A very long time ago, in a state not so far away (California), I was beginning my teaching career at a
very innovative school in Turtle Rock, a community in the city of Irvine. When I assumed my brand new position, we had a training in a relatively new program that had been launched by parents and educators that was born out of the "Self-Esteem" movement that had first blossomed in the late 1980s.
As I learned about the program, and how it
would be integrated into our teaching and classroom management and philosophy, which proposed lavish praising of kids and handing out trophies just for "trying hard," I felt myself inwardly cringe. At first, I wasn't sure why. I mean, isn't cultivating a "positive" self-esteem a good thing? You would think so, but that still, small voice inside of me--you know the one-- that sort of sixth sense or inspired discernment that just "knows" things to be true or not, whether or not you have concrete proof? That's the one. That voice whispered to me: "
bad idea." While I couldn't articulate exactly why at the time, I just knew this was not the right approach to cultivate the dedication and enthusiastic engagement of young learners.
As time passed, I learned that low and behold, that voice was right. It turned out that subsequent studies showed that kids did NOT try harder as a result of the program. In fact, it was the opposite: coddled kids became softer, slower, and less likely to persevere. Why? Because there was one very important characteristic that past generations knew about and encouraged that was NOT fostered and learned in the process: GRIT.
Carolyn Adams Miller, an author and speaker on the topic from Bethesda, Maryland, said, "This is not a gritty generation. They become overwhelmed and stressed easily because they have been protected from failure."(1) Like Miller, Psychologists now assert that grit, not a positive self-concept, is the best predictor of future success and overall happiness.
So...what, exactly, is grit? According to the dictionary, it is, in this sense, "courage and resolve; strength of character." (2) It is a passion and perseverance in the pursuit of long term goals. It is what determines the survival of the West Point cadet or who makes the cut for the Olympic team; in other words, it sifts out those who can ultimately make it to the finish line of hard goals in life from those who cannot. Miller says that talent can only get you so far. It is really your grit that determines whether or not you make it.
In fact, research has shown that grit is completely unrelated to talent. (3) At times, it is even
inversely related! Those who are not blessed with talent discover they must work
twice as hard, and with grit, they develop the skills of discipline and perseverance. Grit is contagious. It is inspiring. It
CAN be taught and fostered. In a Washington Post article, Miller proposed some steps to cultivate Grit, and they largely relate to our thinking and how we view and approach challenges:
1. When you face a tough problem, don't tell yourself "this is too hard." Instead, ask, "Why not me?"
2. When things get hard and you want to quit, mentally change the channel. Focus on a spiritual phrase, mantra, or image that encourages you on.
3. Build a team around you. Encourage each other. Be sounding boards. Connect positively as you pursue your long term goals through the achievement of smaller goals.
4. Instead of offering empty praise and pity in failure, parents should coax their kids through failure. Point out the lessons and praise the efforts to keep on going through pain and failure.
5. While it is tough for parents to let their kids experience failure, it is actually the most important KEY in developing Grit!
Back in the 1980s, many communities opted to "soften" neighborhood parks so that kids could fall into a pillow of wood chips. This seemed, in many ways, very prudent, but as it turns out, it has made kids "softer" as a result. Creeping grade inflation, allowing kids to take and retake tests that they "bombed," has also shown to erode the development of grit. Alternately, participation in true, competitive sports and auditioning for roles (and experiencing the disappointment of not always getting the role you want) in theater arts has shown to cultivate grit.
This all really seems to put a spotlight this week on the IB profile attribute of risk-taking. We have learned through hard experience here that playing it safe, and protecting ourselves from failure doesn't seem to net anything but more anxiety and cowardice. But taking risks, watching and learning from those who never seem to quit, that will actually encourage curiosity and feeling truly alive.
Nancy Wake, an Australian woman who went to fight with the French Resistance against the Nazis during World War Two, once stated that while she was incredibly grateful the war ended as it did and freedom was restored, she never felt more alive and like she was living in her true purpose than during those long, fearful months she spent with troops of thousands of men hiding out in the forests. At a time of great danger, Nancy chose not to listen to the cautionary pleas and warnings of those around her. She learned to fight like the men she ended up ultimately leading. It turns out that her being a woman was not a "weakness" after all; in fact, it made her less likely to be seen as a threat by the enemy! Several of her fellow fighters were quoted as saying that having one woman named Nancy Wake was like having "five additional men" in their ranks!
Kids with Grit are finishers. They are the tortoises in the race that keep on
moving towards their own established finish lines. You may trip and fall in life. You may experience heartbreaking defeat and failure. But the kids who ultimately succeed are the ones who take risks and feel alive. They are the ones who get back up after a blowing disappointment with a sparkle in their eye, and that sparkle? That's GRIT!
Here is a link to a Ted Talk by Angela Lee Duckworth. Listen carefully to all she has to say: Link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H14bBuluwB8
Then, click here to take the Grit test, and see how you score:
https://angeladuckworth.com/grit-scale/
Finally, comment below on how you scored, what you have learned, and how you are going to apply it to your life.
Don't be afraid to get GRITTY!!
(Footnotes: 1. Holland, Judy. Washington Post, "The Key Ingredient to Your Kids' Success." March 9, 2015. 2. Merriam Webster Dictionary 3. Holland, Judy. Washington Post, "The Key Ingredient to Your Kids' Success." March 9, 2015.)
After reading the passage and listening to Angela's Ted Talk, the phrase "failure is not a permanent state" stuck in my mind. Those words had me thinking about "why do a majority of people see something seemingly difficult and just give up?". But then I realized that we are just afraid to try again. Afraid of failing, afraid of making the people around us doubt, afraid of the unknown. So we break down and give up, leaving us not only a failure, but weaker than before. Giving Odyssey scholars the grit they need will not only help them in school, but to get what they want and deserve. In studying for tests, being in a relationship or even trying to create something new, you need passion and perseverance.
ReplyDeleteLove your response. Yes. Grit is important in everything, not just academics. I have always admired the "don't quit" attitude, but grit puts it into practice. We cannot be afraid to fail because failure is part of REALLY living. :)
Deletei feel like a lot of the phrases here like no grit no glory are just really cheesy. We are afraid to fail cause sometimes its just to hard to get back up and the times we may need to quite we will be shamed for it , there in our minds its better not to try at all or do anything new. motivation and a fear less attitude is what you need to even begin your journey.
ReplyDeleteWhen Duckworth says that what we need in education is a better understanding of students and learning from a motivational and psychological perspective it really made me think about how everyone in the world responds to motivation and understanding the mind. Finding the motivation to just do the work can be difficult and near impossible for many kids. If life was approached with a psychological perspective, how would the way we respond to ourselves and each other, change? Understanding how the mind is hardwired could make life easier for everyone in school, your workplace and social situations. Whenever I do homework, I have to reason with myself. I start with the harder or larger assignments to give myself time to complete them, and then I can quickly finish the small, tedious tasks without stressing about the time I'm wasting that could be used for more important work. I had to find a method that appealed to my motivation and understand the effects of stress that I was causing myself. While I still have to just grit my teeth and start the assignments, I also think to myself, the sooner I can finish this, the sooner it leaves my hands and my worry. It's almost like chipping away at my own personal block of assignments and the stress that comes with them. Just starting assignments requires hard work and grit but, it's completing all of the tasks that shows dedication. Failure shouldn't be an option we give ourselves. Failure also shouldn't be considered the inability to complete a task or inability to try something new. Trying something new is experimental and there isn't always a right answer or succeeding. We need to motivate ourselves to try again if the result we desired was not the outcome. Appealing to your own motivation means that you have to understand the psychology of your own mind.
ReplyDeleteJust after reading the passage I could tell that it was going to be something I agreed with. Listening to Duckworth solidified my opinion that this is a really important lesson to teach kids, especially in regards to the growth mindset. That you can get better, it just takes a little (or a lot) of effort. Because everything is so instant nowadays that if we don't get something right away, some people don't think it's worth doing. The other lesson that I think I will remember from this will don't be afraid of failure.
ReplyDeleteThat really is a good point I had not considered - we do live in the age of instant gratification. Perhaps that does work to complicate the cultivation of grit - Grit is more for the long haul!
