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Stephanie Pearce: Persistence

Stephanie Pearce
Stephanie Pearce
StephaniePearceRGB

You know the old saying, “If you get bucked off a horse, you better get right back on”? Well that’s not only to show the horse who is in control, but also so the person getting bucked off can regain some control and esteem.

It’s called persistence.

My daughter sent me a quote by Matt Biondi the other day that said, “Persistence can change failure into extraordinary achievement.” I have seen her exemplify this quote so many times in the past couple of years. You see, she’s been training a horse. She started training the horse last spring and started out by trying to prove a point: that she could do it.



I watched her read books and watch training videos in preparation for this task. She spent many hours studying and making sure she knew the steps she should be taking.

When she actually started working with the horse, she felt confident that she knew she could do this, and she also knew that it would take a lot of time. She worked with this horse every day. Every day are the key words here. Persistence. When she got bucked off, she got right back on. There were a few failures along the way, but again, she stuck with it. She never gave up.



I was so proud of her at the horse show during the fair. She took a horse that only she had been on and, with persistence, had trained and showed him.

It hasn’t ended there, though. I have watched these two grow together. They are learning a great deal together, and I’ve not seen a bond so close. They trust each other like nothing else I have ever seen before. Because of persistence, when she asks the horse to do something new, there isn’t usually much balking anymore. They seem to work as one and know how the other thinks. It is truly a beautiful thing. Persistence definitely changed failure into extraordinary achievement for them.

As I watch this inspiration that is in front of me, I think about how I go about life and how I deal with the obstacles in front of me. Am I persistent? Do I focus on the things I need to work on and study how to efficiently handle these obstacles before I go tackle them?

Do I truly work on what needs worked on every day? Even when the hiccups come along, do I stick with it, or do I give up and move along? Do I let little failures win, or do I learn from them?

Success most often occurs after several buck-offs. It’s those who chose to get back on who succeed. Are you getting back on that horse?


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