A client asked me recently about what it takes to become a full-time blogger. I could have said it was a lot of different things that make up the keys to success that I’ve learned over the last 8+ years.
But I wanted to tell him what it really is.
It’s…
Persistence.
Which is made up of…
- Stamina.
- Guts.
- Heart.
- Passion.
- And grit.
There’s a widely held belief that being a successful blogger is based on factors such as intelligence or talent; that those who have the highest brain power or write really well are the most likely to succeed.
It would seem that the spoils go to the smartest, the most trained, and the most connected.
This simply isn’t so!
Psychologists have discovered that there is an element that almost always works in tandem with brains and ability when measuring success, persistence.
Psychologist Angela Lee Duckworth has studied the idea of passion and persistence and has come to believe that, despite any outward advantages someone may have when pursuing their goals, often times the deciding factor is grit over mental or natural ability. Her work indicates that there are greater forces at play in people who rise and achieve at greater levels.
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What Is Grit?
Grit is having passion and perseverance for long-term goals. Grit is the use of stamina and sticking to the job until your result is realized. Grit is seeing the issues at hand and utilizing resources to stay the fight over extended periods of time, much like running a marathon.
Why Does Stamina And Persistence Matter?
As the world becomes faster, more competitive, and sometimes more demanding, you must stay focused and be able to adapt quickly.
Developing persistence as a character trait elevates your coping skills, increases your self-awareness, and gives you the edge that you need to achieve in all areas of life, especially being an entrepreneur.
The best example of modern-day passion and persistence is the reality show Survivor. This show pits capable men and women against one another in hostile and deprived environments.
Contestants are vying to outwit, outplay, and outlast each other for a cash prize. Their physical and mental abilities are an asset but the spoils go to the contestants who have persistence and the ability to withstand the physical and mental abuses the longest.
Persistence isn’t something most people talk about when it comes to success, because it feels intangible and that there is no formula to follow. But there are simple actions that you can take to decrease stress, increase stamina, and outlast any issue that develops in your life.
After you develop that gutsy perspective, you will move through life with an ease that others envy. It is the glue that keeps you together when you want to take the easy way out or give up.
Persistence insists that you can and you will make it through.
3 Keys To Success To Develop More Persistence
Persistence is a character trait born of passion.
Anyone who has a willingness to do what it takes to either target and reach a goal, or withstand and weather a challenge has the potential to develop guts as a skill set.
Is there a direct path to learning how to be persistent?
Likely not, but there are certainly opportunities all around to develop more gutsiness in your life. Here are some tips to increase your grit factor:
Become anti-fragile – Gutsy people are not delicate. They don’t expect a participation trophy; they respond with strength when they must endure something they don’t care for.
Toughness comes from realizing that all people will face things they don’t want and don’t understand. Instead of reactionary responses, they focus on what needs to happen at the moment to move through.
Have a growth mindset – One of the hallmark skills that gutsy people show is a growth mindset; being open to new ways of thinking and behaving, being open to constructive criticism and hearing the word “No” are part of their personal makeup. Equally important is a willingness to stand up for something that matters.
Learn to adapt – In this life, we are going to face trouble. Survivors learn to adapt. Grit is the tool to adapt to unpleasant things.
Persistence Is the Strongest Predictor Of Future Success
Persistence is the strongest predictor of future success in an individual; it overcomes brains and ability every time.gri
Studies have proven that given a group with equal IQ scores and ability, those with grit will beat out their counterparts. Those with persistence will adapt, take direction, seek to understand and make changes to endure things that others can’t or won’t. This becomes their edge and the greatest predictor of success.
Professional athletes are a great example of learning to endure, adapt, and withstand.
Even after leaving the athletic world behind, they use the same mindset and tools in other areas of life. They outwit and outlast competitors in the marketplace because they know how to get into a zone their competitors do not.
In truth, failure is always an option. There is no guarantee that you will win, achieve, or succeed. The only thing you can control is whether you give up.
Grit makes it possible to never, ever give up as Winston Churchill said. Persistence finds the emotional wherewithal to do the next thing in front of you time and again until you make it, or come to the smart conclusion that you simply will not prevail.
Persistence is the thing that comes out of your chest when we need to fix the part of us that wants to climb into the safety of our bed and pull the covers tight.
Let’s look at why it’s important to never give up:
- Your breakthrough might be a moment away
- Your sacrifice may make a difference for generations to come
- You may be the first in your family to do this
- Your children are counting on you
- You might experience a level of success you never dreamed
Develop a mindset that is open to learning new material, adapting to change, and learning new tactics or tricks to dig deeper, to solve bigger problems.
Talk to a trusted mentor, glean wisdom from those who have gone before you, and apply that wisdom to your current situation. Keep your eyes open and be ready for the breakthroughs.
You won’t have to wait until something unexpected or harrowing happens to develop persistence if you make stretching yourself part of your everyday lifestyle.
You can develop grit by developing habits and actions that stretch you and make you grow internally and externally. And you’ll be a better blogger because of it.
If you keep at it Sue and help folks, you see the successful are the few bloggers who shine by being persistent. Folks tend to be in Survival Mode. Me included for many years. Thinking how many sites they can be on by day's end, to make ends meet. I think of being on 10 million sites in a few years. Persistence is helping me make this a reality, because I am not bound by trying to get by now. I enjoy helping folks, having fun and being everywhere….literally LOL!
Literally, is right!
Have a wonderful weekend, Ryan, and thanks so much for taking the time to leave a comment.
Sue
Hi Sue,
I agree with you 100% about having persistence and grit to be a successful blogger.
I can relate a lot to the term "persistence" being a full-time blogger myself for 7 years. It's been a rollercoaster ride for me having seen all the animal updates from Google 😉
There's an interesting pattern I observe with new bloggers as most people quit blogging within 3 to 6 months. Here's what most failure bloggers do: "create content without a focus, ignoring the importance of SEO and expect quicker results".