DeleteTo be a true grit you have to accept that you have failed and be willing to try again. Failing shouldn't be seen as the thing that holds us back but the push we need to motivate ourselves. Many individuals, including myself, are afraid to try new things because we worry about the outcome, the possibility that even when we think we did our best it still isn't the best that we could of done. Instead of treating failure like a death sentence we should turn that self-disappointment into motivation. Be passionate about what we have to offer whether in a classroom or in the world. Listening to Duckworth helped me understand that failing is normal for human beings.
ReplyDeleteYes! Normal, AND important. Failure helps develop and define our character - it is the ultimate challenge to see who gets back up, dusts themselves off and tries again after experiencing failure. It makes us stronger, ultimately.
Delete"If they worked hard and long enough..." This quote stood out to me mainly because of its correlation with the phrase, Hard Work beats Talent. But, with the quote I saw that anything can be accomplished, the main problem with people failing or quitting is their unwillingness to continue on and strive for that goal which is usually over a long period of time. The journey is going to be hard and tedious and this is were grit comes into play. The true way to accomplish long term goals is the grit of a person, self-motivation and the determination to make a simple dream a reality.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading the passage once and listening to the TED Talk I noticed that everyone always has grit in them but is to afraid to show it on the outside. It means that if someone tries really hard to achieve their goal, that what grit it, not stopping until you get it right or to improve. People who aren't trying as hard to achieve goals doesn't have a lot of grit building up. All the things Angela was saying was subsequently true about "talent isn't gritty" along those lines that people with really good talent don't always have grit to do work. Others who have some talent seem to have more grit than a person who is beyond talented. I than came back to the blog to read it again and it all makes sense. I wanted to read it again because it had the example of Miss Nancy Wake and how she basically led a group of men which is grit.Usually in order to build up more grit, you would have to work extremely extremely hard and following their mindset to help with improving on something. You can't just assume that everything is going to go your way and can't rely on surrounding. You have to really go out of your comfort zone to achieve full grit or to persevere to a higher level. Grit is in everything not just academically like what Amanda said previously above. Grit is a permanent thing that should stick in everyone's minds. Grit can even be emotionally or physically as well.Scholars don't really notice they have grit until they keep trying and finally realize how much strength is actually in them.
ReplyDeleteGrit is used to build and achieve your future you need that certain grittiness to walk the path of achieving your long-term goals accepting the failures or the incorrect answers. If you persevere and have that certain grit to walk your path, you can achieve your goals. Within my life I believe I already have that grit of wanting to achieve my long-term goals no matter the hard work or the falls I take. Being a high-school scholar at Odyssey really helped me with that because unlike the programme where kids were given trophies for trying, Odyssey pushes the boundaries to show that there is much more to life and achieving goals than just trying. You need the grit, the hard-work, the dedication the acceptance of failure and wrong doings, and the perseverance, to get where you want and need to be. In my life Odyssey taught that to me and I have and will continue to use my grit that is built into me to achieve my long-term goals. The TED-TALK really opened my eyes to how much grit affects who I am as a person, everything that Angela said like,"grit is living life like it's a marathon, not a sprint." It really taught me that no matter how hard my path to my goals become, I will and can get there and I am in it for the long-run. Grit taught me that.
ReplyDeleteYes! It's a marathon, not a sprint! :)
DeleteIn her studies, Angela Lee Duckworth had discovered the key to unlocking success in every aspect of life: "...One characteristic emerged as a significant predictor of success. And it wasn't social intelligence. It wasn't good looks, physical health, and it wasn't IQ. It was grit."
ReplyDeleteGrit, she found, is vital to long-term success and focus. Grit encompasses determination and drives one to not simply achieve but, to excel. "Grit is living life like it's a marathon, not a sprint." Behind every motivated individual who dares to step into the world of versatility and diversity is grit. Grit differentiates the prosperous people from the inadequate individuals.
From a young age, I've fantasized about becoming "one of the greats", however, with the mentality I have, I find it difficult to gauge if this is achievable. I am one of those people Duckworth discusses "who simply do[es] not follow through with their commitments." I know what I want to do, what I want to be, and I am working hard to harness the gritty girl within me. The only thing that is holding me back from being great is my fear of mistakes and rejection. But, to truly be like the "greats," understanding mistakes are essential to the process of developing is essential. Going forward, my ultimate goal is to go into everything that I do with a "growth mindset." In Duckworth's words: "We have to be willing to fail, to be wrong, to start over again with lessons learned."
I loved the notion of "growth mindset." We are never done learning. I love the permission and even encouragement to allow ourselves to fail. Risk takers experience great failures, but they also are the ones who know the greatest success!
DeleteAs I finished watching this TEDTalk, the key phrase that stuck in my head was that “learning isn’t fixed; It’s a process”. This phrase stood out to me because the education system usually makes failure seem permanent. Students get punished for failure instead of getting the help they need to get to the right answer. When Duckworth said that the one characteristic that arose from all of the successful individuals in her experiments was grit, I felt a light bulb in my brain turn on. I always knew that there was a specific difference between students that choose to take advanced classes and those who don’t. Grit is this key factor and I feel like that one trait alone can be the key to anyone’s success.
ReplyDeleteWith these ideas in mind, I will remind myself throughout this year that it is important to preserve through all the tough times. As I progress in this two year program and push myself, I’m sure that I will run into assignments or units that I struggle with. I can use this newfound information to remind myself that there is always a way to improve myself and failure is not an obstacle, it’s a learning opportunity.
Yes - I loved the message about failure, too. As a reforming perfectionist, I need to hear that!
DeleteThe statement by Duckworth that stood out to me the most was when she said, "they're much more likely to persevere when they fail, because they don't believe that failure is a permanent condition." This stood out to me, because there have been many times in my life when I have failed at something, and have had to get back up and keep pushing. Now, I'm not saying that I am the "grittiest" kid, but I would like to think that I have a little bit of grit in what I do. Based on her explanation, I do not see how someone could go to the top in life if they had no grit at all. I mean sure, they could get by in life, but as Duckworth said, the kids with the most grit weren't always the smartest or best looking kids. They are the kids who aren't willing to give up. After watching this video, I am able to better understand that if I am wanting to do well in life, I will need to really push myself, much more than I ever have in the past. I can learn from my mistakes to make sure that I do not do the same thing twice, and so that I can keep going.
ReplyDeleteI have learned that grit is something that has been lost, and that people need to succeed. It is vital to long term success. Miss Duckworth mentioned that talent doesn't guarantee success. I find that interesting, because many talented people have failed upon meeting their first failure. They couldn't cope with not being the best. These people needed more grit to succeed. I learned that if I want to do well in life, I need to have grit.
ReplyDeleteThe thing that Duckworth mentioned that really stuck with me is that there is a need in education is to understand students better from a psychological and motivation standpoint. I know that personally as a student I sometimes have trouble finding the motivation to do my best and often see myself going through short bursts of high productivity then falling into a pit of laziness in which I have trouble getting my work done to the extent that it could be accomplished at. If teachers had a better understanding of what motivates students, then the student body would be more cohesive and productive as a whole.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading your comments and listening to the video I agree with everything but have a few comments of my own. Experiences, if you will. For me grit is knowing that you may not be the best but you continue on anyway and make sure that you're working 10x harder than anybody else. This ensures that not only are you growing and developing character, but you're also learning, and experiencing/gaining knowledge about whatever it is you're doing. I feel like I really connected this with music and performance (as usual). When it comes to music I find myself very insecure and look at all the talent around me and sometimes it's very disappointing. But I learned from a workshop in New York that the kids that have been told that "they're talented" all their life won't try to improve or learn anything because they are already so great. I feel as though I have to work so much harder just to get to their level and then beyond. For me that's grit. Even though you're not great now, the motivation is that you will be.
ReplyDeleteThat's a good point! I discovered that I actually did far better in college than my naturally smart friends who never had to study. They didn't know what it meant to put in the hard time and work. I had learned that already, and it really paid off!
DeleteAfter watching the Ted Talk by Duckworth, I believed most in what she had to say about creating grittier kids whenever it comes to academics or anything in general. A lot of people can lack in motivation and effort whenever it comes to doing something they aren't so great at, or maybe something that they've failed at before. However, I do believe that persevering is thing to do in those situations if you want to get better at it. I know that for sure, sometimes I do have my unmotivated moments or down-slides whether it be in academics or anything else, but overtime as a person, I've learned to get back up again and keep trying if I set a goal in mind for myself. I don't have to have someone tell me that I'm good or give me encouragement all the time because it is something I can do myself. I motivate myself by telling myself that 'I can do it' or 'Don't give up'. That kind of stuff is what gets me up and going again, although receiving that kind of encouragement from others helps a lot too because I do believe that as human beings, we can do a lot to improve and we have growth mindsets to prove it. So in this case, I do plan to persevere in things I want to achieve and to not give up when things get tough, because once you achieve something, it can be really great.
