Perseverance is more important today than ever before.

It’s always been important, but nowadays I feel that everyone is giving up way too early on their ideas and dreams.

Why aren’t more people sticking it out? Why are they fleeing at the first sign of trouble?

People are looking for quick wins that give them the confidence to keep going and when they don’t get them, they give up and go on to something else. Or maybe they string a couple together, but then they have a few misses in a row and give up.

They look at the growth trajectory of companies such as Slack and ask, why not me? I see this in some of the creators using Coach as well who put up a digital product for sale, get a few buyers, and get discouraged that more money isn’t rolling in.

Nothing else matters

I truly believe that the only thing that matters is perseverance. The quality of your design, code, product, etc., will all work themselves out in time as long as you keep learning and getting better.

That’s the reason why starting with an MVP and quickly iterating are so important, because it speeds up your timeframe. Faster iterations coupled with perseverance is the best route to have a successful product -- not sleek designs or scalable code.

Pat yourself on the back

Instead of getting discouraged when things aren’t going your way, you need to give yourself credit for all the things that are going well.

Got a new paying customer today? Great! Sold a new digital eBook for $19? That’s validation that people want what you’re selling!

Beyond just celebrating sales, think about everything you’ve accomplished. You’ve built something from scratch. You’ve shipped it. People are engaging with you. People are excited with what you’re making.

When times get rough, think about everything you’ve accomplished and let it comfort you.

Of course, we all wish we could grow 100% month-over-month, but very few of us will ever grow that fast or ever be that successful.

Celebrate your small wins and use those to get you through the darker times.

You’re going to make it, eventually

Just don’t give up too early!

I truly believe that on the internet, given enough time, care, and hard work, you can be successful in what you set out to do. If your goal is to build a self-sustaining SaaS business, you can do that, but you can’t do that if you give up too early.

Even thinking about the idea of giving up will lead you down the wrong path. It’ll make you think that there’s an end in sight if things don’t pick up. Don’t do it!

Anything I build, I tell myself that I’m never going to give up no matter what. I’ll keep going until I turn the ship around even if I’m the only one on the ship.

If you have that attitude, you’ll be successful.

I know hundreds of founders and everyone I know who hasn’t given up and gotten through the dark times has made it in some way or another even if they had to make tough decisions.

They may not all be millionaires, but they’ve come out on the right side.

But what if I fail?

Unless you never experience a single “win” throughout the entire time you’re pursuing your product or startup, then you haven’t failed.

Something around 66% of all startups “fail,” but everyone out there has won in one way or another. They’ve successfully built and shipped something, they’ve all probably had some paying customers, they’ve learned a ton, and they’re better off because of it.

My guess is that with a bit more perseverance, a few of those 66% could have found a way to keep the lights on for a little longer, and eventually make it.

It just takes time.