I am finally getting back to the blog to provide some updates. While talent and extraordinary skills help in your success, the most useful skill is tenacity. Tenacity (to me) is continuing to seek new ideas and avenues. It is getting up every time you feel knocked down. Michael Jordan, Barry Bonds, Hank Aaron, and Babe Ruth kept getting up - I mean, their failure rate was devastating, but they could not have had their success without tenacity. Colonel Sanders kept sharing his business vision. Many very famous authors had to submit their works many times before getting accepted for publication. Silvester Stalone is a great example of continuing to press on with his dream when he was "knocked" down time after time trying to get his movie script for Rocky produced.
Well, I've continued on my path to teaching workshops on creative writing. After all, I did teach it for 7+ years! I was in an ongoing conversation with the local community college continuing education director, but despite their initial enthusiasm, that conversation didn't really progress.
Moving on!!! I reached out to the local library and the recreation center. The library directed me right around to the recreation center's coordinator, so we'll see.
After that, I reached out to the recreation centers in three neighboring towns. I heard back from one within a few hours, and they had serious questions that indicated a viable possibility. I'm glad I had tenacity. I didn't just stop after a few "red and yellow lights" as Matthew McConaughey would say. Baby, I was going to create a road trip and make my own green lights.
I love that about me. Really, I do. I love that above all, I have tenacity. I may get knocked down. I may get my feelings hurt. I may have to figure out a very different path. But, I have the tenacity to keep trying, and I think that is the skill we should all work on. Educators now call it grit.
Get your grit on, baby. Thomas Edison's philosophy was that each failure in creating the light bulb moved him one step closer to success. Ted Lasso tells us to be a goldfish (give yourself 10 seconds and forget it). I'm doing all of the above.... with tenacity.
