The Power Of Perseverance...No Matter What You Do

I'm sure we've all heard about the power of sticking to something, not giving up, persevering until we reach our goal.  But how many of you will do it for 15 years?

I'm close to one such person who did just that.  He is a talented, dedicated attorney who graduated from Notre Dame School of Law (and paid for it himself), got a job at a big law firm in Dallas and made partner on the fast track.  But after only 5 years of the rat race, he knew he really didn't want the grandiose lifestyle that so many young attorneys strive for.  No, he wanted a simpler life as a low key attorney and he WANTED to become a writer. 

So write he did, even taking an 18 month sabbatical from his profession to focus solely on his real passion.  He wrote and wrote and wrote and tried over and over to get published but always got the same response.  It's just not good enough.  He soon realized he would have to continue practicing law in order to support his passion.  So, for the next 15 years he practiced real estate law and wrote numerous books, learning how to improve his writing with each one.  Still never good enough according to the big publishers. 

But he never, never gave up.  Sure, he wanted to quit at times because that would be easier than enduring the continuing rejection, but he would never step away from the computer long enough for that thought to imbed in his psyche.  He pushed ahead time and time again.  And just like we've all heard happens, he awakens one day to find that one his books is picked up by a major publisher and is soon on the NYT Best Sellers List.  And yep, he's soon known as an "overnight" success.

Why would I write such a post about perseverance?  Because this attorney just happened to be my brother who has always been free with his time and knowledge to help me and so many others.  And because his story is not unusual.  So many in our profession are struggling right now, wondering if they should continue the fight or throw in the towel.  Sometimes quitting may be the best option, but most of the time it only relieves our suffering temporarily, especially if we leave what we love. 

My brother Mark is no more an overnight success than any of us were.  The only difference between him and so many others in this world is that his love for his writing was stronger than the pain of this rejections.