There is a sign in stands at Roland Garros, the famous tennis complex where the French Open is played. It reads: “Victory belongs to the most persevering“.
Ray Kroc purchased the fast-food company McDonald’s in 1961 from the McDonald brothers and was its CEO from 1967 to 1973. Kroc is credited with the global expansion of McDonald’s, turning it into the most successful fast-food corporation in the world by revenue. He did it partly through franchising. It was a tough journey to success and he said the following:
Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful individuals with talent.
Get the drift? 😉 Winning is often the product of persistence, perserverence. To keep going when things get tough. It applies to every aspect of life and is very important in sport which is why the saying is on a big banner at Roland Garros.
Clearly, fighting and dying for your country in a war of attrition in Ukraine in trying to push back the Russian invader is not the same as winnning a tennis match or building up a business.
But the Russian ‘special operation’ as Putin insisted on calling it (he has now dropped that requirement but some Russians are in jail for using it) has turned to a war of attrition much like the first world war. Trench warfare. Digging in. Around 1000 Russians die each day according to the reports. Less on the Ukrainian side but casualties are still too high.
There is only one way to victory for the Ukrainians: persistence. However, it must be supported by the West’s continued involvement in providing arms.
Actually, I’d like to see NATO troops on the ground in Ukraine. Putin has said that he’d use nuclear bombs if that happened but he is bluffing. Yeh, a big risk but sometimes you have to emply both persistence and calculated risk to win. You have to be bold and persistent. That’s how you win in sport when it comes down the wire.
Boldness is a vital part of winning. These two qualities go together: persistence and boldness.
Let’s remember the animals in this war. So many killed and maimed. They are the innocent victims. The bystanders who have no idea what’s going on.
The humans have made a complete arse of animal welfare in this war. War is a failure and animals are the truly innocent victims. I say this despite the many heroic animal rescuers silently getting on with the business of saving lives.
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