ReplyDeleteI love what you said about not needing someone to tell you you are good all the time. You have intrinsic motivation, which I believe is at the HEART of grit. Encouragement, however, is a great motivator. :)
DeleteWhat I learned about grit is that it is something you do not learn in a classroom. It must come within you and it must mean something to you to make you want to put any effort into it. The way I'am going to input grit in my life is give more effort in the things I don't really care in as much as other things. As well as to grind in everything you do, to get the results you want as an individual.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading and watching the TED talk, I've learned that talent won't always lead to success. That you could struggle at several things, as long as you remember that "failure is not permanent" and keep learning from your mistakes you will grow as a person. I will apply this to my everyday life when I fail, I won't be discouraged and will keep learning from the mistakes. Another thing I have learned is that although I may be slower compared to my classmates and friends in school at times, I can still succeed as well as them if I work hard and stay focused.
ReplyDeleteSarah, I was much slower in math when I was in high school than my super, naturally smart friends. But I came in early for extra tutoring. I pushed myself to do a problem a couple times until I felt confident. I moved at my pace. I accepted that fair or not, I just have to work harder at this to get the same result. In the end, that process of working longer and harder actually benefitted me in college. I had learned how to approach something methodically, and how to work hard. It put me ahead, in the long run. Hang in there - look at that fact about yourself as a strength, because ultimately, it just may be!
DeleteFrom watching the TED talk, I have developed an understanding of what it takes to become successful, and that it is in all of us. It's not talent or IQ, it's grit. From this, I learned that hard-work, passion, and perseverance are the determining factors in your success. To have grit, means that when you do fail, you are able to get back up and continue with more fight and passion than before. My favorite part of the talk was when she said "Grit is living life like it is a marathon, not a sprint". This quote was a great analogy and emphasized the importance of perseverance and grit. After watching this TED Talk, I hope that I am able to be successful; not by fear of failure, but through everlasting grit.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE that: everlasting grit. :) Perfect.
DeleteAfter watching the ted talk and reading the text i have learned grit is passion and perseverance towards a long term goal. In our society some people believe that IQ us what it takes to be successful but grit that helps us as individuals to achieve our goals. To have grit, is to have things thrown at you but you fight through them or to fail but get back up and come back 10 times better. I hope I can be successful throughout the rest of my life by using grit and by not fearing to fail but to accept it and improve and achieve my goal no matter what it is.
ReplyDeleteAfter watching the TED talk I was able to understand that students, and people in general, often believe that the quality of their IQ, physical appearance and social intelligence are the elements that will lead them to success and to the completion of their goals. However, Angela Lee Duckworth argues that ultimately what determines our potential for success is our grit and motivation. In order to have that grit and motivation, we need to understand what comes with it. We will experience failure and mistakes, but rather than allowing them to extract all of our motivation and cause us to give up, we need to understand that in order to experience success we need to experience failure from time to time. Grit allows us to move forward towards our goals despite the struggles we may have while getting there. This can be applied in each of our lives throughout the next two years of high school and also throughout each of our futures. Throughout our lives we will all have our own problems where our motivation and grit will be tested. This is where we need to understand the importance of those problems and the help those problems are for us in the long run. We can all be successful through working hard, staying focused, and always having that form of motivation/grit.
ReplyDeleteYes. IQ, social intelligence, and attractiveness CAN be viewed as assets, to be sure, but WITHOUT grit, they can only get you so far.
DeleteWow, I can honestly say everyone should get their hands on a concept like grit. This passage hit all the right points. I especially agreed with the idea of passion and perseverance. Personally, I have struggled in sports because I simply don't have naturally athletic talents as some do. However, I play on knowing I am not the team's best player. Sometimes knowing you are not at the top reminds you of how much space you have to grow into. I have seen lots of other students today who give up when they know they might fail. I loved the quote Duckworth pulled from Dweck's ideas of when students study how the brain develops from failure, "don't believe that failure is a permanent condition."
ReplyDeleteAfter watching the TED talk by Duckworth,what stood out to me the most was when she said "their much more likely to preserve when they fail, because they don't believe that failure is a permanent condition." This caught my attention because I can relate to this, because I've had to pick myslef up before.It is important to know that when you take a wrong turn you must learn to keep persevering and pushing through, keep giving it your all.Having some grit is not bad to me it means that you are learning from your experiences you are growing as a person.I will keep applying this in my life by pushing myself even more then before, to try my best at everything I do because my motivation sometimes lack. To succeed we must have grit because that is how we learn from our mistakes and achieve our goals.
ReplyDeleteI loved that, too. Really, nothing is a permanent condition. That can be both encouraging and scary, but it's always true! :)
DeleteThis article, and the TED talk with it, really resonate with me. As a kid, I lacked follow-through on things; if I got bored or if it got too hard, I mentally checked out. In recent years though, I've begun to work on that, and I've tried to turn failure into a motivator. One thing that Duckworth said that stuck with me is that, "Grit is sticking with your future, day in, day out; not just for the week, not just for the month, but for years-and working really hard to make that future a reality." This is definitely something that I'm going to be keeping in mind in the future, as failure is a part of life. It's up to you-and your grit- as to whether that failure will disparage you or motivate you to try even harder. As for me, this blog has reinforced my need to choose the latter.
ReplyDeleteExcellent!! Yes, to me, Grit comes from that Pep talk you give yourself before you head out into the world.
DeleteAs soon as I finished reading the first paragraph for the blog, I had an idea as to where this discussion was headed because the "everyone's a winner" idea has been so frequently discussed and critiqued in my life. However, I had never heard of GRIT, and even if I had, this is the kind of reminder I always need in life. Watching the video really added onto this; it was encouraging. If I'm being honest, I tend to give up A LOT. Usually not entirely, but enough that it effects the outcome of whatever it is I'm doing. I really liked when Angela mentioned that we need to "live life like a marathon, not a sprint". I tend to run in short sprints towards everything I do, where I'll try and then back down but eventually try again; that is simply not enough. Whenever I fail, I take a step away and become frustrated with myself and question how much I actually care to do what it is I'm doing. This blogpost and video revived my motivation to give what I care for all I've got, and keep pursuing, even when it gets tough. The more I doubt my abilities, the less opportunity I give myself for growth. Right now, this really applies to me sticking with the full IB Programme and pursuing a career in acting. With the right mindset and persistence, even when I fail, I won't let it keep me down.
ReplyDeleteGood! It's not how often we fall, but how we rise that matters (I think that was actually in a Batman movie!) So true, right?
DeleteI have honestly never heard the word Girt before. I learned that it almost means perseverance, however, the word Grit has a more of a toughness to it. Not only the meaning but also in the sound that it makes. The r roaring out of your mouth and the t slamming the letters together to become a word. I like it! In the video I heard about how scholars fear to failure yet it's the failed attempts that cause Grit to come out and show a person's true colors . As this generation grows I keep noticing the reason we are so scared to fail, is because we have witnessed the suffering that comes from failing. We have watched our parents come home from a stressful, hard day at work. The way their bodies fall apart from exhaustion brings us discomfort. The saddest part is when they look at you with their weary eyes at say "Don't be like me." You would think this would give scholars the motivation to take challenges and risks. Yet the reality is that we don’t think we can afford to fail at something our parents worked so hard to even give us the opportunity to try. So as a scholar that has done it myself, we tend to take the easy way out so we can say we didn't fail. I think I will be more gritty in my schooling.
ReplyDeleteWatching this TED talk and reading the article posted, it made me think of myself a few years ago when I believe I had more grit than I do now. Both the TED Talk and the article made me want to have more grit than I do now. And watching the TED Talk made me learn how that's possible. Grit isn't something you can necessarily teach, but it is something you can find in yourself. Mrs. Duckworth says that you can find grit with the "change of your effort." A few years ago, leading up to last year, I kept auditioning for things that I didn't get in to. Some people might ask why I didn't give up after those auditions. The reason? The theatre company sent me a letter saying "Don't Give Up!" This hit me hard, and made me think "I can do this." A year ago, I was cast in my first show there and have done several since. But I feel like I've lost that grit, and watching the video and reading the article made me realize I not only need to persevere through hard times in auditions, but also in school. And the main thing I have to change is how much effort I put into everything I do.
