I was at a recent networking event where Dave Magrogan, CEO and Founder of Harvest Seasonal, was speaking. He was talking about the Law of Persistence. The image on the screen was Abraham Lincoln. The text and context on the screen were so profound to me that I thought I would share it with you on President’s Day weekend:
“He [Abraham Lincoln] failed in business in ’31. He was defeated for state legislator in ’32. He tried another business in ’33. It failed. His fiancee died in ’35. He had a nervous breakdown in ’36. In ’43 he ran for congress and was defeated. He tried again in ’48 and was defeated again. He tried running for the Senate in ’55. He lost. The next year he ran for Vice President and lost. In ’59 he ran for the Senate again and was defeated.
In 1860, the man who signed his name A. Lincoln, was elected the 16th President of the United States. The difference between history’s boldest accomplishments and its most staggering failures is often, simply the diligent will to persevere.”
As you reflect on past Presidents this weekend, remember that one President needed to learn from many failures before he could succeed!
