Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance Author: Angela Duckworth Publisher: Scribner Publication Date: May 3, 2016 Length: 353 pages About the Author Angela Duckworth, PhD, is a 2013 MacArthur Fellow and professor of psychology at the University of Pennsylvania. She is the founder of the Character Lab, a nonprofit whose mission is to advance the science and practice of character development in children. “Enthusiasm is common. Endurance is rare.” Grit has two components: passion and perseverance. Passion means having enduring interest in the job you are doing. Perseverance means being persistent and never giving up. Are You Gritty? Dr. Angela Duckworth developed the Grit Scale to measure an individual's grit score. The Grit Scale correctly predicted which cadets at West Point would pass the Beast Barracks, which National Spelling Bee participants would advance to the next rounds and which sales people would be able to retain their jobs. I encourage you to test your grit level by completing this short survey. “as much as talent counts, effort counts twice.” Effort helps develop skill. Talent x Effort = Skill Effort also helps put our skills to good use. Skill x Effort = Achievement. Interest, Practice, Purpose and Hope You must be passionate about something that interests you most. Practice requires that you do things that interest you better than you did yesterday. It is essential to identify how your work is connected to your own well-being and the well-being of others. We must be able to get up after a setback. Hope prevails. Hope is an expectation that things will be better tomorrow. My Thoughts I was introduced to the work of Angela Duckworth in the Foundations of Positive Psychology Specialization on Coursera. This book offers many examples about how effort, perseverance and resilience play important roles in achievement and success. Finding something that you are passionate about is the key. It is natural to want to practice and improve skills that you are passionate about. After many years of effort and practice, you can use your skills for the greater good of society. In our public schools, the children who have the highest IQ scores are often put in special "gifted and talented" classes. It is good to challenge children who have natural talent, but Dr. Duckworth found that these gifted students sometimes lack the grit that is needed for academic and professional success. Grit is not the only predictor of future success but it is an important part of the equation. The chapter on gritty parenting gives some specific strategies that can be implemented to encourage the development of grit in children. These same strategies could be used by teachers. Parents should be demanding and supportive of their children. Wise parents are loving, warm, respectful and demanding. Children will emulate their parents, so parents must demonstrate perseverance and passion for their own personal goals. Dr. Duckworth believes that you can grow grit from "the inside out" by developing your most passionate interests with practice, purpose and hope. Grit can be grown from "the outside in" by seeking guidance and direction from parents, coaches, teachers, mentors and friends. There is a reading list at the end of this book that provides more information on the topics that are covered in this book. My goal is to be a "gritty reader" and read all the books listed in this bibliography. I found this book fascinating and highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in the subjects of psychology, achievement and success. My Rating: 5 Stars Out Of 5 FYI - I read a print copy of this book from my public library. Please share your thoughts in the Comments Section below or tweet me @JanetteFuller.
About The Author Suzanne Price is a Personal Success Coach, Relationship, Interpersonal Skills & Personal Communications Coach, Life & Lifestyle Coach, Stylist & Image Consultant, Dating Expert, NLP Master Practitioner, TFT Consultant, Author & Workshop Facilitator and Professional Speaker.
Resolutions for the New Year Are you writing your New Year's Resolutions today?
Do you have goals that you would like to achieve in the next 12 months?
It's the time of year which gives you the opportunity to wipe the slate clean. If you are up for the challenge and are willing to commit to the process, you may discover that achieving your goals could literally change your life.
Suzanne Price advices you to set "SMART" goals for the new year. SMART stands for;
S - Specific or Stated in the Positive.
M - Measurable.
A - Achievable, Attainable, Actionable.
R - Realistic.
T - Timely or Tangible
Ms. Price introduces a series of exercises that will help you set crystal clear goals, prioritize and rate the goals and take action to achieve the goals.
I really like the following quotation from this book about the importance of taking action;
There is only so much planning and positive thinking a person can do before there comes a point in time where we just have to take action. After all, no matter how committed we are to a goal, or how determined we are to achieve it, we still must take action in order to reap the rewards.
Most people forget about their New Year's Resolutions by the first week of February. This book will teach you the secret to making 2013 your best year ever!
My Thoughts
This was a very inspiring and educational book to read on the last day of the year. If you are serious about making some changes in your life, this book will guide you in the right direction.
Suzanne Price introduces many concepts that are critical to making and achieving goals. I suggest you read and study this book as you write your own goals for the new year. The time you spend reading this book will be a great investment in your future.
My Rating: 5 Stars Out Of 5
FYI ~ This book is being offerered as a FREE digital download for the Kindle TODAY! Give yourself a great gift for the New Year and grab your copy NOW! These promotions do not last very long so please check the price before ordering.
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Are you starting a new project or adventure? How important is positive thinking in the final outcome of any endeavor? Most successful people start each new task as if final failure were impossible. They think, live, and breathe success. Believing they have a right to it, they proceed toward their goal without hampering doubts. Outstanding achievements cannot, however, be traced entirely to constructive methods of thinking. Mere expectation of success wouldn't be sufficient if you didn't implement positive thoughts with constructive, positive actions. But all actions have to begin with thoughts. Successful enterprises begin with the thought that there can be only one final result, success. How does this technique work? Knowing that the final result will be success instead of failure, you release within yourself enough energy to carry almost any task to a successful conclusion. If there are specific facts to be gathered, you will gather them. If there are individuals to be won over to your idea, you will win them over. If you visualize failure instead of success, you simply won't have enough stamina to carry you through the basic jobs necessary to achieve any goal. So before you start anything, visualize yourself as successful in the long run. Act as if success were the only possible outcome.
