3 Ps That Support and Enhance Long-Term Success

Do you want to build something exceptional? Something that will last the test of time and leave a legacy behind? Most leaders aspire to these outcomes. Yet, not as many succeed. To reach these lofty heights requires hard work and a foundation built upon through core elements — Patience, practice, and perseverance.

I discussed the first of these two elements in a previous article, Patience, and Practice Build Long-Term Results and Outcomes. These set the stage. All three sound like they should be easy. After all, they are common, everyday words that most people have a firm understanding of. As we have no doubt discovered with other seemingly easy activities, there is more to it than what sits at the surface. Each of these are nuanced in different ways and require a ton of ongoing effort to ensure that you get the most from each to reach the goal of building something lasting.

Patience

Patience is more than waiting quietly while others catch up or finally get the hang of what you are looking for. Patience, while passive in its tone, is an active behavior for leaders to engage in. Patience is driven through coaching, listening, planning, and developing those involved. I think of patience as teaching at an advanced level. The challenge comes from working through what may seem realistically simple to you, but is challenging for others to grasp. This is personally one of the hardest things for me to overcome in leading others. Things I may see intuitively take time for others to grasp and eventually master. Patience is driven through empathy and open dialogue.

Practice

Any of these three steps could come first or last, but I do find that the order I have positioned them in is important. Each supports the previous step and reinforces what needs to occur from a leader’s perspective. Practice is required on both parties part. Leaders must practice patience while those they are serving are practicing the new behaviors themselves. 

Repetition is the key to success in almost everything that makes a meaningful difference in people’s lives. As I mentioned in the previous article on the subject, almost all experts or stars in their skilled area reflect on how much hard work it took for them to get to the level that we see and experience when they are at work. The Olympics are fresh in everyone’s minds; none of those athletes just decided to show up in Tokyo and ‘go for the gold’ without a lot of time practicing. I guarantee it took patience on both their part and that of their coaches and supporters to get them to the point where they were competing on the world's largest stage.

Practice takes patience. Patience takes practice. Together, they lead to refined skills and eventual mastery of one’s chosen path.

Perseverance

The work is hard. Early on, the failures are frequent and painful, both metaphorically and in some cases physically. It takes perseverance to work through the hardest of times to reach new pinnacles. Without a drive that pushes through those hard times, failure becomes permanent and potential goes to waste.

Stick-to-it-ness is an under-rated skill for leaders. It can become too easy to just move on to the next thing when friction is encountered. In fact, I would argue that most businesses and individuals never fully reach their peaks because they encounter a challenge that they simply stop trying to press through. It is why few businesses reach that status of excellence. There are countless business books that show the rise and fall of companies over time. Even if you look at some of the companies that were called out in Jim Collins’ classic, Good to Great, several of them, most notably Circuit City, failed shortly after they were highlighted as a great company. The desire to move or change direction is high when an obstacle is encountered on the path to success; instead, many altered courses to the path of the least resistance. Rarely does that lead to lasting success.

Three seemingly simple ideas that when balanced together can lead to a success that becomes lasting through the best of times as well as the most challenging. These three elements of patience, practice, and perseverance in practice require exactly what they state — Practice. Patience. Perseverance. There are no shortcuts, no easy ways around, or fast tracks to creating a legacy that will stand the test of time.

What do you do to remain committed to showing patience, helping with practice, and persevering with your team?

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