I was reading a biography of Albert Einstein and was struck by his determination and persistence. It wasn’t the way that he developed his theory of relativity that was impressive. I was impressed with the way he approached difficult reading materials when he was young.
Einstein had been given a book by Maxwell about electromagnetic. He started reading and made it about 10 pages into the book before he was confused. So he started over. The second time he made it 15 pages before he stopped understanding the text. So he started over again. Gradually he made his way through the entire book.
I was very impressed with his determination and the willingness to start over if something wasn’t making sense. The theory of relativity was developed using these same qualities of thought. When something didn’t make sense he would backup and question the fundamental “givens” that were underlying his assumptions.
People don’t like to start over. I think the average person who reads a book and finds it incomprehensible would probably just stop reading and move on to something else. Staying determined when something is very difficult is hard, but pushing through something difficult expands your capabilities for dealing with future problems.
Originally published April 26, 2007.
Amen :)
Perseverance can help solve a lot of life’s problems, not all, but most. Of course, having the will to get the job done must be coupled with the proper knowhow. One without the other is pretty useless.
Perseverance can help solve a lot of life’s problems, not all, but most. Of course, having the will to get the job done must be coupled with the proper knowhow. One without the other is pretty useless.
Hi Mark.
The very few will do something one step further than most, and that gets them the adoration and limelight that the others could have gotten. Compounded growth or exponential gains make going that extra step worth it to those who understand the return value involved.
@Armen – Achieving greatness is kind of like outrunning a bear. You only have to be a bit faster than everyone else to come out ahead. :)
Thanks for republishing this post Mark. Not only does it show how necessary determination is to achieving what you really, really want – it also demonstrates that great people have to work just as hard as the rest of us!
You forgot to mention another point about Einstein. When faced to a dead end, he would rather pick another ideia and start all over again with the same entusiasm than feel bad about the time lost.
@LousieBJ
I can’t say that it’s Einstein’s determination that got him through understanding the book. I think its his hunger to understand and deep interest in the topic made digest the book in such manner.