Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance

The foundational insight of Beck’s new approach was that the same objective event—losing a job, getting into an argument with a coworker, forgetting to call a friend—can lead to very different subjective interpretations. And it is those interpretations—rather than the objective events themselves—that can give rise to our feelings and our behavior.

“A calling is not some fully formed thing that you find,” she tells advice seekers. “It’s much more dynamic. Whatever you do—whether you’re a janitor or the CEO—you can continually look at what you do and ask how it connects to other people, how it connects to the bigger picture, how it can be an expression of your deepest values.”

Outliers, Galton concluded, are remarkable in three ways: they demonstrate unusual “ability” in combination with exceptional “zeal” and “the capacity for hard labor.”

In my “grit lexicon,” therefore, purpose means “the intention to contribute to the well-being of others.”

I have a feeling tomorrow will be better is different from I resolve to make tomorrow better.

“There is no more miserable human being,” observed William James, than the one for whom “the beginning of every bit of work” must be decided anew each day.54

Or as Henry Ford is often quoted as saying, “Whether you think you can, or think you can’t—you’re right.”

I suggest you observe your own language over the next few days, listening for the beliefs your words may be reinforcing in yourself and others.

the highly successful had a kind of ferocious determination that played out in two ways. First, these exemplars were unusually resilient and hardworking. Second, they knew in a very, very deep way what it was they wanted. They not only had determination, they had direction.