One common belief amongst business owners is that success is often the result of being in the right place at the right time. But It’s not that simple. You can’t expect to appear on the scene and step into a big puddle of success. Success isn’t a one-shot deal. In fact, it can take 10 years to become an “overnight success.” Persistence can play a part in becoming successful. You have to show up and keep on showing up until you make it.

Here are four reasons that being persistent and well-prepared to tackle life’s many obstacles is more important than trying to manage things out of your control.

PLANNING DOESN’T ENSURE ADAPTABILITY
In the Teams, while doing combat dive training we had a saying, “Plan your dive and dive your plan.” Things can get confusing underwater in pitch blackness but when you start second guessing yourself, it can snowball out of control. That said, good old fashion common sense is also a great standby when your plan starts falling apart.

For companies to be dynamic and adapt to internal or external forces pushing against them, they must have nimble leadership, healthy financials, and a team with a shared sense of purpose.

THE PROBLEM WITH PATIENCE
Many smart people never succeed as entrepreneurs. We often chalk this up to bad luck, but one of the main reasons why entrepreneurs never get their ventures off the ground is that they wait for things to come to them.

There’s simply no truth to the idea that if you work hard and pay your dues, success will come. Success never comes to anyone. You need to go out and grab it.

THINGS DON’T USUALLY GO AS PLANNED
So be ready when the inevitable roadblocks stand in your way. Whether you are an entrepreneur growing a start-up or a team member at a large corporation, you’ve probably noticed that plans can change, and change often. But a company has to be well-structured in order to remain strong as well as dynamic.

Good leaders must remain focused on what lays ahead in order to foresee potential obstacles and adjust accordingly. Experiencing failures along your path to success doesn’t mean you failed. Failing occurs when you let those experiences cause you to quit.

PERSISTENCE IS A VIRTUE FOR FOUNDERS
Startup founders need persistence because everything always takes longer than expected — often two to three times longer. It can be difficult to keep things going when you’re not seeing instant traction and success.

Persistence is also crucial because you’re bound to make mistakes, some big and some small. Messing up is a part of being human, but we learn and improve from each mistake. When you give up too early, you lose the opportunity to learn from your mistakes and are then just left with failure.

THE TAKEAWAYS
So what does any of this mean for those of you who are building a product or dreaming of starting a company?

Don’t wait for the perfect moment or situation to start a business. You don’t have to have all the pieces in place or everything figured out in order to get going.
Don’t expect someone to hand you an opportunity. Nothing worthwhile ever simply comes to you.
Don’t wait for your product to be perfect. Think about Mark Zuckerberg’s saying, “Done is better than perfect.” Even Steve Jobs said, “real artists ship.”
Don’t sweat the small things that are out of your control. If you’re sitting in traffic or waiting in line, no amount of restlessness is going to help the situation. The more frustrated you get, the less energy you’ll have to spend on the things that matter.
Realize that no one else will be on your same timetable. It’s your job to convince others of the importance of what you’re trying to do and communicate that sense of urgency. You won’t be successful if you continually push people without getting them to buy into your vision first.
Don’t give up if things take longer than planned. Look for signals that you’re on the right track, keep your burn rate as low as possible and keep moving forward.

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