The Audacity of Tenacity

Tenacity can sometimes come across as desperation to those who witness your efforts to accomplish your greatest goals. The difference between being tenacious and being desperate is confidence vs. compromise. The two often look identical, but with a closer eye it is evident that while they share the same source they are clearly fraternal.

When you’re desperate you compromise who you are and the sacrifices that you make are often foolish and unprofitable. You do things that will only temporarily satisfy and very seldom turn out good in the end. Desperation can lead you in the path of destruction and end in your demise, much like the unsuspecting moth drawn to the flame.

When you’re tenacious you will stand in the face of a challenge with an “all or nothing” approach, confidently prepared to fail. *Record scratches* FAIL?!?!? Yes, FAIL! Tenacity is the instinct that causes you to approach the edge of impossible, fearlessly step off the ledge, and all the while saying “if I perish, I perish”. Tenacity is the energy drink of perseverance that keeps you awake at night; the Kleenex of hope that wipe your tears of frustration; and the Band-Aid of faith that covers the wounds of discouragement.

When you are desperate you operate in fear and you settle for what is “good enough”. You are always in survival mode and there is no pleasure in your pursuit. Focus escapes you. And in the name of passion you become a predator to your goal, ultimately ambushing your purpose, and sabotaging your success. When you are desperate it is sensed by those around you giving them the subconscious “green light” to take advantage of you.

When you are tenacious you are fearless... and bold…and ready! You don’t settle for less than you KNOW you can have, you approach every opportunity with a “Can Do” attitude, and you leave everyone wondering “where did they come from”. When you are tenacious you act in faith with confidence that your “gift” will make room for you and bring greatness to you. But do not get it twisted, the “bull dog” mentality that comes along with tenacity can often result in you moving too quickly and having to pull at your reigns.

Here’s the deal breaker…you have to learn how to possess a healthy balance of both…you have to be desperately tenacious. This is when you are focused on your goal and will stop at nothing to accomplish it; you take calculated risks with the understanding that “what appears today to be a sacrifice will prove instead to be the greatest investment that you will ever make”; you are humble enough to be open to any opportunity that comes your way, but confident enough to say NO to those without promise; and you rise up to meet every challenge, embracing the lessons in your mistakes, and leave the mark of a quiet storm that no one ever saw coming.

The opportunities that I have had thus far have been great! I have gone after every one of them with a relentless determination, for I am desperate to live out my potential. I have sacrificed greatly for some of the opportunities, so much so that I have even given myself the ‘side eye’ at times…but I am tenacious in my pursuit. I refuse to give up! I have met MANY challenges…but I know if I don’t quit, I’ll win. I have not been too good for any role, because sometimes your breakthrough moment comes in cleaning up someone else’s mess. God has allowed me to connect with some of the greatest in the game and for this I am both grateful and humbled. I am even more grateful for those He has placed along the path to help keep me going: those who doubt that I am going to succeed and those who won’t let me give up; those who scoff at my efforts and those who help me up when things don’t go so right…after all, He did say let the wheat and the tare grow together.

New Beginnings

I remember when I learned how to ride my bike. I was excited, and I wanted to ride, but I DID NOT want to fall! I was so afraid of falling that I was always looking for someone’s hand to be on the back of my seat and making sure that they hadn’t let go. Quite naturally, I fell a few times, because there were a few concepts that my fear of falling had caused me to not grasp…like balance, control, and pace.

I mean clearly I didn’t think that I would ever get anywhere with someone holding onto the back of my bike, or that I could expect to always have someone there to hold me up. But that didn’t matter…I WAS AFRAID TO FALL. And so much so, that at times I CHOSE to fall simply because it felt like I was beginning to fall; and of course in my mind if I fell on my own it wouldn’t hurt as much. (Starting to sound familiar? *Wink*) There were even times when I would fall while someone was holding on, which often resulted in them being wounded as well, because I was trying to go too fast. I had not yet determined that in those times when I felt myself falling I should shift my weight to gain my BALANCE. It had also not occurred to me that it wasn’t the person holding onto the bike that controlled whether or not I fell, but in fact it was ME who was in CONTROL because I was holding onto the handle bars. Much to my surprise once I learned how to ride my bike, I also learned that when no one was holding onto the back…my PACE was up to me.

The challenge of a new beginning can be much like the experience of learning to ride a bike…it’s a FAITH WALK and we are all afraid to FAIL. Conquering the fear of failure is perhaps the greatest challenge to overcome. It is the one thing that paralyzes most people from moving forward with anything that they seek to accomplish. The fact of the matter is that failure is inevitable. The few times that we fall while learning to ride our bikes is “in essence” failure, but it’s the determination to learn that gets us back on the seat again.

My journey continues as I pursue new opportunities. It has not been easy and at times I have wanted to just give up. There is so much uncertainty that comes when you decide to get out of the boat of mediocrity and trust God to form the waters of purpose under your feet. Don't think that this is easy just because I don't complain or seem worried...I choose to walk in peace on this journey because I can not afford to let my emotions take over. I have embraced the truth that no matter what happens along this journey, God steadies me with His guiding hand on the back of my seat when I begin to lose balance; He has empowered me with the resources I need to maintain control; and my pace….well, He’s redeeming the time and I’m moving full speed ahead.