Please see the original article available on growthtalkonline.comThis is the first article in a series of articles titled "The Quotable Leader".

A true leader is one who understands the importance of allowing others to lead once in a while and can absorb knowledge in the various ways that life presents information. Sometimes our greatest lessons are learned through the experiences of others. We can learn from the mistakes and successes of others, and combined with our own life experiences, use this knowledge to become leaders in our own rite. That is what The Quotable Leader series is all about. Our writers, who are striving every day to become leaders in their own lives, have taken a moment to share their most inspirational quotes with you. Through this series we hope you will gain some insight on what Growth Talk, Inc. is all about and maybe even gain some inspiration for your own personal growth. Every great leader has one motivational moment that tells them they can do anything they put their mind to; we hope these stories help you find yours.  

This simple quote guides me every time I ask myself what it takes to be successful.  As human beings we have a tendency to complicate what it takes to be successful, but at our core we all know that the only difference between failure and success is persistence.

I recently started reading a book, technically it is classified as a guide, titled Demystify Your Fear by Peter Shallard.  You can get this book for free by visiting his website www.commitaction.com.  Peter says that only five percent of entrepreneurs make their business profitable within their first year of business and it is the entrepreneurs who fail, but keep fighting anyway that become successful.

I’ve always found it productive to think about failure as something you only encounter when you give up.  If you never give up then you have never failed.  Instead of failing you have just learned and grown instead.  Failure is a decision that you must make just as success is a decision to make.  If you set a goal knowing that you will never hit it then you have already failed.  This could be something as simple as setting your alarm an hour earlier to get in a good workout or writing a business plan with overly-ambitious goals that you know you are unable or unwilling to do the activity to reach. 

If you set a goal and do whatever it takes to hit that goal than you have mastered persistence.  Even if you miss your goal you have not failed.  Instead you have learned about your limitations or learned about the problems you encounter in pursuit of your goals.  Of course the most important part of persistence is that you try again, and again, and again, and you persist until you find success.

Persistence wins.

Persist.