ReplyDeleteWe ALL need those reminders. I do, too! It's a word of encouragement.
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ReplyDeleteAfter listening to the TED talk and reading the blog post, one quote truly stood out to me, "Grit is sticking with your future, day in, day out, not just for the week, not just for the month, but for years, and working really hard to make that future a reality." This stuck with me as we're nearing the end of our high school careers and heading toward our futures. We all have our individual goals, but are we truly going to meet them? In my opinion, the kids who are taught in the "positive self-esteem" environment, constantly being rewarded for trying hard, aren't going to make it very far. The first day their boss pushes them to meet their quota, they're going to break down from not getting a pat on the back all the time. The kids who are taught early on how to deal with failure, however, will take that information and push themselves even harder to get where they want to be. They know that nothing is going to just be given to them, they know they have to work hard to get what they want. They have learned from their failures and know how to get right back up and fix their shortcomings. They make their goals and they stick to them, not giving up when the going gets rough. I could apply this to my life by really paying attention to constructive criticism and other such comments in order to better my shortcomings in every way I can.
ReplyDeleteYou sound like me! :) Exactly the thoughts that went through my mind when I was a young teacher learning about the self esteem program. I was always the kid who HAD to study. Nothing really came easily for me (except writing) but even in writing, I pushed myself harder because there is always an author out there who is better, more prolific, and an inspiration to reach deeper. I think you hit the nail on the head with not looking at failure with dread, but as a necessary part of growing and getting stronger and better.
DeleteAfter watching TED talk and reading the blog posted I learned that Grit just doesn't come naturally you have to work to get Grit, you have to strive for it. After watching the video they kind of told you how to get that Grit. In my perspective Grit to me is your inner self pushing yourself to do better even when you think you can't go anymore but that voice inside your head is telling you not to give up or to work harder. Failures aren't bad to have, you learn from failures they are what teach you to do good or to something right/better. For example, in running people tell you good job all the time but by having that Grit the voice inside your head is telling you oh you could have done better. I believe you just got to listen to that voice and strive to be better, because there is always room to improve. Grit is what makes you push yourself to better yourself.
ReplyDeleteAfter listening to the TED talk, I not only realized a lot about myself but about how to succeed in the future or to help other succeed. One quote specifically stood out to me and that was "The ability to learn is not fixed...it can change with your effort". I feel like while I'm not one to easily give up, I do get easily stressed out and panic about things I don't feel I have the previous knowledge to understand. I procrastinate a lot in schoolwork and a big pattern I've noticed is that this happens when I don't believe I have the tools to complete something to the best of my abilities. This quote really stuck with me because just recently I went from someone who hated math with a burning passion to starting to look forward the the class because before I didn't understand a single thing we were taught (especially dealing with algebra) but I changed my outlook and applied the effort and now I understand so much more I didn't before. I know you can't be perfect at everything in life and that failure is inevitable, but that idea doesn't always sit well with me. I'm a perfectionist and am really hard on myself if I fail at anything, even as small as a bad grade on a single assignment. When the speaker stated that "we have to be willing to fail, to be wrong, to start over again with lessons learned" it really hit me hard. I feel like it really applied to me because there have been so many instances I've noticed I needed to improve and failed SO many times to try to get where I am now. I know I'm not perfect and I know I'm not the BEST at the things I enjoy doing, but I also know how much I've had to fail and learn from my mistakes to improve and get where I am. Of course I will be continuing with the process because I know I can keep growing as a person and with my passions and talents, but watching the video just really helped explain and clarify a lot of what goes through my head.
ReplyDeleteAside from my video response I did remember a few stories that came to mind while watching the TED talk that I think apply well to the idea of grit. I'm someone who loves the outdoors and is a fairly athletic person; I like playing sports but I was never very good at it. Last year I took a big risk and I decided to change my extra curricular from theater to soccer. I love performing on a stage and arts of all kind, but I felt like I was really missing out by not perusing a passion I had just because it didn't come easy to me. Tryouts weren't until November but I didn't waste any time and began practicing late August when school started, and just as I expected, I was terrible at it. I could kick a ball, sure, but not with the same accuracy the other girls could, I couldn't do any of even the most simple drills and I had no idea how to play!! I went home that night extremely frustrated with myself. I just kept thinking "they make it seem so simple so why can't I grasp the concepts??" I stayed up very late, practicing the things they had tried to show me, reading what different terms meant and the rules of the game, and when I came back the next day I felt much more confident in what I could do. I still wasn't the best, but I learned and grew from all the mistakes I made and continued to do so until tryouts came, and I even made the varsity team. But I wouldn't have been able to do it without the other girls around me. I feel like grit is important, yes. And I agree that by giving people "participation trophies" for everything that do and raising someone in an environment where simply "trying their best" is good enough can cause people to fail when they are put under pressure someday or have a job where they're pushed to their limit. But at the same time I believe ENCOURAGEMENT is necessary. It's one thing to be completely and solely self motivated, but not everyone can do that. I'm someone who will get exceedingly frustrated until I learn how to succeed in my goal and will do almost anything to get there, but no matter how upset I am I try to constantly motivate those around me and soccer has taught me to do that. GRIT gets people where they want or need to be, but it's always good to have someone to support you and to positively reinforce that attitude. I may have worked hard outside of practices to try to match my teammates' skill, but without my team I would have folded under the pressure.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely! I'm not sure it is even possible to develop "grittiness" without some kind of encouragement or Pep talk from others who have gone before. There is definitely a difference between empty praise and true, specific, focused and consistent encouragement to "never give up. You can do this. You are stronger than you think." Those phrases help me, too! Especially when they come from people I see who have accomplished things in their lives. If they did it, and believe I can, then I better at least give it all I have! :)
ReplyDeleteThe TED talk along with the blog were extremely captivating, but the quote that I couldn't shake out of my thoughts after watching the video was when Angela Duckworth said, "Grit is sticking with your future, day in, day out, not just for the week, not just for the month, but for years, and working really hard to make that future a reality." I feel like this is my biggest struggle when it comes to being gritty. Living in a generation where everyone wants quick profits, the latest version of a smartphone, or entertainment on demand, there is never any consideration of long-term costs or consequences. Personally, I know that if I am working towards a goal but am not seeing results as quickly as I would like, I back off or forget about it because I'm so used to instant gratification in all aspects of my life. This doesn't necessarily mean I don't try hard to reach my goals, but I never focus on any long term goals because I know it would take an extremely intensive amount of time and effort to accomplish them. When I try to bring these goals back up and remind myself that I'm doing something for my future, I live in denial and convince myself it wasn't my fault that I didn't have the resilience to power through. I shove the negatives and mistakes under the table to hide from my inner fears and struggles. This video proves that it is in overcoming these negatives and failures that gives a person grit. When a person continues going, even when they experience some bumps in the road, it allows them to achieve past their greatest level of discomfort and defy their own human nature, which is a lesson I'm hoping to apply in my life after hearing this speech.
ReplyDeleteThis is the most profound realization in your response to me: "Living in a generation where everyone wants quick profits, the latest version of a smartphone, or entertainment on demand, there is never any consideration of long-term costs or consequences." I see that in my own generation, as well. We give up because we feel if it has not happened yet, it is probably not going to happen. Just staying gritty takes a daily commitment. That is really the heart of what makes it rare. I think that because you have seen this, you can now know better how to push through. :)
DeleteAfter listening to TED talk, I realized that the concept grit is not only used in school but at work and even just throughout your day to day life. I agree with Duckworth because in order to get better at something you have to fail at it and strive for it. If you really want something in life you cant just work the minimum, you must push yourself to exceed whatever it is that your goal may be. A quote stood out to me which was "Grit is sticking with your future day in, day out, not just for the week, but for years". This quote made me realize that no matter how many challenges you may face along the way if you really want something you can get it. Failures are what lead to sucess and as Duckworth states, "failures are not permanent". Im always going to keep these two quotes in my head throughout the day because I do not grasp things very easily like other scholars it takes me a litte more to fully understand a concept, which sometimes it leads to me thinking i am not "smart enough". After watching this video I learned that as long as i push myself, and keep a positive mind set on things I can suceed at whatever i want in life.
