On Perseverance

One of my favorite quotes of all time is by former US President Calvin Coolidge:

“Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan Press On! has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race.”

I love the power of this quote, and as I have grown older I have discovered it to hold a deeper and deeper truth. I first found this quote while researching Environmentalist Erin Brockovich. You might already know about Erin thanks to the blockbuster movie made about her incredible story starring Julia Roberts.

A single working Mother, Erin took a job as a file clerk for a California based law firm, and stumbled upon medical records pointing to problems linked to water contamination in the town of Hinkley, California. Despite having no formal legal training, it was thanks to her dogged determination and perseverance that resulted in the highest grossing direct action lawsuit in history against the Pacific Gas & Electric Company (PG&E) in 1996. She enabled hundreds of plaintiffs to receive the medical care and compensation they so desperately needed, and she brought a Goliath-sized American company to their knees for their horrendous conduct..

Erin was awarded a $2 Million bonus from her firm and went on to start her own consulting firm, exerting her influence in many other pollution cases and environmental projects worldwide.

Oh and did I mention Erin was a single mother? And that quote by Calvin Coolidge? Her Dad gave her a handwritten copy of it, that she carried around in her wallet… “Press On! has solved, and always will solve, the problems of the human race.”