In 2007, Angela Lee Duckworth proposed the term “grit,” which uses both passion and perseverance to maintain goals. Goals cannot simply be fulfilled with thought or luck; rather, the drive and dedication toward those objectives are needed. However, as important as effort and compassion are, there is much more to achieving success than the ideas of grit. Initially, grit has been compared to conscientiousness, displaying its qualities as indistinctive. Furthermore, according to Psychology Today, successful people tend to share common characteristics such as talent, intelligence, and optimism. As Duckworth argues that the most important predictor of achievement is a trait called “grit,” one can refute that grit is not the only aspect necessary to achieve success.
Is it Just Conscientiousness?
Conscientiousness is a Big Five personality trait; people with high conscientiousness are dependable, careful, disciplined, and goal-directed. Similarly, gritty people are perseverant, resilient, and passionate. An Iowa State University team states grit is just “old wine in new bottles.” Not to mention, Duckworth herself asserts that grit is not everything, and it belongs in the conscientiousness family. Additionally, since Duckworth’s 2007 study mainly focused on the educational setting, it is difficult to compare it with the workplace or home settings. Thomas Schoenfelder wrote that grit’s passion has very little predictive value, giving little guarantee of an employee’s performance. If multiple researchers claim grit has limited power in determining certain outcomes, how can one be sure that it has power over predicting the result of success? While the 14-year-old term “grit” has some importance when determining success, it is greatly trumped by the older concept of conscientiousness.
The Purpose Behind the Drive
Success is not only backed by perseverance, discipline, and carefulness but also by the goals and purposes in life. Believing in a purpose, an end goal and personal contributions will allow one to be put into a growth mindset. According to HealthDirect, a public and virtual health service for Australians, goal-setting allows one to “increase the amount of time and effort [one] spend[s] on an activity and develop effective strategies to achieve that goal.” While goals are effective, it is important to note that these goals should be S.M.A.R.T., an acronym used to unofficially qualify goals, resulting in better outcomes. S.M.A.R.T. stands for specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and timely. Lastly, when creating goals, it is highly recommended to break down large projects into smaller, easily attainable tasks. For example, instead of focusing on finishing the school semester with an A, focus on getting the assignments completed each week or studying each day for 30 minutes a week before a big exam.
An Example
One of the most successful groups in the music industry is the members of BTS, a K-Pop global sensation. Each year, they have shown their talent, intelligence, and optimism in many different events. Maxing out stadiums across the world, selling over 10 million albums, and gaining worldwide attention are only a few of the achievements this group has accomplished. Their all-English singles – Dynamite, Butter, and Permission to Dance – have received much attention, and their music videos have reached amazing feats, including surpassing 100 million views in 24 hours. Debuting in 2013 under a minor entertainment company, the status and level these artists are at now are not only because of their passion and perseverance for music. It is the talent each member has, the money that the company gets from shows and merchandise, and the optimism for a successful future. Most importantly, it is the support from themselves, the fans, and the staff around them that has pushed BTS so far.
While psychologist Duckworth believes intelligence and talent are overrated when determining prosperity, it is a fact that they are necessary for a triumphant future. There is nothing wrong with having grit, being perseverant, and feeling passion; it is simply not the most important predecessor of long-term success.