ReplyDeleteThe thing that stood out to me most was that Duckworth studied a bunch of things to make sure her data was correct. The main test I appreciated was the test on Juniors. I was once a junior so I think I connected to that more. She brought up how she tested family income and standardized test scores. In her findings, she noticed that it didn't matter the circumstance it mattered how devoted the kid was in order to graduate or get a passing score on the test.
ReplyDeleteI believe Angela Duckworth's Ted Talk was very inspiring and eye-opening. Some of the points that she brought up I believe are imperative in our daily life. For one, Angela mentions that grit does not come from IQ. Many people think that IQ means smart and smart means number one. However, this is not always the case, students who work hard and dedication they will triumph. There are many studies that even claim that one should not call kids "smart". That when smart becomes an identity, this creates a fixed mindset; smart kids will pass and not smart kids will not. With a fixed mindset, there is nothing left, there is no improving. That's why when Angela said that we need a "growth mindset", which brings me to my second point, is so important! With a growth mindset, one is able to be dedicated and have that passion to continue, to know that there is error but it's okay to try. Another thing is that grit is not only passion and perseverance but "for very long term goals". This is important because you can be very passionate about something and then move on to something else, grit is studying the subject all year long rather than just the week before the test. And lastly to be able "to start over again with lessons learned". I find this so simple but I know it is very hard sometimes. When we are learning new stunts in cheer it takes a few trys, sometimes a few days or weeks to figure out the best way to hold the flyer, the greatest way to stand, the most beneficial form in order to complete what is need, this is taking the failure and the lack of progress and turning it into progress by using it to move forward.
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ReplyDeleteI love that you brought up the fact that, in many cases, grit is inversely related to talent. This is an important point to make. As someone who has played sports my entire life, I've seen it all around me. Not only have I had to work ten times harder than everyone else, just because of my size (or lack thereof), but I've seen teammates around me go through it too. One of my best friends, Nick Arnold, used to be one of the least athletic guys I knew, and he'll tell you the same exact thing. And then one day he wanted to play football. So he did. Instead of labeling football as something "not for him" he worked hard at getting better, and when he wasn't content being on the bench, he worked even harder. Last year he won Odyssey's Scholar Athlete Award. Grit isn't something you're born with, it's earned with every single ounce of hard work put in. That's a much cooler idea than talent.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely! And it is something, I believe, our society ultimately admires.
DeleteGrit seems to be within you at all times. It just needs to be shaken out of you and you'll keep on gaining that grit as time goes by. As a person evolves and gains more experiences or mistakes, grit is then earned. It gives you that push to keep on trying. You get more comfortable with the fact that it's okay to fail, as long as you keep having that courage to do something about it and take you're experiences and reflect on them. Reflecting on them will help you with other Ib profile traits as well such as risk taker and taking chances. The grit and determination is what makes you evolve and being successful in the end doesn't necessarily mean that you're truly successful. It's the way of getting there. So, in real life, if you breeze through school or other things, you could become less motivated and be lazy, but by gaining different experiences and making mistakes, it teaches you the things you went through but also get a satisfaction of you're end result because of how you got there. Failure is needed to succeed and it's okay to do so. It gives you more courage to step up and sometimes get out of your comfort zone.
ReplyDeleteirst off, when you mentioned the "self-esteem" movement, it connected me of my own experience with it. As a kid, I loved soccer, even though I wasn't the best at it. I played on youth teams for the entirety of my time playing the sport and at the end of each season, one type of award was handed out: participation. I HATED that award. I was always so embarrassed when walking up to get it because I knew I didn't deserve an award and I thought all the other kids were thinking how I didn't deserve one either. For school, I would say I have grit (though as the school year comes to an end, I start to run out of it), it have been something I’ve always had because as a child, I forced myself to have it. Trying your absolute best and never giving up was something that I knew I was supposed to have, so I forced myself to have it. I always forced myself to keep working if I don’t understand something and not stop till my work is perfect. That set up a pattern for me when it came to school, and I’ve always followed through on it. Teaching grit is something I’m struggling with right now with a seventh-grader I tutor in reading. She has dyslexia, so her least favorite thing in the world to do is read. Every time we read, she asks to stop after so long and I tell her “2 more pages” or something to that point. As a response, she begs not to, but we either negotiate or I force her to read the amount I said (I’m probably a little mean about it). I don’t know how to get her to keep going on her own at the moments where she reallys wants to stop. Not so lucky for me, Lee’s TED talk didn’t help much, but I need to have some grit to teach her grit as well. For just me, I know I need to work on my grit for other things outside school, like sports, which I definitely am not naturally blessed at. My strategy is to keep focusing myself to do it like I did when I was younger, hopefully that will help.
ReplyDeleteGrit is something I have learned to acquire through these tough years of my life. Part of this can be due to my mom (who I very sincerely thank) because of the constructive criticism she is and has constantly given me over the years, I have been challenged and told that I could do better. She knew my potential and tells me that I can giver more. As a child this was part of my everyday life, but of grit in there became more evident as I began going to school and being involved with clubs and sports. I saw that children who technically failed were constantly being praised for trying or participating. Don't get me wrong, it can be nice at times to know that others acknowledge your effort but this can get to the point where you wonder who really won? The kid who didn't do very well or the one who exceeded the standards that had been set in place? I feel that is vital to remind ourselves and those around us the failure, such as that mentioned in the TED Talk, is necessary for growth. If you think about it, how will you know success without knowing failure? We as a society need not to be afraid of failure for it is "not permanent" as stated by Duckworth. Too many individuals are babied to the point where when asked to reach/achieve a certain level, they break down and believe its the end of everything. They are blind to the idea of persistence. The best way to encourage people, based on the practices seen at my workplace, is to let individuals know that what they are doing is not meeting the standards. However Rather than saying "its ok you tried" let them know what they ARE doing RIGHT. Point out the bad but Highlight what it is that they are doing good and meets the standards.
ReplyDelete"Grit is living life like its a marathon, not a sprint." That was my favorite statement she made through her whole speech. I never really understood what grit was until this video, which may seen a little weird, but she put it in a way that everyone can relate no matter who you are. Grit is about determination, and you don't have to have a really high IQ, or be super fit in order to achieve your goals. Anyone can do anything as long as you have the grit and perseverance that is necessary to achieve your goals. This helps me realize that I don't have to be just as smart as everyone else to do a great job in DP classes. I may not have the highest IQ, but I do have the grit to succeed. I will most likely have to push myself a little harder and spend longer hours studying than some others, but I can do it if I continue to try my hardest, and so can anyone else.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading this passage and listening to the ted talk I have come to the realization that grit is so much more than what I had thought. I really had only thought of it as working hard and failed to see all of the aspects of it. It's not only working hard but it's recognizing that it is okay to fail and that just because you do so, doesn't mean that it's the end. It only means that you must work harder and try to fix whatever went wrong in the first place. After learning more about it this for me is real grit and determination. Grit is getting down and dirty after you have failed and grit is doing this as many times as needed until you finally succeed.
ReplyDeleteAfter watching the "Grit" Ted talk by Angela lee and reading further about grit I came to a few different conclusions including various ways I could benefit from using grit. The first conclusion I came to after reading was that I grew up in the same educational system Angela was talking about that sheltered children and taught them "participating" and "trying" was good enough. I realized this once I got to 10th grade and Mr. Hiatt quickly brought me to reality. The second conclusion I came to after reading was that I as I grow older I gain more "grit". I realized that as i've journeyed through the IB world, IB is all about grit. It doesn't matter what you get in the beginning as long as you persevere, don't give up and learn from past mistakes.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely about that grit!!
DeleteLove the time stamp on your entry, too! ;)
After listening to the TED talk, the quote "grit is sticking with your future...for years". I love this because I absolutely agree. Being passionate of that one thing you want to achieve, like a grade, or future, or completion of a subject is what builds that grit. It does not come naturally always, it just depends on what particular subject it is. For example grit will not always be shown in every student in a math class. Those who show no grit however may show grit on other cases. Some it may be very little shown.
ReplyDeleteFunny in psychology we are learning about the Growth and fixed mindset. They get up and try again even after failing. From what I learned so far from being in a school is that most are either afraid of failing, fail but don't mind because they try again, or just do not care at all. I feel though, even those who are afraid of failing secretly build themselves up again and continue to try again to achieve a better score.
I also love where she ends the video, that we still need and are learning how to inspire kids to have more grit in their lives. It's true, even in the future, we will still have to keep on learning since grit will forever change as generations evolve.
