Grit, unlike talent, is not something that you either have or don’t have. It can be acquired and culminated (Duckworth et al.). And since grit is one of predictors of success, this means that any and everyone has the potential to succeed through developing their grit. Grit gives people the mental toughness to face setbacks and failures to eventually succeed. Talent and intelligence do not cap passion or perseverance so as long as grit can be cultivated, an individual can accomplish their challenging long-term goals (Duckworth et al.).

Grit has its origin in four psychological traits – all of which can be developed. First is interest (Duckworth et al.). When someone has or develops a consistent interest in what they want to do, it makes it easier to continue working long-term towards that goal. If you like what you’re doing or what you’re working towards, it is more enjoyable, hence easier to work on. Essentially, interest is passion for the goal and it makes it easier to persevere for that goal. By definition, interest covers both characteristics of grit, passion and perseverance. 

Another trait is the capacity to do deliberate practice (Duckworth et al.). Again, half of grit is perseverance and that means being able to consistently and continuously practice and work towards that long-term goal. As researched, gritty individuals can exert high effort for high quality practice and everybody knows “practice makes perfect.” Of course, you can’t expect perfection all the time but practice, shown by research, makes you better and it will pay off in your achievements. 

One would also need a sense of purpose because without knowing why you have that goal or why you want to accomplish something, there is no passion. Only having perseverance but no passion leads to burnout and you will eventually give up (Duckworth et al.). Lastly, you need to cultivate hope or more specifically, a growth mindset (Duckworth et al.). Believe that you can constantly grow and learn; that you can practice and build your knowledge. This belief that you can train yourself into thinking helps you persevere. If you think that you can’t be better or that you can’t learn something, then there is no purpose (one of the previously mentioned origins of grit) so there is no reason to keep working towards the goals. 

When you look towards all those highly accomplished people, like extremely skilled musicians or even well known people like Steve Jobs, you might be tempted to view their success as a result of their talent. However, their mastery in their fields comes from hours of hard work, hours of failing, and hours of learning and practicing again and again. That is grit. Those people have built a high level of grit. They had a passion for something and had a desire to relentlessly work towards that interest even in the face of adversity. Having talent and intelligence is helpful but if you don’t persevere or apply any effort, that talent and intelligence could go nowhere. Without grit, talent and intelligence might just be wasted or unmet potential. That is why grit is important.

Knowing that, you can be aware of your grit level as well as how to build this grit in yourself to be able to accomplish your goals, from career goals to personal goals. Acquire the skills to think that you can always grow because your own negativity, thinking you cannot, will hinder your capacity and capability. Also, develop the skills to deliberately and consistently practice whatever is needed for accomplishing your goal. You can’t always be good at something overnight; it takes time and effort. Furthermore, be aware of your interest and sense of purpose and maintain them to avoid burnout. Grit can be acquired, practiced, and developed by anyone. Grit can help you succeed even when you don’t think you have the talent for it.

You can do it!