Top 5 Quotes on Passion and Persistence to Keep You Going

Entrepreneurs have a ‘no excuse’ mindset; entrepreneurship is living your life in a unique fashion others would die for and spending the rest of the life in blissful peace inspiring and mentoring people. I would like to present you with five interesting quotes on passion and persistence and how they have inspired me to perform better.

Did you hear about the rose that grew
from a crack in the concrete?
Proving nature's law is wrong it
learned to walk with out having feet.
Funny it seems, but by keeping it's dreams,
it learned to breathe fresh air.
Long live the rose that grew from concrete
when no one else ever cared.

― Tupac Shakur, The Rose That Grew from Concrete

Have you ever realized the power of your own determination; the in-built survival instinct that bursts out during dire straits. Yes, the magic formula behind every hard-core businessman or entrepreneur is purely ‘PERSISTENCE’ like the rose that grew from concrete. The word ‘PASSION’ comes into foray when we talk about persistence and I see passion as the driving force behind persistence.

Say, if your business is a start-up, how long would you want it to be in the start-up phase? It has to be hard-pushed to take it to the next level. If an entrepreneur does not exude the kind of infectious passion that is needed to attract potential investors he is going to lose the opportunity. Furthermore, even if you have the passion, you need to have a persistent mindset that regardless what hurdles get thrown your way, you are going to figure out a way through them.

If you have an important point to make, don't try to be subtle or clever. Use a pile driver. Hit the point once. Then come back and hit it again. Then hit it a third time - a tremendous whack.

― Winston Churchill

If you know you are right about what you think, an idea that is a sure-shot, believe in your gut-instinct; don’t be afraid to put it forward no matter how many times it has to be re-iterated. Say, you have discovered this low cost method to produce an indispensable product which the women use at large, how could you keep it to yourself? You need the right sponsors to back you up financially to bring the product to the market.

I recently saw an inspiring video on Arunachalam Muruganantham whose invention came at great personal cost - he nearly lost his family, his money and his place in society. Being a school dropout from a poor family in southern India, he has revolutionized menstrual health for rural women in developing countries by inventing a simple machine they can use to make cheap sanitary pads. His language might be broken, but definitely not his persistence.

Please watch this video to travel through the hardship he faced in developing low cost sanitary pads, a delicate issue south Indian rural woman would not want to discuss about. In my eyes he stands as an epitome for the word ‘persistence’

Finding your passion is one thing, following it is another.

- Anonymous

What I personally feel is if you discover what you are most passionate about, it will never let you sit idle. It will drive you nuts until such time you have found a way to execute your passion. At this juncture, I just want to clarify one thing to my readers; this discussion focuses on motivating young entrepreneurs and start-ups to keep the wheels rolling and how passion and persistence are like fraternal twins that support each other unconditionally. This discussion is also relevant to students and career oriented professionals who are looking to come-up in the ladder of success. Though the degree of success may vary, it is the same math that works out all the time in all spheres of life.

Success = Passion + Persistence + Self-Motivation and other qualities follow suit.

Knowing trees, I understand the meaning of patience. Knowing grass, I can appreciate persistence.

― Hal Borland

Have you heard of a grass variety native to India called Saccharum spontaneum, which is highly resistant to floods in spite of having slender stems. In Tamil, we call this grass ‘Naanal’ which has been cited by very many great Tamil Scholars for patience and persistence.

Keep a little fire burning; however small, however hidden.

― Cormac McCarthy, The Road

Life is short after all; what have you got to lose by trying? I agree not all of us have the same kind of physical and intellectual composition, but deep down every one of us have that craving desire to come to the limelight someday. It is just that we are unable to discover the missing link, the right idea that kindles the fire within us. Some are lucky to have mentors to mould them in the right direction, some are blessed with serendipity, but the bottom line is the fire burning within you never dies and it is the only factor of sustenance.