This quote from George Herman Ruth can be found in his famous article “Bat it out” written for The Rotarion (July 1947). In this article, Ruth wrote about the various rules and lessons he learned from his years of being on the field as a baseball player. He wrote the aforementioned quote while highlighting the importance of not stopping until the end. Ruth gave the example of Henry Ford to support his statement which goes as follows:
You just can’t beat a person who never gives up.
This quote is an encouraging statement that reminds us keep going despite setbacks or failure. With this outlook on life, one can bear whatever hurdle that comes their way. Whatever situation you’re in, try to push yourself to your maximum potential and make up your mind up that you are not giving up.
George Herman Ruth – The Sultan of Swat
George Herman Ruth, known famously as Babe Ruth, was an American baseball player. He was one of the most famous figures in the history of baseball. At the ripe age of 21, he joined MLB as a pitcher for the Boston Red Sox. Later he joined New York Yankees and achieved great success as an outfielder because of his exceptional performance.
Ruth is famously known as the greatest hitter in the history of baseball and because of his long and powerful hits in the game, he was called the Sultan of Swat. In 1936, he was elected as ‘first-five’ inaugural member of the Baseball Hall of Fame. He started coaching the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1938 but failed to have a permanent coaching job. His flamboyant personal habits contributed to his failure in achieving a permanent job as a manager or a team coach.
What Is The Meaning Of The Quote
The quote by George Ruth can be taken as the gist of his entire career. By analyzing it we can understand how Ruth achieved the brilliance and success he is famously known for. Ruth continuously influenced many people to push themselves and try harder to reach their goals.
When it comes to achieving your goal, be it defeating your opponent or scoring the highest marks, the greatest battle you have to fight is against yourself. You have to do this every time your inner voice tells you that you are not going to succeed. Once you’ve conquered your inner enemy, you can overcome whatever situation life throws at you.
With this type of mindset, you will become much more persistent. If you fall 99 times, this view on life will get you to pick yourself up the 100th time. An individual who is persistent and determined is impossible to defeat. When you are less focused on defeating your competitor and more focused on trying your best, your whole perspective changes. With this dedication and commitment in mind, you’re bound to succeed in many the tests of life.
Why do people give up?
Despite being aware of the importance of perseverance, we often find it hard to keep going and thus are inclined to give up. It is important to be aware of the factors that can cause one to give up so that you can avoid them. Some of these factors are:
- Lack of discipline
- No concrete goals
- Fear of failure
- Lack of adaptability
The one thing that can be found in the life of any successful person is discipline. Lack of self-discipline is a weakness of the mind which can have a massively negative influence on your life. This character flaw can both impact your physical and mental health. As a result, you develop the habit of avoiding activities that require effort and you fall into the vicious cycle of procrastination.
In order to keep yourself motivated, you need to have certain specific goals that are achievable. Having concrete goals will help keep you motivated and give you a clear idea of what you are striving to achieve. If your goals are not specified or are unachievable you will find it hard to stay focused thereby finding it easier to give up.
Even after having concrete dreams people find it hard reaching them. This is because they are unable to overcome one very common obstacle – fear of failure. This fear cripples a person and prevents them from moving forward.
Your knack for being adaptable determines how well you respond to different changes in your life. This is something that can be advantageous for your personal as well as professional life. If you lack this quality, any minor change in your circumstances can cause you to continue dealing with issues which no longer exist, or try to overcome novel challenges with old strategies. As a result, you become too rigid and that will waste a lot of your time and effort achieving very little to no progress.
If the only tool you have is a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail
When to let things go?
Letting something go when you know it’s not working is also part of being adaptable. There comes a point in our lives when we have to let some things go. Even if it happens to be the dream of your life, if you see it not working despite your full persistent efforts, you have to look for another way or look the other way.
Here’s how you can know when to let go;
- Lack of feedback
- Prioritize
- Lack of feasibility
When you fail to find out whether or not your efforts are bringing you any results, then you should take pause, reflect and reconsider whether or not you should keep going. After you’ve given your 100% and seen no results, you need to stop watering that dead plant and let it go.
Prioritizing things the right way is the best way to find out whether or not you should detach yourself from something. If whatever you’re investing in is no longer serving you and is stopping you from what’s more important, then you have to let it go.
We often confuse perseverance as an answer to everything. However, this is not always the case. There are things in life that are just not possible no matter how hard you try. If you fail to accept failure, you’re setting yourself up for trouble. So, when you know that a certain door is just not opening for you, you have to stop knocking at it and find another.