Perseverance - Just Keep Moving

Sometimes perseverance isn’t the big things, it’s the little ones. One foot in front of another, just another minute, only one more step, etc.

I know that some days when I’m working out and in the middle of a really intense session I can’t think about how much longer I have to complete [fill in the blank] – a round of kickboxing, holding the plank, staying in squat position on the Bosu ball, etc. I don’t WANT to know if I have another 15 seconds, or another 30 seconds, or – heaven forbid! – 2 more minutes; I just keep going and trust I’ll make it through.

In fact, it’s best NOT to think about the “big picture” at times. All I have to do is make it one more second; and then one second after that…

How many of us as Latinas would have made it through childbirth if someone explained to us *precisely* what labor and delivery would entail? No, you don’t want to think about the details; you just have to do it. And this goes for whether you’re ready or not! Most of the time, you don’t get to plan your labor (time, day), nor do you get to choose how long it’s going to last or how difficult it will be.

But just like with having a child, at the end, that effort pays off! It’s well worth all the hard work (until they’re teenagers – and then you wonder….). Seriously, though, if you’re a mother you know you would have had your sweet son or daughter (even when they’re not so sweet) no matter what price you had to pay during labor.

And this applies to all of life. When you undertake an important project, sometimes we don’t know exactly what it will “cost” us. This price might be paid in time, in energy, in emotional upheaval, or many other ways. The “price” might be in lessons learned, bruises (psychological or real) endured, and relationships that shift forever.

So many times we jump in, because we know the importance of the action that needs to be taken, even when we don’t appreciate or even understand what we will go through later.

Therefore, back to the step by step analogy. If we don’t know how big the project is – or even if we do! – it can be useful to just keep moving. Each action, each step, each movement we make toward completion gets us that much closer.

One of the Powerful Latina interviewees, Elva Lima, Verizon’s senior executive for strategic programs for the West region, talked about getting her college degree while working full time. She explained that, even though at times she could only take one class a semester and it seemed like reaching her goal would take forever, she just kept going. And it paid off! She is now a high level executive at a huge national company.

And that’s what perseverance is all about. You don’t NEED to think about how hard the process will be; you just need to get through the next small little chunk. Because after all, all good things take time, and nothing of value was built in a day.

As Dory from Finding Nemo said, “Just keep swimming, just keep swimming…”

Aurelia Flores wants to offer a learning opportunity to other women who might find themselves in similar shoes. She strongly believes women can learn from other women, no matter where they are in their career or life path.