Besides clearness of vision, let there be perseverance. A thing may be difficult to do, far more difficult than was expected in the beginning, yet that is no reason why it should be relinquished; in fact, it is the greater reason why it should receive all the energy of mind and body to carry it to its final completion. "Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might." This was the injunction of one who knew far more about the mysteries and struggles of life than we do. He who turns away from anything because it is hard to do will never succeed to any marked degree in anything he may undertake. But let him persevere, regardless of obstacles, and in doing thus he will strengthen his character and call out real courage. When a man puts his hand to the plow, he should feel, first of all, that it is the right thing to do; and he should courageously face any and every obstacle. Having brought the undertaking to a successful termination, it will be easier for him to succeed in his next.

Sometimes everything looks dark. You have faith in the thing you want to accomplish; you have faith in the people about you; yet outer circumstances seem to conspire against you. This is the time for courage, this is the time to reenforce courage with hope. It is well, then, to remember that the great things in life do not come to us without effort; that it is only as we use energy, as we persevere, as we keep working day after day, that we accomplish that which we ardently desire. We fritter away our force when we try to do two or more things at the same time. When the mind is engaged in one direction, and the hands in another, the mind and body both become tired. The man who keeps his mind centered upon whatever he has before him to do, will do it more easily and better because of that mental attitude. Remember, therefore, in the darkest hour, courage, hope, and perseverance are the qualities which will bring ultimate success.

When we desire a thing greatly we should be willing to work for the accomplishment of the desire. The working for it should be a pleasure, and should not be considered as a burden, or even as a duty, but as a blest privilege. What greater privilege can one have than to see the manifestation of his own ideals, to see the things that he has wrought out in his own mind taking form in the world about him? There is nothing degrading or mean about labor, so long as that labor is unselfish, so long as that labor is going to benefit the world. It makes no difference whether a man tills the ground, or builds houses, or engages in mercantile life, whether a man is an artist or a day-laborer, his work is honorable if he gives it his honest thought and does not try to avoid the responsibilities coming to him.

No matter what position a man may occupy in life, he is of use in that station and should occupy it until he can fill a better one, and he can never fill a better one until he has made himself, in a sense, proficient in that one. He can make himself most proficient by doing his work in the best possible way, each day trying to do it better than the day before, gaining a little here and a little there. Through following this course he makes himself a necessity to his fellow man. No matter what one does, he can do it best by entering into the spirit of the thing, by looking at the calling, whatever it may be, as one that is honorable and upright, and by doing the work cheerfully and well. The more cheerfulness and concentration we put into the things we do, the easier we will find them to do, and the greater satisfaction we will get and also give to others.

"The talent of success is nothing more than doing what you can do well, and doing well whatever you do without a thought of fame. If it comes at all, it will come because it is deserved not because it is sought after."

A really successful life must, without doubt, be the result of thorough application to whatever calling one follows; therefore, anything which tends to divert attention from the real issues retards success and interferes with individual development. As a maxim to be followed with undeviating persistence there are few better than "Mind your own business." That the world follows this to any marked degree is not as yet apparent. If people could realize how many heartaches, how much sorrow and mental distress, could be averted by attending strictly to their own business, it would not take the world long to see the blessings flowing from such a method, and it would become the usual and not the unusual course. Concentration of mind is needful for the accomplishment of any definite object, but there can be no concentration when the individual mind is prying into the life of another to find something which may tend to belittle or bring the condemnation of the world into that other life. There are characteristics of the animal nature which are not easily overcome in the life of man. The cunning of the fox, the instincts of the jackal and the vulture, are only too apparent in what is called Christian civilization. That which is hardly commendable in the animal is infinitely less edifying in man. Scandal-mongers, slanderers, and inquisitive "busy-bodies" are the prototypes of the lowest instincts of the animal race, and are more of a menace to the welfare of a community than thieves; for as Shakespeare truly says:

"Who steals my purse steals trash: 'tis something, nothing; But he that filches from me my good name, Robs me of that which not enriches him, And makes me poor indeed."

The poisoned and evilly disposed mind that makes a business of retailing gossip can not be trusted in any emergency; friendship with such a mind loses all its real meaning and of loyalty there is none. There may be honor among thieves, but there is no honor in the heart of a slanderer, and the evolution of such a life must come through the bitter experiences always brought by wilful disobedience to every known law of right. Said Buddha: "The words of a slanderer are like sand thrown when the wind is contrary; they return upon the slanderer himself, and a virtuous person can not be harmed."