I did not persist.

I waited and waited long enough until what I was absolutely sure I wanted to do changed.

I spent a lot more money up front than I really should have.

I did not take care to respond to all the mail that came to me.

I mixed my private funds with my business earnings, or was it the other way around?

I wanted everything to be perfect before showing my first product.

I lost touch of that element called customer service.

I would start counting my profit before the cash was transferred into my pocket.

I never followed my own counsel.

I could not shake off that internal bug chewing on my mind called "doubt."

The biggest killer of them all is number one: not persisting.

What happened to me was internal to cause my business to flop. I would call it the reality of success. I would begin to learn from my mistakes, begin to gain some confidence, begin to see some results, and then -- I would get distracted and do something else. I would be get my railroad engine up to top speed and then forget to put in more coal. My momentum would quickly wane.

Momentum is a must. Gaining enough momentum is work, work work, work work work... is a locomotive of work. Momentum must be maintained. Only through persistence.

All the other reasons above are overrated. They can be overcome by overcoming the first one: the lack of persistence. Because each of the other reasons can translate into learning experiences, they represent lessons for growth. I can talk about them now and sense I have learned from them. They do not represent finality.

Yet, if I do not persist, finality is my destination. If I desist, then the lessons I have learned thus far will merely be forgotten scenes passed outside my train window. By persisting, those reasons become the deep lessons, the "still lifes," that propel me forward.

Through many years, my home-based business went through many mistakes. I forged forward through my mistakes. I never thought of stopping. I survived in business, because I kept going. I persisted. Today, my business - operated completely out of home - is thriving and earning me a fine living to support my family.

Ten reasons. Sure. They are valuable. But the most important one is the first one.

I never gave up. I persisted. I kept at it.