By: D. A. Slinkard
This is my first article of 2021, and I wanted to start out on a positive note. This year I have the honor of celebrating 18 years of marriage with my wife, Mindy. Eighteen years! This is 17 ½ years longer than some people gave us when we said, “I do.” Yep, people were betting against us, and why not? We were two young kids in what some referred to as “puppy love.” Do not get me wrong, I love dogs but by no means were these naysayers trying to paint a fuzzy picture for us, and they knew we were doomed. After all, we did have a whirlwind romance in which history saw our first date on October 9, 2001, and I found myself on bended knee within a month of that first date. I knew I loved Mindy the first time I laid my eyes upon her.
In the beginning though, she did not feel the same way. My mom told me Mindy was playing hard-to-get, and honestly, I did not like this kind of playing. I mean seriously, who likes to be told “No” repeatedly? No one does, and the fear of rejection is why so many people fail in life. I have learned so much from my wife that has helped me in the business world. The first lesson learned prior to finally getting my first date with her is that “PERSISTENCE BEATS RESISTANCE.”
I asked her out on a date once, and she said “No.” I asked her twice, I asked her three times, I asked her four times, and the answer was still “No.” I found different ways to ask her out. Make that five times, six times, seven times…same response. With every resistance she was giving me, I was beginning to feel the pressure. I loved her, she loved me; she just did not know it yet. Eighth through tenth time, it was always an adamant, “No.” Eventually, upon asking for just one date on the thirteenth time, I was finally given the answer I wanted, “I’m going to church on Tuesday night. If you want to, you can meet me there.” Did I want to? Was that even a question? Of course, I wanted to, or I would not have risked being the fool twelve times over.
I had finally worn her resistance down with my persistence. If I had not stayed on the trail like a bloodhound dog, I would not be blessed to have my beautiful wife today and our two blessings, Abigail and Johana. What you can learn from my past failures turned success is that too often we give up too easily. We face the slightest bit of resistance, and we decide that maybe that big account we wanted to win, well maybe it does not matter as much as we thought it did. Or maybe that girl who has caught our eye, well maybe there is some other fish in the sea for us. If it is romance you are after, I highly suggest that you pay attention to the amount of persistence you use because if you are not careful, you may get a nicely crafted letter from the judge warning you to not persist so much.
In life, though, we are going to face difficulties; and those who do not, can be found in cemeteries. I remember being a child and my dad telling me, “Son, it’s not how many times you get knocked down, but what counts is the number of times you get back up.” What my dad was really saying was, “Son, persistence beats resistance.”
If you are up against a tough or difficult situation, do not give up. The best way to beat any kind of resistance is to counter it with massive action. The more action you take, the more traction you are going to be able to gain. When you get the action flowing, you will suddenly find yourself being able to knock down any barriers in your way. You will become unstoppable and whatever you desire, you can achieve. So, the next time you face a struggle and think about giving up, I want you to ask yourself how your persistence is. If you are stubborn enough to keep going, you will eventually get what you want. For those of you who are wondering, I am the head of the household, but my wife is the neck because the neck is what turns the head.
By: D. A. Slinkard
D.A. Slinkard would love your feedback. You can contact him at da.slinkard@gmail.com
