What You Should Do When the Odds Are Stacked Against You

Saguaro Cactus (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I read recently that when the saguaro cactus releases its seeds, only one in 250,000 will make it to early maturity.

The odds are clearly stacked against them.

From the extreme desert conditions to the birds that live off the seeds, there’s a lot that can go wrong for the saguaro.

But this brave cactus doesn’t give up.

It just keeps releasing more seeds.

It doesn’t assume that because the first 249,999 seeds didn’t work that the next one won’t either.

It just keeps releasing more and more seeds.

Sometimes, we face situations when it seems as though the odds are stacked against us as well.

It may not be a ratio of 1:250,000, but our chances of success may still seem remote and unlikely.

You may be struggling to get your business idea off the ground, to get your weight under control or overcome your fear of public speaking, but whatever your long shot is, when the odds are stacked against you, the most effective strategy comes from the saguaro cactus.

Keep releasing more seed.

Keep trying.

Keep moving towards your goals.

Keep building your network.

Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair once said, “The difference between an optimist and a pessimist is not that the optimist believes the world is wonderful and the pessimist believes it’s beset by challenges; the difference is the pessimist believes we will be defeated by them; the optimist thinks the challenges can be overcome.”

There are times in life when the seemingly rational decision would be to give up.

Let me give you an alternative.

If you quit trying, you’ll never get there, but if you persist, even in the face of insurmountable odds, one day a seed may germinate and you will get the result that you’re after.

But it only happens if you never, ever give up!

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