Both your blog post and the TED Talk gave me a lot to contemplate.
ReplyDeleteI think one other scholar already quoted this from the video, but the same quote stood out to me as well when she said, "Grit is sticking with your future, day in, day out, not just for the week, not just for the month, but for years, and working really hard to make that future a reality."
This was very impactful to me because it made me truly reflect on the fact that although I plan big things for my future, I question whether I'm really doing my best to actively work towards my goals.
Yes I'm in the full Diploma Programme, several clubs, and competitive cheer, but all of that is simply a reflection of my "talent", not my "grit". I KNOW that I could do so much more if I simply wanted it enough. I think that's the part where my "grit" is concerned, and I think that's what I need to focus on.
All of this has resurfaced a memory to my mind of something I was told years ago: A lot of people are born with natural talent, but it's only a few that work hard to cultivate their talent and become truly extraordinary.
I want to be extraordinary.
I believe I watched this TED talk in psychology last year, as we talked about a "growth" versus a "fixed" mindset. As Angela Lee discussed this concept, it emphasized how important this concept was in growing. I think is concept is especially important for me in order to persist and growth through tougher situations. Along with many others, I grew up with the "participation award" education method, and I can see how it has lacked giving us true grit. Angela Lee has reminded me the importance of really finding the will to persist even in the face of failure. It's hard not to be affected by the mindset we have grown up in, but I do believe many of us in our own way have learned to have some form of grit. What I will take away most from this TED talk in the idea to have the right mindset and want to grow, and that will automatically put me in a place to develop true grit and be able to overcome any problem. This is something that I will be able to use for the rest of my life and will be able to help me in anyway.
ReplyDeleteAfter watching the Ted Talk and reading the blog, I realized how important failure is in my life. Every past mistake that I have made will benefit me in the long run. Grit to me is almost a synonym to wisdom because all the frustrating or embarrassing mistakes that you commit eventually give you a sense of knowledge, courage and positive self esteem.
ReplyDeleteFrom Makenna Crawford: The Ted talk was very interesting, I never realized that the word Grit was so much more than just word that coaches used in sports to get their athletes going, similar to the word Grind. Now after watching Angela Duckworth's Ted talk, I realize now that it is a mindset. Although I am confused about how you can actually measure grit, because everyone can indeed have grit, it's i you put the effort in to show it, unlike other things that were mentioned that you can measure: IQ, social intelligence, good health, and good looks. These can frankly all be measured in some way, but what troubles me is how Grit can be measured before there is even any data, I’m not saying that I don’t agree or thinking that her studies were wrong, I just would've liked to know a little bit more about her experiment, I wish she would've gone more in depth on not only her results but how she conducted her experiment. I feel like from not knowing that knowledge, it is hard for me to answer the question on how I would apply grit in my life. All I know, is that it may have to do with sticking with something and just grinding it out, the biggest example of that in my life is my dad because he stuck with one of the first job and worked his way to the top. But I have always kind of thought that change can be good. All in all I feel that this Ted talk is very interesting in that it brings up more questions that I want to be answered.
ReplyDeleteI have never been the biggest fan of the whole "self esteem movement," so it was nice to see that I wasn't alone in that opinion. In watching and reading this, I saw that failure is almost ideal because in the long run, if you keep trying and trying again with more and more "grit" in your attitude each time, in the end you are sure to get a pleasing outcome that was definitely worth the wait. Mistakes are okay, and only happen help to you learn and better you as a person, but that is the thing that some people don't realize at all. People see failure as a sign that they should stop working at something, but if anything, its a sign that you should try again. What I learned from this is that failure should be expected and accepted, because when it comes down to the bigger picture, that mindset will create you to be a more driven, "gritty" person.
ReplyDeleteWhen I began reading this blog I saw where it was going and I'm happy someone brought it up. Grit is something my grandpa always had and I always admired. I strove to be like him and work hard with a passion through all my trials like he would. I was born into the unfortunate age when that seems to matter just a little less. Once you make "everyone a winner" those who work hard for things are brought down. The people who don't work hard but still receive praise and reward for doing the smallest thing develop egos and become entitled thinking "I'm special". This has, in my opinion, ruined the way children are raised. It reminds me of the idea of an unweighted GPA. It takes all the extra work from classes kids take on a higher level and compares their effort to the kids who take the "easy A" classes. Nancy Wake's story was very inspiring and I love the evidence provided of her grit. What truly scares me is what's left when those kids have to go into the workforce and think "I'm special" then things like raising minimum wage happens.
ReplyDeleteI think that there is a lot to be said when we look at the term "grit". Really for me this just means be myself. In my life I have always questioned why everyone was getting a trophie and no one "won", specifically from baseball and soccer (when playing youth sports). The whole system seemed to be pointless, why are we even playing if there is no winner? Nowadays it seems that grit is gone, when it really should be here. If there's anything to take away from the video and apply here in our lives and for children in general it is that children should be taught to be gritty. It's almost creating a generation of self-entitied people who think they should have been given, let's say a degree, when all they did was come to the classes and try.
ReplyDeleteMy question is what does this say about us as a society now? Everyone seems to be blaming mine and the previous generation for the worlds problems when our parents and their movements are the ones that shaped us.
That's not to say every parents ever thought like this or had done this, just to acknowledge the fact that it has happened.
-Javier Carlos
The thing that stood out most to me from the Ted Talk and post was the fact that grit was found to be unrelated or even inversely related to talent. It made me think my own life and what I've done up until this point in a different way, and made me consider my future and long term goals. The talent/grit relationship or lack thereof also connected to something else in the Ted Talk and blog that I've thought about a lot: relationship between short-term failure and long-term success. Talented people who don't experience failure often don't learn how to pick themselves up and persevere the same way that less talented people have to. Failure teaches you that you have to work hard and try again, a lesson which will carry you a lot farther than initial success without difficulty. This also relates to the "Self-Esteem" movement and what type of culture it produced. The issue with the movement was that it devalued actual achievement while trying to simultaneously remove the concept of failure. Fear of failure is a motivator, as it the actual failure itself, and they tell us when we need to work harder and to persevere. If there is no failure, then success is meaningless.
ReplyDeleteI believe that through this video I have learned that in my life I have seen things from a big perspective but instead of seeing it as a marathon like she said I have wanted to sprint the long distance. In other words, I have conditioned myself to believe that everything I do needs to be done perfectly and cleanly and if I do not I have failed. The marathon metaphor seemed to stick out to me most throughout the video because I now realize I need to pace myself. What also stuck out to me was that talent and IQ do not coincide with grit. I want that grit and I believe in some ways I have it. However, I've also told myself that I need to prove myself in both my talents and academic life to prove my grit. Now, throughout my life, I think I will not take failure of goals as a sign that I did not do enough. Maybe I was great. Maybe I am smart. I was just unable to communicate that to others. So I know I have worked hard for what I have and though others might not see that, I know it. Through all of this, I am comforted knowing that I do have the work ethic, the grit, it takes to push my way through the marathon.
ReplyDeleteI learned that grit has nothing to do with being talented or having superior intellect. All it really takes is the determination to finish something to the end. Since this is my last year of highschool and I'll be going off to college next year, it's important to have grit so that I can make it through to succeed and have the future I want. It gives me extra resolve to finish my senior year strong and begin the next step of my life with the mindset to succeed.
ReplyDeleteI've learned that criticism is essential to success, and the grit that I need in order to achieve in life can be obtained by never settling. I can't do the bare minimum and expect to be extremely successful in my life. I must be treating my life like a marathon every day, with no intention of quitting. Our goal in schooling shouldn't be to graduate, it should be that we are in the top of our class, and we have worked extremely hard to get there. This 'grit' that we need isn't to 'try your best,' or 'hoping things turn out okay,' it's being the best, and knowing that everything will be okay because you will do everything you can, and work as hard as possible to be successful.
ReplyDeleteI learned "grit" doesn't have anything to do with talent. But it takes a goal and determination. Which proves the point that you can do anything if you put your mind to it. It made me then reflect on times where all I had was determination in situations that were difficult but I pulled through because of that determination. With this information I can be successful throughout my life and when things get tough I can look back on this information to help me.
ReplyDeleteI've learned (albeit not all from this lesson) that criticism is the key to success. Without someone to challenge your views, ideas and works, there is no way to improve. I myself lack some grit. I don't give up on work but I definitely work as hard as I should. The fact that grit is unrelated or inversely related to talent is humbling. It tells me that I don't have to be good from the get go. It tells me that I can do almost anything if I persevere and keep going.
