In his classic "Think and Grow Rich," Napoleon Hill felt so strongly about persistence that he devoted an entire chapter to it. Hill said, "There may be no heroic connotation to the word persistence, but the quality is to your character what carbon is to steel."

Think about that for a moment.

Just as carbon hardens steel -- persistence hardens your willpower to blast past any obstacles you encounter as you pursue your dreams.

I've worked with people all of my professional life, and here's what I've observed: Very few have REALLY decided what they want from life … and fewer still have committed to achieve it.

Why is this important? Because without clarity and commitment, there is no persistence.

To develop the quality of persistence, you must want something so much that it becomes a burning desire ­- a fire in your belly! Persistence is then virtually automatic, and you become unstoppable.

It's commonly believed that a lack of persistence is the result of a weak willpower. This is NOT true! A person can have a highly evolved willpower, but still lack the persistence needed to achieve their goals.

In most cases, those who lack persistence simply do not have a goal that lights their passion.

Here are four relatively simple steps to develop persistence:

1. Create a clearly defined goal. Your goal must be something you truly desire. Because without emotional fire and desire, you will not be able to reach into the portion of your mind that can really drive you to achievement -­ your subsconscious.

2. Develop a plan of action and go to work immediately. It's perfectly OK if your plan just covers the first stage of the journey toward your goal. As you begin to execute your plan, you'll discover other steps that will take you closer.

3. Make an irrevocable decision to reject any negative feedback of friends, relatives or neighbors. Refuse to give any conscious attention to conditions or circumstances that appear to indicate your goal cannot be accomplished.

4. Establish a mastermind group of one or more people who will encourage, support and assist you.

As Napoleon Hill shared: In many cases persistence is the ONLY quality that separates highly successful men and women from everyone else. The present moment is your Point of Power. Whatever you dream of doing in your life -- just begin today, and refuse to quit. There is greatness in you. Just let it out, and be persistent.