Many people try. Only a few succeed.

Do you know what separates winners from losers? Why do some people achieve their dreams while so many fail miserably?

Think about it. Every day, people make promises to themselves:

• “I’m going to lose weight.”
• “I’ll finally start that business.”
• “I’ll learn to dance.”
• “I’ll quit smoking.”
• “I’ll become more social.”
• “I’ll completely change my life.”

But how many of them actually follow through?

How many of your friends made New Year’s resolutions to quit smoking, only to relapse within weeks?

When we see someone who does transform their life, we admire them, because that’s rare. Most people have big dreams, but the problem is, they either don’t know how to get there or they lack the motivation and persistence.

What separates successful people from unsuccessful people?

Successful people persevere when everyone else gives up.

Anyone can feel motivated on January 1st. The holidays are over, you feel heavier than ever, hate what you see in the mirror, and you shout: “New year, new me!!!”

For the first two weeks, you diet and exercise like a champion. But then, temptation hits. A birthday party, a few drinks, the smell of freshly baked cookies… and suddenly, you’re back to square one.

The Reason You’re Not Making Any Progress

Like my friend Sanya and her weight problem, you might be dealing with the so called “plateau effect”.

It goes like this:

You set a goal, start strong, stay motivated for a while… but as soon as you see a tiny progress, you run out of steam and slip back to your old ways. Then you start over and do the same.

I know this first-hand.

For three years, I swore I was going to learn how to draw.

I signed up for classes every Sunday. I bought all the supplies. I even paid my tuition fee upfront for the entire month.

Guess how many times I went? Once.

The next Sunday I was out of town. The Sunday after that, I was hungover from a party. The next week I got sick. And after that? I was just plain lazy.

Still, the next month, I paid again. I told myself, “THIS TIME I’ll be consistent, no matter what.” You already guessed that I went only once.

One day, a friend who knew I had been “taking drawing lessons” for a year asked me, “So, how’s your progress going?”

It was embarrassing to admit: I had made zero progress.

Here’s the hard truth: the key to success isn’t talent, motivation, or resources. It’s consistency.

You can have all the potential in the world, but if you give up every time you hit a minor obstacle, you’ll never reach your goal.

How to Never Give Up When Hardships Happen

Develop Stoicism

Willpower is like a muscle. The more you train it, the more it grows. If you don’t, you become a weak person. Keep your promises to yourself. If you say you’ll work out for 3 months, stick with it. If you want to lose 10 lbs, resist the urge to overeat.

Your mind is like a stubborn dog: the more you teach it to obey when you say “NO!”, the easier it becomes.

Set a Goal, and Make Quitting Impossible

When you decide on a goal, commit to it fully. Tell yourself: “I will never quit.” Anyone can give up. But you are not anyone. People who quit are losers, and that as sure as hell isn’t you.

Keep visualising the end result

If you’re losing weight, picture the admiring looks from others. If you’re building a business, imagine the lifestyle you’ll live. Remember that If you quit at the first obstacle, those visions disappear forever.

Don’t ever skip

Never skip a day of working toward your goal. Not for bad weather, not for holidays, not for excuses like “family is visiting.” To persevere through hardships, you must train your mind that “There are NO excuses”. If something truly blocks you, like missing a class, compensate with extra effort elsewhere.

Watch and read successful stories of people who never gave up

Here I’ve collected some of them for you.

Be Resilient

If you take a step back, don’t despair. It doesn’t matter how many times you fall. What matters is that you keep getting back up.

Think Proudly of Yourself

Make a “motivation jar.” Write down every win, every moment you didn’t quit, and keep those notes for hard days. Anybody can lie on the floor and surrender. But you are not anybody, you are a warrior.

When you think: “That’s it! I can’t do it anymore!”, remind yourself: “I will only quit when I’m dead!” That attitude will make you really proud of being you.

Take a Step Back When Needed

Sometimes the pressure builds so much that pushing harder only slows you down. That’s when you need to PAUSE.

If you keep pushing yourself, you will, at best, go at snail’s pace. Think of dieting: in the beginning, your body burns calories fast, then adapts and weight loss stalls. The solution? A short “reset” where you eat more, then go back to your diet.

The same applies to goals, short breaks can recharge you so you can come back stronger.

Why You Should Never, Ever Give Up

If you want to become a powerful person, remember this: never give up when you hit obstacles.

Here’s why.

In 1967 psychologist Martin Seligman ran a famous experiment with dogs.

He split them into three groups:

• Groups 1 & 2: Dogs were given electric shocks at random times. But they could stop the shock by pressing a lever.
• Group 3: Dogs were shocked too, but this time, there was no way out. No lever. No escape.

Then came part two.

All three groups of dogs were placed in boxes where shocks continued. But this time, escape was easy – all they had to do was jump over a low barrier.

Do you know what happened?

• Dogs from Groups 1 & 2 quickly figured it out. They jumped the barrier and freed themselves.

• Dogs from Group 3? They didn’t even try. They just lay down, whining in pain.

They had learned the shocks were inescapable.
This phenomenon is known as “learned helplessness”.

The exact same thing applies in human behaviour.

If you give up once, twice, or a handful of times, your brain starts whispering:

“Why bother? You’ll fail again.”

So you don’t try. You stop before you even start.

But life isn’t static. Circumstances change. Opportunities shift. What failed yesterday might succeed tomorrow, if you just keep going!

Every small victory you push through reinforces a different belief: “I can overcome anything.”

And that belief is the foundation of true strength. So the next time you feel like quitting, remember: giving up teaches your brain helplessness. Pushing through teaches it power.

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