There’s a kind of commitment we don’t often give ourselves credit for, one that runs deeper than persistence — and it’s tenacity.

We’re really good at crediting persistence — we see it every day. It’s the showing up, the grinding, the milestones on a path you can actually see, with the resources and support to back you. It’s often easier to see and important to praise.

But what happens when the path gets murky? When resources and people start to thin out? When everyone else has moved on, and you’ve taken so many steps backward you’re not sure there’s a way forward at all anymore, but you still keep going?

That’s tenacity.

Less visible than persistence, but just as powerful — tenacity is the engine that keeps you going when it’s all you have left. And because there’s no milestone to point to, we rarely credit ourselves for it. We just think we’re lost, behind, or chasing a fool’s errand.

But if you’re still moving even when the path appears to have disappeared or you find yourself mapless but something in you keeps pulling you forward: instinct, gut, discernment, inner compass. That’s not a fool’s errand. That’s tenacity. And that is not something we can always see so clearly in ourselves.

So the next time you’re committed to moving forward while everything feels unclear and unsteady, know that’s your tenacious spirit revealing itself — keeping you going.

And that deserves its own kind of celebration and praise. Because even when no one else can see it, you can still see the strength in yourself. And that always counts. 🤍