Editor’s Note: What Is Perseverance?

Is persevering merely “not giving up”? Is it the euphemism for being stubborn and worse, inflexible? My take on it is that we shouldn’t just survive, but thrive!

We have, in the past, learnt from leaders who have endured hardship, crises and injustices, as well as those who have set their minds on their personal goals and worked towards them with unwavering fervour.

We also explored the parallels between high-performing athletes and “corporate athletes”.

On the relativity of time and how good things come to those who wait, Mitch Ditkoff recounts a story where a promising project came to fruition only after a long wait – not for the lack of trying on his part of course.

Lim Lay Hsuan, with her wry sense of humour, decides to focus on procrastination – which of course is the poison to perseverance. She gives us her top 10 ways to combat procrastination (my favourite being “to be mindfully present”).

What is one of the essential ingredients for success? In the context of perseverance, John Walter Baybay also introduces us to the “Law of Consistency” and how it applies in our quests for success.

The effervescent Freda Liu shares her story of how she overcame a setback by setting her mind to do something she had never attempted in the past – emphasising the need to be willing to make sacrifices, to be accountable, and to be prepared – quite literally – to go the extra mile.

And these great lessons are echoed in the story of the highly regarded CEO of Chatime, Bryan Loo – who at age 30, already has battle wounds to share, and stories of success in this week’s instalment of The Leaderonomics Show.

What if, in our individual pursuit of life goals, something derails us? Dr Edmund Ng addresses the harsh reality and grief associated with the loss of a job, and offers some guidelines on how to cope.

On another note, Jean Selvam shares her own experience of finding a job that brings her joy – stressing the importance to find meaning in our jobs, while sharing tips on how we can do just that.

Last, but certainly not least (because we love receiving feedback from our readers – feel free to write in) we share two great messages from readers in response to a recent article by Jasmine Chuah and the villanelle by Sara Yee.

Onward, upward!

KAREN NEOH
Editor