One of the most difficult things everyone has to learn is that

“One of the most difficult things everyone has to learn is that for your entire life you must keep fighting and adjusting if you hope to survive. No matter who you are or what your position is you must keep fighting for whatever it is you desire to achieve.” — George Allen, Sr.

In this powerful declaration, George Allen, Sr., the legendary American football coach, speaks a truth as old as life itself — that existence is a battle, and survival is not granted but earned, day by day, through struggle, resilience, and adaptation. His words rise beyond the field of sport to touch the very heart of the human condition. When he says that we must “keep fighting and adjusting,” he reminds us that no victory is permanent, no strength eternal, and no path smooth. Life changes, the world shifts, and only those who bend with the wind, who rise after each fall, can endure. The fight is not one of fists or force, but of spirit — the unyielding will to move forward, even when the road is hard and the night is long.

To understand the origin of these words, we must look at the man who spoke them. George Allen, Sr. was a coach who turned losing teams into champions, not through luck or talent alone, but through a philosophy of relentless effort. He believed that success was not the reward of brilliance, but the product of constant work — of the willingness to fight for every inch and adjust to every obstacle. His players said he demanded everything of them because he believed in what they could become. From this belief grew his creed: that life is not a single contest, but a lifelong campaign, fought with endurance and heart.

The ancients, too, knew this truth. In the scrolls of history, we find the same wisdom echoed by philosophers and warriors alike. Heraclitus, the Greek thinker, wrote, “War is the father of all things,” meaning not destruction, but struggle — the eternal conflict that drives creation, growth, and transformation. Odysseus, after ten years of battle at Troy, faced ten more years of storms, temptation, and loss before reaching home. His journey teaches us what Allen also knew: that to live is to wrestle with fate itself, to adapt to each trial, and to keep striving no matter how weary the heart.

In our modern world, the battlefield has changed, yet the principle endures. Consider the life of Helen Keller, who, though blind and deaf, refused to be conquered by her circumstances. She fought not with weapons, but with perseverance, learning to speak, to write, and to inspire millions. Every step of her journey demanded adjustment — to new teachers, new methods, new challenges. Her life embodies Allen’s teaching: that the measure of a person lies not in what they begin with, but in how fiercely they rise against limitation.

Allen’s wisdom also holds a gentler truth: that to “keep fighting” does not mean to live in bitterness or conflict, but to stay alive to purpose. Life is movement — a river that never ceases to flow — and those who cling too tightly to what was, or fear what is to come, are swept aside. To fight is to adapt, to grow, to meet each moment with renewed will. The world honors the strong, but it is not brute strength that wins the day — it is enduring strength, the kind that renews itself after every defeat. Those who survive are not those who never fall, but those who never cease to rise.

And yet, Allen’s words are not merely about survival — they are about aspiration. He tells us that no matter who we are, whether king or beggar, we must still strive for something higher. The athlete must train; the artist must refine; the scholar must question; the leader must learn humility. To stop striving is to begin dying. For as the old sages taught, the flame of the human spirit grows not in ease, but in challenge. Desire — to create, to achieve, to become — is the breath of life itself, and it must be fed by constant effort and continual renewal.

Lesson:
From George Allen’s teaching we learn that life is not a single triumph, but a continuous act of courage. The fight does not end with success, nor does it vanish in defeat. It is the heartbeat of existence — the pulse that keeps us becoming. So, fight not only against hardship, but against complacency; adjust not only to loss, but to change; and strive always toward the horizon of your dreams. When weariness comes, remember that every great soul — every thinker, every hero, every mother or builder — has felt the same fatigue and risen again. For to live well is not to live easily, but to live valiantly, ever fighting, ever growing, ever moving toward the light.