Albert Einstein once said, “It’s not that I’m smart, it’s just that I stay with problems longer.” In essence, the great thinker was explaining that perseverance is the key to success. As far as athlete, consultant, and philanthropist Jason Humble is concerned, perseverance is also the greatest virtue. Losing his mum at a young age, Jason Humble was thrown into foster care. Trapped in a culture of abuse with zero educational opportunities, Humble instinctively realized early on that if he didn’t cultivate and develop his perseverance, life would beat him down and keep him there. It was a long, hard road, but Humble came out on top. The proud product of Spanish Harlem is the first member of his family to graduate from college and build a multi-million dollar empire. Yet, ask Jason Humble, and he’ll tell you his true success lies in perseverance, and he’s kindly agreed to share with us five reasons why.

Perseverance Builds an Impregnable Character

When the going gets tough and things look bleak, you’ll not be able to weather the storm if you lack character. A lot of people make the mistake of confusing personality with character — don’t! A personality is something people project to the world, and their character is who they truly are. Perseverance builds character like nothing else. You can’t fake character — you either have it, or you don’t. Develop it, persevere, never quit, and test yourself at every opportunity.

Perseverance Fuels Resilience

The only difference between winners and losers is, winners never quit. It’s that simple! And the reason why they don’t quit is that they persevere against the odds and stay positive even in the most negative situations. That’s called resilience. Perseverance and resilience are two sides of the same coin, and they both feed off one another.

Perseverance Commands Respect

When people see an individual prepared to fight their corner and rally the troops no matter what, it commands respect. Perseverance is universally admired because it works. And an individual who commands respect can move mountains.

Perseverance Makes Anything Possible

If you look at history and the individuals who made things happen and changed the world, they all share one thing in common – perseverance. They didn’t let negative people darken their dreams or muddy their vision. They believed in themselves and their purpose and refused to chart a different course no matter what. In such instances, perseverance is akin to a superpower.

Perseverance Generates Perpetual Momentum

Momentum is integral to getting things done. Many people have ambition, but they never act upon it. The more you persevere and see things through, the easier you’ll find things and the more things you’ll get done. In other words, perseverance generates perpetual momentum. Stay with something until the end, and don’t get sloppy. If you persevere, I guarantee things will turn out for the best and generate further opportunities and success.