Persistence in Business — Basketball Memories

Basketball Memories Remind Us the Importance of Persistence
It takes persistence to consistently win!

Persistence in business sometimes has some unusual parallels.

Last night, my granddaughter invited me to take her to our local high-school men’s basketball game.

I had one student in particular I wanted to watch play. His grandfather and I were in the same class at this local high-school.

This student is a freshman; however, I remembered seeing him play last year at the junior-high games. I thought I might get to see him play in both games. When I got there, though, about a minute after the JV game started, he was not on the floor. Then I spotted him in dress clothes sitting behind our bench.

Finally, I realized he was not playing for the JV game because he was a starter for the varsity.

Last year, our school had a nearly undefeated season. They lost one game in a winter tournament, and then they lost again, having advanced to the regional tournament.

At least four regular players from that team were seniors, so the makeup of this year’s team is quite different. They had a senior and another boy who was either a junior or a senior. I don’t remember what grade the middle starter was in. Then they had two freshmen.

To make matters worse, we played a school that happened to be our arch rivals when my friend and I were in high school. We lost quite handily, although I did get to see the freshman I came to watch make some very good plays.

When we were in high school, we always wanted to beat this rival team. Many times we would get close, but we just never could get over the hump … Except … One time we played them on their home court. It was their homecoming game, and on that particular night, we did win — by one point!

Persistence does pay off. Even when an athlete does not play on a team with a winning season, he or she often learns the importance of integrity, fair play, good exercise, coordination, and contributing to the work of a team.

I even joked to a college coach with whom I became good friends. I told him a joke I often used. I said, “I was one of the ones who made the first five great!” meaning that I was faithful in practice, but I was never one of the starters on the team.

I thought he would get a kick out of that. Instead, he very seriously replied, “A good practice player is worth his weight in gold.”

Persistence in business pays off. You may not hit the top of the sales in your particular niche. Yet, you may do well enough that you reach the point to where you can quit your “day job.” You may reach the point to where you have freedom of schedule. You will still work hard as you work for yourself, but it will be a very rewarding journey.

Let’s just remember that persistence pays off. Who knows, by the time my friend’s grandson is a senior, they may have an almost undefeated season again.

Persistence in home-based businesses coupled with good information pays off greatly. A program called “Wealthy Affiliate” is one of the best places I know to get the good information and training a person would need to succeed in an online business.

6 Replies to “Persistence in Business — Basketball Memories”

  1. Thanks for sharing that story Randy, I think your right even though you didn’t play your contributions to the team helped and its also a credit to you as it shows your ethic and commitment back then.

    I agree with your overall message though in that persistence is key and that is what you will need in business. I struggled to understand that early on, I would often work for a period of time and then drop off and lose interest.

    It’s only now that I am learning that lesson that If I want to have any chance of winning in business that I must persist.

    Thanks again, Randy! 🙂

    Josh

  2. I can totally relate to the idea of being the invincible contributor to a team. Though I play soccer, I think the message is quite similar. Persistence truly pays. In fact, there might be nothing heroic about being persistent, but I’ve come to learn that persistence is the one quality that ensures you ultimate victory. Thanks for sharing, Randy.

    1. Thank you, Leo. I wish you well in your soccer team, and I look forward to ultimate victory for both of us.

  3. Persistance and teamwork most certainly pays off. I just watched a video interview with the late great coach, John Wooden. He is my favorite coach of all time even though I was never a UCLA fan.

    He not only taught his kids about persistance and other valuable life skills, but he ingrained the fundamentals of the game into his players. Also they learned how critical teamwork is in any sport. 

    Persistance most definitely pays off in Wealthy Affiliate. Once a person is committed, it is just a matter of time to see results given the effort and persistance. Thanks so much for sharing about your local high school basketball team. All the Best.

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