ReplyDeleteI very much enjoyed this post and ted talk and I hope to see many more of this wonderful quality in the future.
From Caleb Fine: From this TED Talk, I was reminded that natural talent is not something everyone has and almost everyone has to put in a lot of hard work and time to reach a standard of success they have set for themselves. Something I have noticed is that "grit" plays a major factor in determining how successful kids are at my school. It seems that scholars with more careless attitudes and a lack of work ethic and willingness to work hard generally leads to lower grades. However, scholars enrolled in the Honors and DP programs, which bring an increased amount of work and depth of information, generally contain scholars who get higher grades. The difference here is seemingly the scholars' work ethic and willingness to work hard and dedicate serious time to studying and learning that information. This TED Talk simply reinforced my outlook on this topic and really got me thinking about how this can be seen in my own life, and how this pattern is demonstrated not only at my school, but everywhere around me.
ReplyDeleteOh how I love TED's videos, thank you. This was really eye opening in the sense of how people that don't have talent "academically" could possible over achieve people that do. Although I know theirs more purpose in the way be gritty works. I would like to give my perspective of "being gritty" academically. I always wondered, "Why am I in this class, everyone here learns the content they need to move on quicker than I do." This article and the TED video brought back a old memory with Mrs.Hurley. It was during a depressing week when our beloved Chloe pass away and I was just wondering around the school. Mrs. Hurley was outside watching the kids and so I decided to see whats up because something I had something on my mind. I asked her, I feel so unconnected from my full Dp class. I asked her "why was I chosen to be in such a prestigious class?" Mrs. Hurely was surprised at first but immediately told me a little story of her husband. Referring him to be a very hardworking man even though he is forgetful about various important things, he still successful in what he does.
ReplyDeleteSo many little memories just clicked from reading your article. Thank you so much, I always feel so inspired when I read them.
Makes me want to do work now. XD
If you are reading this please watch this video about the mind of a procrastinator, its eye opening as well. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=arj7oStGLkU
I've learned that you really just have to keep trying and doing. Whether you fail or not, you have to keep going and doing to do better and better. Because there is no places where you can take a break and expect to keep moving or stay in the same place you were.
ReplyDeleteYou learn from everything, but grit is taking that learning and actually taking the time to look at it and apply it to what you want to do. For example, me, realizing I totally forgot this existed until I saw the missing grade. But trying still pushes you forward more than just saying, "Eh, I already lost that, there's no point." Because you have to push, and push and keep pushing until you literally can't push there anymore. Then you push in a new direction or on a new object. I forget to push or forget that I'm actually pushing something sometimes. It rolls over my foot and I remember it all just a bit too late for safety. But that makes me push harder, because OW. MY FOOT. AHHHHH!
That's my weird metaphor of learning for the day. It really is interesting about Grit and how often people remember but forget it at the same time. Let's see if I actually get a grade or if I just get to push myself harder on these blogs. (MRS. CARAWAY, IF YOU'RE READING STILL, I WILL STILL PUSH HARDER pLS GIVE THE GRADE IF YOU'RE OK WITH IT. -hectically pushes buttons on the keyboard-)
This post could not be more accurate for me currently. As much as I love all of the DP classes and learning in them. The homework is just one of many other things that are "grinding my gears" to say.
ReplyDeleteI have grit in things such as my painting, sports and things of those extra curricular type. And yet school work refuses to be one of them. I think that it's because I take pride in those things more than school work. Do not get me wrong, I love learning more than most of the DP scholars in almost all cases. But, without the competitiveness that is in sports, and yes, even in painting. I fear that the grit will not come to me no matter how many treats I offer it.
However, I feel that as time goes on. And as people drop out of the classes. Which I hope some do as mean as it is. That the grit will come to me more often. To strive to be at the top, playing with the big dogs.
Until that day comes though, I fear I will have to get by on grit made of coffee, candy, and encouragement from friends.
This post could not be more accurate for me currently. As much as I love all of the DP classes and learning in them. The homework is just one of many other things that are "grinding my gears" to say.
ReplyDeleteI have grit in things such as my painting, sports and things of those extra curricular type. And yet school work refuses to be one of them. I think that it's because I take pride in those things more than school work. Do not get me wrong, I love learning more than most of the DP scholars in almost all cases. But, without the competitiveness that is in sports, and yes, even in painting. I fear that the grit will not come to me no matter how many treats I offer it.
However, I feel that as time goes on. And as people drop out of the classes. Which I hope some do as mean as it is. That the grit will come to me more often. To strive to be at the top, playing with the big dogs.
Until that day comes though, I fear I will have to get by on grit made of coffee, candy, and encouragement from friends.
My grit goes the most towards the things I enjoy, for example, music rather than my academic studies. My education has always been something that's come easily to me with very few challenges and a pat on the back or praise got me through the day, the week, the school year. I know now that a pat on the back won't give me good grades and admittance into college, or into the real world. I have to take the grit I put towards things I love and apply it to things I may not love as much, i.e essays and linear equations, in order to fully take in all that I can from them.
ReplyDeleteInteresting that this idea of grit building character has stayed the same in some areas and changed in others one example applicable to me would be sports where the competitive nature has cultivated a drive to be a winner which can only be achieved through hard work and grit. Also neat that it talks about talent being the exact opposite of grit or hard work, last year in economics we discussed some of the traits needed for success and that the most successful have both talent and grit. Those who don't have talent have to learn to work extra hard and those who do need not be lazy. The same idea can be applied to school, some have an easier time in school and therefore get lazy with homework while some struggle and learn to work through it. However I think that those who outwork the ones with talent come out on top in the end and doing so is a skill that can be practiced and learned.
ReplyDeleteThe things that impacted me the most from this TED talk was when they said that failure is not permanent. I feel like this is very important to realize and that while you may get knocked down you can always get back up. I also realized that everything is different for everyone, and that some people really have to strive to achieve certain things. Academics typically comes easily for me but for others that is not the case. However, in other areas I need to work hard to achieve my goal. If you aren't willing to work for something and listen to what others have to say, you will not succeed.
ReplyDeleteI'd like to begin by saying that I love everything about what this blog had to say. I can easily say I'm a firm believer in the power of grit; I swear by grit. Miss Duckworth only further cemented my belief that grit is what it takes to drive us as far as we desire. Not only that, but it was reassuring to hear that relying (but not solely relying) on my grit to help me achieve my dream is a feasible plan of action. I will now continue to even further apply grit when I find myself being crushed by the demands life has on me.
ReplyDeleteOh man better late than never I guess. The Ted Talk part about building work ethic and building motivation really built me up, I thought I had finally found the answers to better myself, then she said "I don't know", and I said "Well darn, I thought I could find the answer." Then she said girt and talent are unrelated, which I nodded in agreement with since you're not born with grit like you are with talent. To be honest when she said many talented people don't follow through on their commitments, I laughed, it was one of those laughs you have when someone says something that really hits home for you, I mean what she said is true about me. I don't like to work hard, and I for sure am not a gritty person. Following up on commitments? Unless it's school related then nope, I couldn't be bothered. I guess it's because i'm not really passionate about anything. If I get passionate about something I usually lose all passion I had for that something in about 2-3 months, then it becomes just a normal thing I really don't care about or give maybe a small care about, and then it becomes a really big chore. By typing this I realized that passion is just me finding something fun to do to occupy my time and not suffer from extreme boredom. I guess that's an example of grit in a way. It probably sounds that I don't get passionate about something and don't have any long term goals because of the failure factor, sadly that's not the case. I'll usually start something, get bored pretty quickly before I even fail or succeed, then do something else, and the cycle repeats, until boredom just beats me down with a stick and I go to sleep, or I just scroll through reddit. Nothing really gives me that drive that a lot of other people have for something. I don't have anything I really strive for, I don't really have this end goal or lifelong dream. Lots of stuff I do is to just fill in time, not because I need or really want to do it, but because hey it gives me something to do, and it's kind of interesting, and then hopefully something else will pop up and I have something else to do. Oh yea, the failure isn't permanent thing is kinda cool. I mean if you constantly fail and deem yourself a failure and you think that you've failed at life, just use that as a learning lesson, the failure won't hurt as bad. Yea I probably won't be applying any grit anytime soon, life just doesn't get me stressed out and nothing really bothers me, I usually think to myself "Everything is all good, probably isn't, but whatever". My oldest sister who's a psychologist said "Justin, why do you say everything is ok, or say it's whatever, or give a smirk or a small laugh. You're never stressed out, you're never mad, you either have a smile or a neutral look on your face. Nothing ever bothers you, it's weird. You also just lay around all day long, get a hobby or multiple ones, please. You'll end up a zombie if you don't, and zombies suck, don't be a zombie you dweeb" So yea grit is not my thing sadly, probably will never be my thing. Good stuff to those who have perseverance and passion for something and have goals and dreams, and know what they want to do in life, you guys are great.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree that this generation is definitely lacking perseverance and the ability to learn from failure because they're never given the opportunity to fail. We now live in a time where kids are constantly being sheltered and given participation awards which is diminishing the drive and determination of these children as the article said. We have this inherent fear of failure yet sometimes failure is the exact thing we need to push ourselves to that next level and continue to develop. Grit is something I could definitely use more of in my pursuits, and something the world needs more of too.
