How to Build Persistence the Buddhist Way

Life will frequently call upon us to exercise the ability to persist and persevere in order to overcome difficulty and discouragement. Buddhist teachings are both clear and consistent in emphasizing that persistence and perseverance are vital mental, emotional, and spiritual skills required for a healthy, happy, harmonious life. Here are some innovative ways of tapping into the power of persistence … the Buddhist way.

Adopt a Mindset of Right Mindfulness

Though the Buddha does not specifically use the words “persistence” or “perseverance,” he did stress the importance of “right mindfulness,” which is the seventh “right” on the list of Buddhism’s Noble Eightfold Path. Right mindfulness means tuning your personality toward optimism rather than allowing yourself to be dragged down into negativity and self-loathing when life becomes challenging. The reality is that those who dig deep mentally and emotionally, continuing to strive toward their goals even when circumstances are less than optimal, have a much higher likelihood of experiencing success.

Consider the experience of Academy Award-winning actor Michael Caine. In his book Blowing the Bloody Doors Off: And Other Lessons in Life, he describes a time when he was utterly despondent over his acting career, writing, “I came very close to a breakdown.” Unable to survive financially, Caine was forced to ask his mother if he could move back in with her. While auditioning for small parts for little or no pay, he often had to take “dead-end jobs,” which included washing dishes, working in a steelyard, packing laundry, working pneumatic drills on roads, and working as a “night porter for a very dodgy hotel catering to a lot of couples called Smith.”

“I owed small sums of money all over London and often had to dash across the street to avoid my creditors,” he writes. Additionally, he came “perilously” close to being arrested and jailed for getting behind on his child support.

Yet during that entire time, he continued to audition for roles. “No one can succeed in the movies or anywhere else without luck,” Caine rightly notes. With considerable insight, he continues: “But I haven’t just been lucky. I’ve been unlucky plenty of times too. And I’ve never rested on my laurels. I’ve worked hard, learned my craft, grabbed my opportunities, and just kept on bloody going when others gave up.”

Infuse Persistence with Patience

“The importance of patience and persistence to the success of any endeavor cannot be emphasized enough,” noted modern Buddhist master Hsing Yun. This combination is powerful because patience helps us endure delays and disappointments, while persistence motivates us to keep moving forward toward our objective. Anytime you feel that your patience level is weak, especially when facing difficulty, inspire yourself by reading and reflecting on these types of wisdom statements.

From the ancient Chinese sage Lao Tzu: “Can you remain unmoving until the right action arises by itself?”

From Hsing Yun: “The greater your patience, the closer you are to success.”

From Alan Lokos, a meditation teacher and author: “The wonderful thing about patience, unlike commodities, is the more we use it, the more we offer it, the more we have.”

And from Buddhist writer Ker Cleary: “Patience is the capacity to calm the mind under stress so we can see our way clearly.”

Remember that Persistence Produces Positive Outcomes

“Persistence guarantees that results are inevitable,” notes Paramahansa Yogananda, author of Autobiography of a Yogi. Similarly, Sri Aurobindo, a spiritual teacher from India, says, “One has to be more persistent than the difficulty—there is no other way!”

An inspiring contemporary example is that of Chuck Norris, actor, martial artist, and author of The Secret Power Within: Zen Solutions to Real Problems. Norris was a champion black-belt karate master, holding the World Professional Championship title for six years in a row before retiring undefeated. Achieving that success wasn’t simply the result of innate talent; it was also earned through a dedication to hard work.

His path began when he joined the US Air Force. While stationed in Korea, he enrolled in a Korean karate school. Every evening after completing his daily military duty, Norris attended karate classes from 5 p.m. until 10 p.m., with just five minutes rest between each hour. For five hours he practiced kicking, punching, blocking, and partner sparring. The sessions were both tedious and challenging. Norris explains that none of this came easily or naturally to him; it was his persistence that powered him forward. “I was not in particularly good physical shape, nor was I especially well coordinated,” he writes. “But I was determined to learn, so I refused to give up.”

Replace the Negative with the Positive

When obstacles show up in our lives, we seem to have a natural propensity to view the issue in a negative light. Negative thinking is emotionally dangerous because it can block our personal growth, lead us to make bad decisions, and drive us to become the worst versions of ourselves. That’s why it’s important to do a mental reset, directing the mind away from the negative and into the positive.

In Buddhism, this perspective shift is called “right view” and is the first step of Buddhism’s Noble Eightfold Path. Right view means disciplining yourself to silence that inner negative voice, allowing optimistic and hopeful vision to emerge. According to the ancient Indian sage Patanjali, it’s not that complicated. He advises, “When presented with negative, disquieting thoughts or feelings, cultivate an opposite, elevated attitude.”

Anytime you find yourself in a negative frame of mind, acknowledge it and make a transition toward the positive. Doing so will enhance your life, says Swami Vivekananda, who writes, “Think positively and masterfully, with confidence and faith, and life becomes more secure, more fraught with action, richer in achievement and experience.”

Don’t Underestimate Small Actions

The Buddha often reminded his followers not to underestimate small steps towards progress. “Do not overlook tiny, good actions, thinking they are of no benefit; even tiny drops of water in the end will fill a huge vessel,” he shares. “Do not overlook actions merely because they are small; however small a spark may be, it can burn down a haystack as big as a mountain.”

Tapping into persistence can often mean taking things one step at a time, one moment at a time. The Buddha’s wisdom of acknowledging the importance of small, persistent actions was evident in Captain Thomas Moore, a British decorated veteran of World War II. During the Covid epidemic, Captain Tom, as he was called, raised nearly £40,000,000 for British National Health Service frontline workers by walking 100 laps around an 82-foot loop in his Bedfordshire, England garden. One particular photo of Captain Tom shows him smiling, his military medals pinned on the lapels of his suit jacket, while holding onto the walker he used for balance since breaking his hip the previous year.

Captain Tom had started the fundraising effort at age 99 in order to celebrate his upcoming 100th birthday. He initially hoped to raise $1,200, but when his efforts went viral, more than 1.5 million individual donations poured in. Queen Elizabeth II knighted Moore and promoted him to Colonel in one of her first public appearances after entering quarantine. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Moore provided the United Kingdom with “a beacon of light through the fog of coronavirus.”

Many goals and objectives can feel impossible until they are suddenly achieved. Progress can feel slow, like it is taking forever. But one day we wake up and realize it is done. Stay motivated. Keep moving. Don’t quit. Tap into your power of persistence!

Discover how to find inner peace the Buddhist way.