Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance

Psychologist and MacArthur Fellow, Angela Duckworth is driven to both understand and help youngsters to learn and to succeed. On the basis of questionnaires she has devised, she finds that the key to success depends on a quality labelled GRIT. Basic talent, or even the measure of one’s IQ is not a determinant to becoming a champ, it is the passion and determination that is invested in the effort that governs who will lead. Continuously citing anecdotal stories from athletes, journalists, students, spelling-bee finalists, the common theme that emerges is that tenacity in pursuing a goal is a key factor. Further studies are needed to find how to instill that resolution into the educational diet. There is much redundancy in the chapters extolling the virtues of grit, but it is hard to bite into more substantial meat from this delivery. The adage that mom would constantly repeat comes to mind….if at first you don’t succeed, try and try again. The theme promoted by //Grit// seems to have been well chronicled in Malcolm Gladwell’s narrative explaining the success of Bill Gates, the Beatles, and others in his book //Outliers//.

This is a fast and easy read, though rather lightweight.