Learning to Persevere – 7 tips to help you overcome those challenges

Life is full of ups and downs. I’d hope that most of us get lots of ups –  where things are going your way, and you are riding the waves of the world like a pro. However, this is my sunshine and rainbows attitude without the reality filter. When that filter comes on though, you see that life isn’t always so awesome. Sometimes, you hit a rough patch, and it can mess with your momentum. You lose motivation to keep trying, and the thought of perseverance isn’t an option. You can’t let that happen though. Even though perseverance can seem incredibly hard, it only makes you tougher and stronger for next time the unkind part of life tries to knock you down. Recently, I hit my own rough patch. I started to think that I should just give up. My mom, however, spoke to me and helped me remember that it doesn’t matter how many times you fall, all that matters is that you get back up again. So if you are also trying to persevere through something challenging, here are some tips to help you with it!

Relook at things

Sometimes the reason why you might not be moving forward anymore is that you are looking at things from the wrong angle. Perspective can play a big part in how we see the world and what is in front of us, and if you have been looking from the same spot for too long, you miss out on what you could see from somewhere else. If you are struggling with something and are trying to persevere, then try shaking things up. If you are trying to write something and it just isn’t working then instead of thinking about what to write, think about what the audience would like to read, because this gives you a new perspective and will often help you end up writing something better because you have this new viewpoint in mind. Think about it from a different angle or a different perspective and you might find the solution to your problem or the answer you have been looking for.

Ask for help

There is no harm in asking for help, and even though we get told this so often, we seldom act on it because of many reasons. We are either too proud to admit we need help or too embarrassed by the fact that we need help. However, if you are trying to get through a challenge, then you have to ‘Muscle Up’ (Dwayne Johnson, The Rock’s quote) and ask for assistance. Many people know better than us in a specific field, and they are usually willing to help you – they will often have insight into what you are trying to achieve that you may have never even thought of and it might just be the key to the solution. So gather up your courage, take a deep breath, and ask!

Try something different

Similarly to getting stuck in seeing things from one angle, you can sometimes get stuck in doing the same thing over and over again without realising that this might be the issue. This isn’t your fault though, as we are creatures of habit and sometimes fail to see what might be wrong with our work. Don’t fall into this trap. Try making things a little different, either try a new technique or a new method (whatever applies to the hurdle you are trying to overcome), and you might find that things immediately start looking up. Give it a test and see how it turns out.

Do research

We don’t learn how to cook just by throwing things together in random orders and random ways, hoping that it will turn out right. We learn by researching how to do it. This is true for most things in life, as we aren’t born with the inherent knowledge to be good at everything from the start. We have to put in time and effort to research what we want to learn/do and make sure we develop it. If you haven’t already, pick up that incredible smartphone of yours and Google for help or answers or information. The chance is so small that the information will not be available so try doing some research about your challenge – the solution might be as easy to find as one quick search on Google.

Don’t give up

Just because things aren’t going your way now and everything looks grim and hopeless, that doesn’t mean that things will stay that way. More likely than not, you are just going through a rough patch, and things will either sort themselves out, or you will be able to sort things out yourself. There is no reason to give up because you will just be letting yourself down by doing that. Don’t give up on yourself – keep your head held high and focus on getting through these obstacles, and you will see that on the other side, things are better than they were before. You won’t get that if you give up now will you?

Take a break

Sometimes, the problem might just be that you need to take a break. Working on something consistently, without taking the time to pause and breathe or do something else, might actually mean that you stop producing high-quality work. Take studying for example – you study much better when you take short breaks in between and don’t study the whole day right? That is because you give your brain time to reset and relax so that you can get back to your work fresh. Maybe the only thing that is giving you problems is that you are not taking the time out to let your brain reset and relax, so you are not fresh and rejuvenated to accomplish what you need to achieve? Try taking a break – walk away from what you are doing for a little while, and you may find that when you come back, you don’t see a problem at all.

Trust yourself

Hitting a rough patch can wreak havoc on your self-esteem. Having problems might mean that you start doubting your abilities or whether you should continue and this is natural. The trick is to fight this and not succumb to those feelings. You need to have faith in your abilities – you wouldn’t have started what you are doing if you couldn’t see it through so believe in yourself. You will get through this – all you need to do is stick to it.

Perseverance isn’t always easy. It can seem like, even though you are trying all of these things, you just aren’t getting anywhere. Don’t worry. You will get through it. I’ve tried some of these tips and even though I felt quite stupid at the beginning when nothing was working after a while things actually started picking up, and I was managing again. If you are struggling to get through something, try some of these tips and see if they help you out. If you have your own suggestions for perseverance or getting through rough patches, then please feel free to share them in the comments section. Also, if you have your own stories of persevering, then please share them – your story will inspire someone else to stick to it. Thank you all for reading. Don’t forget to like and subscribe if you haven’t already, and I will see you next week.

Lots of Love

Blondey on a Mission xxx