I stayed with the work while not feeling brilliant

Dear Delyara, For a long time I overvalued brilliance and undervalued staying. Now I understand that much of what I am proud of academically came not from feeling especially gifted, but from staying. Staying when I was tired. Staying when my self-belief was unreliable. Staying through private emotional weather. Staying through dullness, delay, and slow progress. That kind of persistence deserves more respect than I used to give it. I’m trying to offer that respect now.