Successful bloggers have a different mindset about blogging.
-They treat their blogs as a business
-They are consistent
-They focus on building loyal audience/email list/tribe
If you want to be a full-time blogger, it's important to know the difference between "fixed mindset" vs "growth mindset (I recently read Mindset by Carol Dweck btw, hence I'm mentioning those words).
Growth mindset bloggers think that, "I can learn to do anything I want" whereas
Fixed mindset bloggers think, "I'm either good at it, or not".
Insightful topic and great writeup Sue.
Keep sharing such stuff.
Great points, Rahul! I'll need to pick up that book – it sounds great.
I appreciate your comment.
Sue
Nice Article. Thanks for Sharing.
Blogging needs guts and persistence. Persistence is the key to it. Very well said.
I tried blogging myself sometime back but was not great at it.
May me will try again someday. By the way very well written article.
Keep up the good work.
Thanks so much, Vincent!
Sue
This is fantastic, thanks for this post.
You are so welcome, Bill!
Sue
Nice Article. Thanks for Sharing.
I just want to know, can we do full time blogging in our country language.
Sure you can, Amarjeet, just realize though, that English is the most popular way to blog and you'd get the most traffic that way.
Thanks for your comment and question.
Sue
You're right, Sue.
Without persistence, what used to work will stop working.
I remember how my blog staggered with getting quality traffic early this year because I played down on networking with other bloggers. Such thing might look single but at the long run, it plays a huge role.
Thanks for always sharing value.
Emenike
It happens to the best of us, Emenike. I appreciate you and your comment.
Thanks,
Sue
Great article. We should work with long-term goals and regular, evergreen traffic. No one can reach their goals in a single day. It requires our dedication, passion, hard work and grit to become a successful blogger.
Thanks for writing this informative post. It was a nice reading.
Have a great week ahead.
I absolutely agree with this article, to keep on blogging successfully we need this thing and personally i faced problem earlier when i picked a boring typing which has high paying ticket. But after writing some articles i felt I'm not comfortable with it and had no passion working with it.
After that mistake nowadays i am blogging only on the topic i love about, it gives me more confidence and the passion to stick with it.
So great to hear your story, Abdullah.
Thanks for your comment.
Sue
Hey Sue, loved the piece! It felt personally relevant to me as well, at a time when I've been thinking a lot about how much of an investment my blog has been, for (thus far) relatively minimal 'results'!
I read Gary Vaynerchuk's section in Tim Ferriss' Tribe of Mentors again this morning though and his opening quote is about having 'macro patience; micro speed'. I.e. to work hard in the present moment, trusting that it'll pay off in future. Thought I'd mention it as it seems to chime with the importance of perseverance that you so eloquently wrote about in your post.
Many thanks for another amazing blog post.
Best,
Danny
You are so welcome, Danny. Sometimes we just need to hear something a few times in a few different ways.
Thanks for your comment.
Sue
Really this article helps me. This is the best site for the blogger who wants to learn something new. I am one of them. Thank you so much for this article.
You are so welcome!
Sue
You are so welcome!
Sue
I LOVE it! This post is packed with useful information although most of it is review it's still a nice reminder of why I'm blogging. Thanks!
You are so welcome, Anna!
Sue
Good article. Also new bloggers can use social media and find a lot of new readers
You are so very welcome!
Sue
Really this article helps me. This is the best site for the blogger who wants to learn something new. I am one of them. Thank you so much for this article.
Thanks for this article, I found it really encouraging! The path to successful blogging is definitely not for the faint of heart and requires grit as you said.
I love the bit where you say don't give up because your breakthrough may just be a moment away! That is something I'm going to save on my phone home screen to encourage me during the tough times!
In our generation which expects microwave success, this can be hard to swallow but those that last the distance will get success!
Hi Sue
Thanks so much for the article, the encouragement came at just the perfect time for me. I came pretty close to giving up, after a year of consistent work and lack lustre results the thought of giving up did cross my mind.
But now I'm even more determined to make things work. I'm not afraid of hard work and sticking in there until I see results! Thanks again for the encouragement!
Sounds positive, Shan! What can you do differently so that it works out this time?
Thanks for your comment.
Sue
The main thing I’ve changed is my blogging mentor and the advice I’m listening to. Because pure grit and hard work with little results tells me I need a change in tactics!
Sometimes you need to shake things up, Shan!
Thanks for your comment today.
Sue
The best article and I hope it is helpful for the Bloggers.
thanks
Your post is wonderful. Overnight success takes years in the making. (usually) Thank you for the upfront and honest information. I am guilty of falling into the research worm hole! Started is better than perfect! I will get to work!!! Hugs!
Being a new blogger it's really worth spending some time to read your article Ms. Dunlevie
Thanks so much, Ameen!
Sue
Hey,
Thanks for a well written and informative post.
Your posts are always easy to understand and Helpful.
Thanks, Joseph!
Sue
Your post is wonderful. Overnight success takes years in the making. (usually) Thank you for the upfront and honest information. I am guilty of falling into the research worm hole! Started is better than perfect! I will get to work!!! Hugs!
Hey Brother, this article is not just written and published but this article is the Inspiration and Motivation itself. For the Guys like me, who don’t know much about writing but want to share my personal experiences of traveling this is a really great way to get that inspiration and motivation to keep working Hard.
No Matter How much longer it is gonna take?
Thank you.
Please keep writing these kinds of posts and keep Motivating.
wow, gutsy people are not delicate huh. Damn Right. I think i am getting addicted to your writing. And persistence is the thing I believe Is gonna take me to another level. Thank you. This article is really awesome.