In your journal entry, reflect upon how intellectual
perseverance will be important as you progress in your studies. Consider how
intellectual perseverance relates to your concept of a good leader.
Intellectual Perseverance can be defined as the
ability to provide the “willingness and consciousness of the need to pursue
intellectual insights and truths despite difficulties, obstacles, and
frustrations.” It involves the ability to tackle problems in a constructive
manner and come to a conclusion that although may have been difficult, has been
well thought out and worked through to ensure the most desirable result. Intellectual
perseverance is also the development of drawing conclusions to form rational
viewpoints with the understanding that the final result may only come after an
extended period of time has passed.
I believe that intellectual perseverance will continue
to be extremely important to me during my studies, as it has in the past. If I
did not have intellectual perseverance I do not think tat I would have had the
ability to go through high school, completing both my regular high school
courses on top of the technical courses and testing I was taking to achieve my
Airframe and Powerplant licenses. Once I went into college, intellectual
perseverance grew even more important as I came across many hurdles that almost
stopped me from getting my degree. I also truly believe that my studies from
high school exhausted me to the point, where college seemed like such an
undertaking, I wasn’t sure I could handle so soon. However, with perseverance I
pulled through and was able to graduate with my Bachelor’s degree.
After obtaining my undergraduate degree, I gave
myself a one year break from school, so I could relax, work and enjoy some down
time. Now that I have started my graduate degree, I realize that intellectual
perseverance is going to be an integral part of my life as I try to balance
working full time, maintaining my household and taking care of my husband and
child. I truly believe that I am going to have to find the strength in me to
get through the days when I think I might not be able to do this and find the
will to push myself to achieving all that I know I can.
Intellectual perseverance will not only help me in
taking charge of my personal life and my studies but I believe it will also
help me achieve the things I would like to accomplish in my career. A good
leader is someone who is considerate, compassionate, hard working, honest,
dedicated, competent, intelligent and humble. While all of these qualities have
their own definition and nature of achievement, I don’t think that all, if any
would be able to be accomplished without the efforts of intellectual
perseverance.
A leader needs to be able to take charge and understand
that they will continue to come across issues that involve a great deal of difficulty
and complexity. A good leader must be able to work with the hand that they are
dealt and dedicate themselves to finding the best solution possible under
stressful and demanding circumstances. I truly believe that if a leader can
master the concept of intellectual perseverance, while failure may be inevitable
at times, great success will also be on their list of accomplishments.
References
The Critical Thinking Community "Valuable Intellectual Virtues" June 1996, Retrieved from http://www.criticalthinking.org/pages/valuable-intellectual-traits/528