ReplyDeleteGeez I always do this to myself. I always type out an awesome response and then I somehow manage to completely delete/lose it and all its awesome glory.
ReplyDeleteOh well, guess I'll restart with more grit than before.
Anywho, Angela talks a lot about things that really resonate with me, as this whole idea of grit has been sparked inside me for quite a while after I stopped getting coddled, getting my hand held, and receiving participation rewards. This grew my character in a real and meaningful way that nothing else had before, because the things I accomplished had to be of my own merit and not somebody else's. Angela talked about how they don't really know how to grow grit, but she definitely did talk about how not to grow grit, that is to say those three things, coddling, hand holding, and participation awards, just to name a few. Especially being held captive to the fear of failure, an affliction many of us perfectionists have and is tough to cure and conquer. Failure helps us to grow and improve, and shows us how to be successful the next time around now that we've learned from our mistakes.
These are definitely lessons I've been able to apply to my life in recent years but still have a lot to learn about. I've tried to show and improve my grit and self-motivation as much as possible but still have a lot to work on. The biggest thing being productive when it comes to meandering tasks like homework. The bane of my existence. Once I embody grit in the homework aspect of my life I will be well on course for success and it will build a great habit for me to utilize in all my tasks from then on as well.
I thought this topic was really interesting, and I think it is something that really needs to be studied more in our society. Growing up, I believe myself to be one of the kids who is very talented, but was not necessarily taught to be "gritty". I have a high IQ, learning comes easy to me, as well as tests are easy for me. However, I have always had this underlying problem of procrastinating my harder assignments. I'm not sure whether it's a fear of failure that's holding me back, or just a lack of effort to get those assignments done on time, but I do know that it is my talent in school that has hindered me more than helped with my work ethic. I'm very interested in this topic, and I would like to learn more about how I can teach myself to be more gritty and give myself a better opportunity to succeed in my life. I liked how she said life should be treated as a marathon, not a sprint, which I find myself needing to remember that a lot when I give small bursts of effort, whereas I need to be giving a constant amount of effort every day and week. I hope to see myself become more "gritty" during this school year.
ReplyDeleteGrit is something that I personally believe that everyone has, but few can truly tap into and use for themselves. This blog post and TED talk have definitely given me a way to put into words an idea and belief that I have held for a few years now. While the attitude of not being good enough, or that I will probably fail, used to plague my mind, recent events have changed that, and I truly believe that I can achieve anything I set my mind to as long as I tap into the grit that I have inside of me. This post, along with Ms. Duckworth's words have only reenforced that belief that I rely on so frequently to get through the harder parts of my life.
ReplyDeleteI've learned that grit is a key element that one needs to succeed in challenging tasks. In the TED talk Angela mentions that grit is used in long term challenges but I believe it can also be used in short term challenges such as at work or when taking a test. This blog and TED talk have opened my eyes and shown me that I myself am not the grittiest person I can be. The fear of failure or not being good enough has unfortunately always been by my side. Although it is not as dominant in me as it was before I am still afraid of getting a bad grade in a class. Failure is essential because that is where the lessons are learned and strength is gained.
ReplyDeleteThe majority of my 'grit' would go to my favorite hobbies, such as painting, drawing, or the arts in general, rather than school first. I've found academics as something that has been mostly easily accomplished so I've been placing my grit and effort into what I enjoy to make myself happier rather than trying to achieve greater things in my schooling to better me in the future and increase my skills. I've recently been more aware than normal that I need to take some of the grit that I put into my hobbies and things I do in my spare time, and put it into my school work and academics in order to really help myself for now and the future. I also need to find a balance, as I used to put all of my grit into school and none into some hobbies that makes me happy, and that makes it very easy to fall into a terrible mental state, which I do not want to happen again. I wish to succeed, not suffer.
ReplyDeleteI have learned that grit has become something that is almost un-describable. Grit causes the children that aren't the smartest or the best to become the best from their will of doing so. Grit is permanent. Everyone has it. It's just the dedication of improving it and letting it grow, or not using it leading it to decease. Personally, I connected to what she was talking about. When I was younger the grit I had, wasn't exactly impressive. I would say I was lazy, yet reality had struck me and I conquered the idea of grit. Thus having myself to succeed further in life as a whole.
ReplyDeleteI really think it’s interesting how she mentioned that when she was a teacher she could see that some of her smartest kids weren’t doing so well because they didn’t give enough effort, and that some of the lesser smart kids were putting in so much effort. This thought has crossed my mind before and i can see it and where and when it happens. It makes total complete sense. It was also interesting to see, or hear, that ‘grittier kids were significantly more likely to graduate’. This shocked me a little because so many people talk about the smart kids that get through college but i’ve never really heard about that ones that really persevere.
ReplyDeleteFor me and about what i gained from reading the blog, right off the bat i could tell where i have applied grit and where i need to apply more. For example in mountain bike races i’ve competed in, there are races that i can just tell that i’ve either put forth a lot of grit to help finish or there are places i know i should’ve added more. Another place that i could involve more in is school work, but i know i’m working on that so i feel there's at least a little twinkle of grit there.
From what I gathered, grit is a perseverance to work hard not just for the immediate gratification but also the long term goals. The goals that last a life time and will result in making you a better person in the end. I like to set myself long term/ life goals because it takes grit to make them happen. Part of grit is working hard when you're tired and push past the point of when you wan to quit. I feel as if goals that take grit get you farther in life because you learn how to make mistakes and how to fail, but also, how to get back up.
ReplyDeleteWhat I learned most from this talk was the importance of viewing hard situations as positive situations such as through the "growth mindset". Often times, when we are put in harder situations we see them as something negative, even as a punishment sometimes. Even when we try to keep a positive outlook on a tough situation, sometimes it is lost. From watching this talk I saw the importance of keeping this "growth mindset", and seeing every situation as an opportunity. This along with the idea the 'talent does not equal grit' are two key ideas that I want to focus on in my own life. I think it's important to keep a clear head when facing tough challenges, and work to see the good in every situation. I also think it is important too to recognize that every step of the process is valuable and worth something, even if you have not reached your goal yet. To see value and appreciate the growth in every step is something I aim to focus on more in the future as I go through experiences.
ReplyDeleteI think the idea of grit building a persons character is true. I believe that in some places I am not the 'grittiest' because of fear of failure. I think that I could definitely put more grit into action so I can be more successful in my everyday life.
ReplyDeleteFailure is inherent to developing grit, something unavoidable. You cannot become develop the persevering attitude without having to retry at some things a few times. I completely agree with the belief that grit is something that children need to be exposed to because of how versatile it is. Grit can be applied to more than just academics as the blog discussed. I feel that grit, for me personally, is most applicable to mountain biking. There’s been countless moments where I’ve wanted to quit the team and drop biking all together, be it because of my dad’s involvement in the team, the early (and sometimes absurd) times I’d have to wake up for practices and races, and lack of confidence in my skill. It was perseverance that allows me today to say that I’ve been a part of the team since the very start and plan on staying in it to become one of the team captains until I graduate. The majority of mountain biking isn’t the adrenaline pumping downhilling that most people think of when they think of the sport; mountain biking, more than anything else, is the slow grind up that hill, the journey to get to that fast downhill section. You can spend all your energy if you want on the flat sections, but it’s going to be the kids who keep going at a steady pace who are going to overtake you. This can be viewed as a metaphor for life in a way, with it being more stretched out and about perseverance than something short and fast that you can sprint on.
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