I'm a fairly clever guy, so I tend to assume I can accomplish whatever you set me without that much effort.
Of course, shock horror, I can't. Not first time, anyway.
We tend to think that successful people have talent. And they do, but not that much that they just succeed. It's stubbornness and single-mindedness that got them where they are. 12 publishers rejected Harry Potter before JK Rowling found someone to print it. Apple started trying to sell touchscreen mobile devices back in 1987 (look it up, it was called the Newton), it took until 2007 when they got it right with the iPhone. James Dyson designed 5,127 failed prototypes of his vacuum cleaner before he found a winning design.
You think failing three or four times is a reason to give up? Try failing 5,127 times like Dyson did.
The Bible's also full of people who never gave up - and those that did when they shouldn't have. Because hard work, well, it's hard. But why do you think Jesus told the parable of the persistent widow (Luke 18)?
If you want more on not giving up, listen to Ivy's Debra Green speaking on 'Let me run'. Link: http://itun.es/iSj7gC
By Ronan Stafford