Angela Duckworth, professor at the University of Pennsylvania, identifies grit as the number-one predictor and factor of success. It's not talent, title, wealth, or appearance. It's grit, the ability to work hard for a long period of time towards a goal; to persevere, overcome, and keep moving forward in the face of adversity, failure, rejection, and obstacles. Success doesn't happen overnight. Along the way a leader and team will face countless challenges and will need Grit to find a way forward! And this begs the question. If Grit is so important and individuals and teams really need Grit, then what is it? And if Grit drives us, what drives Grit? I believe Grit is:
DRIVEN BY LOVE...
If you don't love it, you'll never be great at it. If you don't love it, you won't work to overcome all the challenges to keep doing it. If you love what you do, you won't quit when the world says you should. You will continue to show up every day, do the work, and discover that success created by the love you have inside you.
INSPIRED BY VISION AND PURPOSE...
If you have a vision for what you want and you know why you want it, you will work hard and persevere in order to achieve it. Your vision and purpose are greater than your circumstances and challenges. When you know your why and you know the way you won’t let obstacles get in the way.
FUELED BY OPTIMISM AND BELIEF...
Research shows that when you believe in a brighter and better future you will continue to take the actions necessary to create it. It becomes a self fulfilling prophecy. What you believe determines what you create. If you believe it’s possible, you will continue to work to make it happen.
POWERED BY FAITH AND HOPE...
There will be times when your failures and challenges bring you down. There will be moments you want to give up. It's during these discouraging times that you need more than positive thinking. You need faith and hope to keep you going. Faith keeps you focused on possibilities instead of problems. Hope keeps you moving towards the future instead of living in the past.
REVIVED BY RESILIENCE...
When you get knocked down your resilience will move you to get back up. You will keep fighting for what you love, what you believe in, what you hope for and what you want. Even when your dream is killed a thousand times, you will keep reviving it and try one more time.
KEPT ALIVE BY STUBBORNNESS...
You just won't give up. When your dream is revived, your stubbornness keeps it alive. You won't let your circumstances define you. You are determined to define your circumstances.
AND IF WE'RE HONEST INCLUDES SOME FEAR OF FAILURE AND DESIRE TO PROVE YOURSELF...
The fear of failure I'm talking about is not a paralyzing kind of fear but a healthy dose of fear that causes you to work harder and practice and prepare more. Combine this with a desire to prove yourself that you have what it takes; that you can do it and you'll keep working to improve in order to reach your goal. All the great ones, no matter how much success they have, still have a healthy dose of fear of failure and desire to prove oneself. It's what keeps you humble and keeps you working to be great.
Jon
