
The Resourceful Life

This ability to persevere despite obstacles and setbacks is the quality people most admire in others, and justly so; it is probably the most important trait not only for succeeding in life, but for enjoying it as well.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi • Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience (Harper Perennial Modern Classics)

One thing that distinguishes the persistent is their energy. At the risk of putting too much weight on words, they persist rather than merely resisting. They keep trying things. Which means the persistent must also be imaginative. To keep trying things, you have to keep thinking of things to try.
Energy and imagination make a wonderful combination. ... See more
Energy and imagination make a wonderful combination. ... See more
Paul Graham • The Right Kind of Stubborn
running low on funds, stuck in a bad relationship, locking horns with some aggressive opponent, have an employee or student we just can’t seem to reach, or are in the middle of a creative block, we need to know that there is a way.
Ryan Holiday • The Obstacle Is the Way: The Timeless Art of Turning Trials into Triumph
Endurance is a form of trust, in your capacity over time to absorb the stresses and extremes of the present. I say trust because the math in the moment may break: the opposition overwhelming, your resources faint. So you make eye contact with the enemy. You put down your spear. You turn your back and wait for the tension to break. The quality that ... See more