What to do When You Feel Like Giving Up | Jack Canfield

You know, sometimes it feels like no matter what you do, the universe is setting you up to fail. You work so hard to make something happen, and then some unexpected setback suddenly appears out of nowhere and lays all of your hard work to waste. And when that happens, it can be all too easy to want to simply throw your hands into the air and give up for good. But I don't want you to do that. Too many people give up on their goals when they're so close to the finish line. It's the number one reason why people don't achieve more success in life. That's number one now, because they lose faith in themselves and they quit. Now, they had everything they needed to make their dreams come true, except the ability to persevere and follow through on their goals. Let me rephrase that. It's not just the ability to follow through. It's the commitment to follow through. And when this happens, it's tragic. Now, by now you've no doubt heard my story about the first Chicken Soup for the Soul book being rejected by 144 publishers. Before health Communications said yes to publishing, it was 144 times. But think about this. Howard Schultz, who started Starbucks, was turned down by 242 banks and potential investors before he managed to raise enough capital to start Starbucks. Now, if he'd given up after 200 rejections, think about how different the world of coffee and espresso would be around the world today. And consider this. In the book Chicken Soup for the Writer's Soul, I included a story by Nora Proffitt in which she wrote about one of the first articles she ever wrote. And it was an unsolicited story about a singer named Salome Bay. And three weeks later she received a large envelope in the mail from Essence magazine. Now, assuming it was her article being returned with the rejection letter, she threw the unopened envelope into the nearest closet and promptly forgot about it. Now, five years later, while she was cleaning out her apartment while preparing to move from New York to Sacramento, California, to take a job in sales, she came across the unopened envelope. Curious, she opened the envelope and read the ESSENCE editor's letter in disbelief. What it said was, Dear Ms. Prophet, your story on Salome Bay is fantastic. We simply need some additional quotes. Please add those and return the article immediately. We would like to publish your story in the next issue. Now think about this. Her fear of rejection had cost her $500 and the proof that she could be a professional writer. More importantly, it had cost her years of enjoyable and productive writing. So it's important to never doubt yourself and your dreams and to persevere no matter what, until you achieve them. And that's why today I would like to share an activity from my new book, the Success Principles Workbook, with you now. This activity is designed to help you persevere when things get tough, and it's called the Track Record of Persistence Activity. And it's a very simple exercise to help you remember that you are the kind of person who actually gets things done. Now, here's how it works. First, you think about a time where you persisted in the face of difficulty and achieved an important goal. And so you'll be asking yourself, what was that goal? And then you write it down on a piece of paper. And then you answer the following what challenges did you have to overcome in pursuit of that goal? How did you overcome those challenges and what did you finally achieve? What was the end result of overcoming those challenges and what did you learn in the process? Now, once you've written down your answers, I'd like you to think of another goal you've achieved through perseverance and not giving up and go through that same list of questions. What was the goal? What challenge did you have to overcome? How did you overcome those challenges? What did you achieve and what was the end result of overcoming those challenges? And what did you learn in the process? I want to encourage you to go through this process at least three times, each time focusing on a different goal that you achieved through perseverance and determination. And then remember, you did that. You've proven that you can do it. So if you ever find yourself losing faith or wondering if you should just give up, simply go through the Track Record of persistence exercise again, or reread what you've already written at that point. And never forget that you are the kind of person who has the ability to power through when things get tough. No matter what's happening in your life right now, if you keep on persisting, you will achieve your goals and create your desired reality. I know that you have that capability. I totally believe in you. Now, before you leave, if you're feeling inspired, please share one of your track record of persistence examples in the comments below. Or talk about a time where you thought about giving up, but you didn't. I'd love to read your story. So thanks again for watching. And remember, together we can accomplish anything. And if you found this video helpful, please make sure you like it, share it with a friend who may need it, and subscribe to my channel for more videos like this one, and for additional strategies for how to practice persistence in challenging times. My new Success Principles workbook is just the resource you need. And thanks again for watching.