The Key to Success - Grit

                What is the number one characteristic of people who succeed? It’s probably not what you think. It’s not talent and it’s not intelligence. There are many talented people and many smart people who never live up to their potential. So, what is the number one characteristic of successful people?

                According to psychologist Angela Lee Duckworth it’s grit. That’s right, grit.

                Duckworth is a former seventh grade math teacher who noted that there did not seem to be a direct correlation between IQ in general or math ability in particular to which of her students did well in class. Many of her smartest or most talented students performed poorly while others of average, or even less than average, ability outperformed the smart, talented kids. This observation so sparked her interest that she quit her job, went to graduate school in psychology and has since dedicated her career to the study of success.

                She has studied people in a variety of challenging situations, looking for characteristics common among those who excel. She went to West Point and interviewed cadets. She observed contestants in the National Spelling Bee. She followed teachers in some of the country’s toughest school districts to see which ones were still on the job five years later, and turning out high performing students. She tracked salesmen to discover which ones stuck it out through all the rejection and actually made money.

                From all these studies she found one characteristic held in common by people who succeeded in the most challenging endeavors – grit.

                What is grit? Duckworth defines grit as “passion and perseverance for very long term goals. Having stamina. Staying with your future day in and day out, not for the week, not for the month, but for years. And, working really hard to make that future a reality. It is living life as a marathon, not as a sprint.”

                How does one become gritty? She stresses repeatedly, it’s not a matter of talent or intelligence. Many talented, intelligent people do not follow through. And following through is key. Success is not defined by starting well, it is defined by finishing well.

                Grittiness comes from a mindset. It comes from a determination to simply not quit. Duckworth said, “We have to be willing to try, and fail, and then try again using the lessons learned.”

For more check out Duckworth’s Ted Talk “The Key to Success? Grit” at http://www.ted.com/talks/angela_lee_duckworth_the_key_to_success_grit

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