Simmons is co-founder of pioneering hip-hop label Def Jam and created the clothing fashion lines Phat Farm, Argyleculture, and American Classics. He is the third richest figure in hip-hop, having a net-worth estimate of $340 million as of April 2011
I’ve read Do You and often refer to it. Of the 12 laws in the book, which is meant to help readers achieve success in their chosen path, Simmons stresses on the importance of resilience.
He writes and I quote:
In over twenty years of riding out the high and the lows of the entertainment business, I’ve learned a lot of important strategies for success. But I can honestly say that few of them are as important as the law that teaches ‘There are no failures, only quitters.’ That’s because no matter what path you decide to follow in life, you’re going to run into obstacles. It’s inevitable.
When it comes to success, I consider a ‘never say die attitude’ to be more valuable than wealth, connections or sometimes even talent. In fact, so many of my competitors were smarter than I am and had greater resources but only got halfway down the road before they quit after the first time they stumbled. Any one of them could have been more successful than me if they had just kept pushing towards the finish line. Some people who are the least talented, but are harder workers and more resilient, end up with the most success. I ought to know, because I am definitely one of them.
The reason most people fail to reach the finish line is because they confuse a setback with a failure. A setback isn’t a dead end a setback is just a learning curve on your journey to success. In fact, setbacks can actually speed up your journey towards success if you pay attention to them. If something doesn’t work for you, you haven’t failed-you’ve just learned what not to do the next time.
As I said, resilience is one of the most valuable characteristics you can develop in life. Faith, dedication, compassion and hard work are good. But resilience is what makes them great. That’s because no matter how hard you’re working, or no matter how great your faith is, at some point you’re going to hit a wall. Whether you lead a successful life or not depends on how you deal with that wall. When you’re face-to-face with a wall, do you get intimidated and turn around? Or do you pound away at the wall until it finally falls down? A quitter goes home with his tail in between his legs. A successful person is going to go through the wall, over it, around it, under it-whatever it takes to continue his journey.
