Dr Greg Reid on why “Stickability” is the key to all great achievements
Words of wisdom, age-old adages, myths and folktales – whatever we call them, the stories we tell one another and pass down to the next generation connect us across race, religion, and national boundaries. Although these stories have diverse themes, no story resonates so universally as the tale of how to succeed in life.
But what does this mean? For most of us, it is the application of the experience of others to our own lives. Samuel Smiles, a Scottish author, wrote the first book about success in 1859. Appropriately titled Self Help, it laid the framework for the writings of Orison Swett Marden, and later Napoleon Hill, by teaching success through the parables of experience. Napoleon, who is arguably the founder of the modern-day success movement, was a master storyteller who compiled the first comprehensive philosophy of success. He did this after discovering that the most remarkable self-made men of his time—like Andrew Carnegie, Thomas Edison, and Henry Ford—all did the same thing to succeed, although they each used different means.
For the past 150 years, success philosophers and thinkers have proved time and again that one trait in particular appears to be a key to all great achievement—persistence. It was persistence that allowed George Goethals to build the Panama Canal when so many had failed. It was persistence that drove Edison to success in devising the lightbulb. It was persistence that pushed Abraham Lincoln through a broken heart, two business failures, and eight losses for election to public office to become president of the United States. Napoleon Hill wrote “One reason why most men seldom accumulate fortunes until they have passed well beyond the 40-years-old goal post of life is that they must undergo failures and overcome sufficient obstacles to develop in them sufficient knowledge to accumulate wealth.”
International speaker and bestselling author Dr Greg Reid knows that it is those who persist and learn from failure who carve their place in history. In his talk at The Best You Expo 2019 he explored the theme of his book Stickability: The Power of Perseverance, reinforcing the proven success principles that were compiled by Napoleon Hill.
Dr Reid provides thought-provoking insight from the lives of incredible people, sharing stories demonstrate that a definite goal strengthened by persistence will always lead to success. They show that “negatives” are just the tasks that need to be done to avoid a setback and that setbacks should be viewed as opportunities to reroute a path to success. These are the people who have helped shape our world; the leaders who began a pathway to success with nothing more than an idea to follow. Their goals may not be your goals, and their setbacks and failures are not yours either. However, their stories are parables of success that will inspire you to find your own road to personal achievement.
Dr Reid explores “The Three Causes of Failure”; for example, the get-rich-quick narratives which promise that if you follow some simple steps you will watch your bank account grow with little effort. And thus, happiness is achieved. The leaps from get-rich-quick to success to happiness are implied, for the most part. But Dr Reid argues they are nestled in between the lines of stories that have little relevance to your power—which is the power to define what it is you want.
Instead, we should accept that success is seldom easy and that we must accept that we will have to face challenges and obstacles in
order to achieve goals. Every individual who has attained personal achievement can tell you that the question is not will there be tough times, the question is when will they arrive? It’s through these moments of uncertainty that our character is revealed. For Dr Reid, we can agree that we all want happiness and prosperity in our lives, and also know that happiness takes discipline. To achieve happiness we must first have the discipline to determine carefully what this means for us. Once we have a clearly defined goal, we must maintain discipline to find the opportunities within the challenges we’ll face along the way. This is when we make strides in self- development.
How we handle temporary setbacks will ultimately determine our outcome. Whether it’s a weed in the garden, a dream, desire—or even fear—what we feed and focus attention on will eventually grow the most. The same applies to opportunity. What we focus on is what we see. When one seeks the good, good things happen. When one seeks opportunity, opportunities occur. When we are faced with challenges, our reactions expose our true character to others specifically, and to the impartial spectator generally. This is why it is crucial to know clearly who we are and who we want to be. Seizing opportunities within challenges exposes a character of strength, resolve, patience and, yes, stickability.
Dr Reid also looks at success from a different perspective and turns the principle upside down. Rather than focus on and illustrate another surefire blueprint for abundance, as mentioned earlier, he places our attention on its counterpart: failure, and its often forgotten component, missed opportunity. It has been suggested that personal achievement eventually comes from focusing on our major definite purpose (some call it passion) and then from the courage and stickability to see that vision through.
The path to personal and professional success is not a one-way street. Most people encounter setbacks and obstacles that threaten to derail them from their chosen
route. The most successful people, however, adhere to their principles and goals, capitalising on hidden opportunities, even in the face of what many would consider
unconquerable obstacles. These people have stickability – and you can learn it too.
Stickability: The Power of Perseverance is out now
For more information visit www.gregreid.com
