Consistency and persistence. You’ve most probably heard both of these words in your life and you might even be trying to attain both of these. But when it comes to consistency vs persistence, which one is more valuable? Or are they as important as each other?
Let’s see why you might need to cultivate both in your life, especially when you’re about to enter the working world.
What’s the Difference?
At first, you might’ve thought these two words meant the same thing. Whilst they mean very similar things, they are in fact, quite different.
Consistency means that you do the same thing over and over again. But being persistent means that you continue to do something despite all of the problems and challenges that you face.
But which one is more important?
Well, when it comes to consistency vs persistence, you’ll need both if you want to succeed.
Why Does it Matter?
If you want to build a new habit, you want to concentrate more on your studies, or you just want to be able to do something long-term, you’ll need consistency and persistence.
Consistency will help you to develop lasting habits that will be of great benefit to you. Persistence will help you to stay motivated even through tough times.
For example, you would like to go to the gym more often. You’ll need to be consistent in showing up and persistent on those days when you’d rather stay in bed and eat ice cream. (It happens!)
“We can be born with the greatest talents and gifts, but if you’re not persistent and consistent in your use of those skills, then you cannot achieve your fullest potential.” (Source)
How to Be More Consistent and Persistent
Whilst there are many ways to remain consistent and persistent in your goals, not all of these techniques will work for you. When starting out with new goals, try focusing on one at a time. See what goals are most important to you at that moment; like spending more time studying. Then, focus solely on that one goal. Once you have reached that goal or made a decent amount of progress towards it, then you can think about pursuing other goals.
Consistency vs persistency may not be something that’s on your mind when it comes to learning a new skill, but it should be. Both of these essential life skills will help you to develop useful habits that will benefit you throughout your student and work career!