know if it helps to know that almost everyone feels that way a lot of the time…but it’s true! Sending good wishes your way.
What a great analogy! Yes we writers keep pushing forward in spite of all the obstacles everyday life throws at us. We still manage to make time for writing because we love it. If we manage to publish one piece or book, we just move onto the next one.
That’s so true, Naomi—we do it because we love it! Thanks for reading. Hope you have a good weekend!
Thank you for today’s blog 2/18/22 post. I need the reminder.
Aw thanks for reading! Have a wonderful weekend!
Thanks—I needed this today. I struggle with trying to build a writing career, because I feel rudderless. I’m good at persevering if I have a clear set of hoops to jump through, but writing isn’t really like that. When do I shelve a project? How do I tell if I should act on someone’s feedback or accept they aren’t the right audience for my work? It’s hard to keep going when there’s no clear path, but I’ll do it anyway.
Hi Janet! It can be tough, because there’s no one path! For what it’s worth, with feedback, I like to read through it and then set it aside for a few days and not think about it, if possible. If it’s valid, I’ll start to think about ways to incorporate it, and if it doesn’t stick with me, I figure the advice isn’t for me. 🙂
Great advice. I missed commenting on your birthday blog posting, so a very belated happy birthday. I’ll be reading a lot of blog posts over this weekend. Perhaps I’ll get myself to write one for a change (it’s been a long time).
I’m actually in a new role at our postal processing plant and I “wear lots of hats” but have better hours, though it’s definitely a lot to keep up with.
Looking forward to more of your posts!
Thanks!
Persistence through difficulties – a maze of a topic requiring courage just to enter. I love metaphor, and water is a great analogy.
When things get tough, how do you persist? As the boxer Mike Tyson said: Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth. Then you’ll see if you want to persist.
Two schools of thought here. One says, the difficulty is telling you to change direction. So quit quietly. Find something else to do, maybe raise nasturtiums. Don’t follow pain, follow your bliss. This advice doesn’t explain what to do when your bliss runs out, nor how to make rent, but it sounds easy and you don’t have to grind.
The other school of thought says, get up when you’re knocked down, make yourself stronger, go back and try again, harder. Between flight or fight, it’s the fight option. You’ll get more bruises, but an eventual win can be big. Comedian Seinfeld has an interview somewhere where he explains that surprisingly, the road to becoming a top comedian is long and brutal. It involves ‘learning by failing,’ a painful and protracted process.
A worthy goal is a struggle and a test.
Turns out some of the top creative artists have a quality that helps them keep going. They’re a bit weird (bipolar disorder is described, or Socrates view of the best poets as inspired mad men). More than persistence, obsession may help.
If we take the fight option, forget comfort zone. The struggle will change us, and we’ll get better at our art.