The French Open ended this past week with Carlos Alcaraz winning a stunning five-set final. If you watched any of the tournament on the red clay of Roland Garros, you likely saw a quotation etched high above center court:

Victory belongs to the most tenacious

The quote is often attributed to Napoleon, though it was later adopted by Roland Garros, the pioneering World War I aviator for whom the stadium is named. He reportedly painted the phrase on his airplane’s propeller before flying into combat. Today, it serves to inspire tennis players to fight for every point—exactly what Alcaraz did to win the championship.

But Roland Garros isn’t the only major tennis arena with a quote. If you step onto Wimbledon’s Centre Court, you pass under famous lines from Kipling’s If:

If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same.

Both quotations speak to victory. If I had to choose between them, I’d lean toward Kipling’s wisdom. The Napoleon quote is aggressive and feisty, and that’s sometimes necessary. But in my experience—whether in running or in building Peregrune—the key has been the ability to stay steady and humble through the ups and downs.

The runners and entrepreneurs who thrive over the long haul aren’t the ones chasing every high or crumbling with every setback. They’re the ones focused on the work in front of them—on the process—day after day.