Signs That You Have the Grit to Succeed—Second Quarter 2022

Signs That You Have the Grit to Succeed
Michael A. Gregory

Angela Duckworth authored the book, Grit the Power of Pasion and Perseverance, after teaching in the New York Public school system and realizing it was not those that were the smartest or had the best IQ’s that succeeded, but those that had the tenacity to succeed, so she went back to graduate school to study this concept and then authored her book.  This article in INC. by Travis Bradberry, the author of Emotional Intelligence 2.0 initially inspired me to write a blog on this topic at my web site. I am expanding and updating on those concepts here at the invitation of Parnell Black.

Eleven Keys
Duckworth identifies eleven keys that demonstrate that you have the grit to succeed. These  are:

1. “You have to make mistakes, look like an idiot, and try again, without flinching
2. You have to fight when you feel defeated
3. You have to make the calls you are afraid to make
4. You have to keep your emotions in check
5. You have to trust your gut
6. You have to give more than you get in return
7. You have to lead when no one else follows
8. You have to meet deadlines that are unreasonable and deliver results that exceed expectations
9. You have to focus on the details even when it makes your mind numb
10. You have to be kind to people that have been rude to you
11. You have to be accountable for your actions, no matter what”

“The good news is any of us can get grittier with a little extra focus and effort”

Focusing on Three of the Keys
Picking up on simply three of these eleven elements (numbers 3, 4, and 8) I want to put them into perspective as business valuer entrepreneurs.

3. You have to make the calls you are afraid to make
I have found in order to be successful I need to make three calls a day. These can be in person, over the phone, or in my case with zoom. Why to have a personal touch. These are potential clients or current clients to tie together relationships. Win potential new clients who do not know me I may end up leaving a message. You should follow up with an email and then I even suggest sending a short handwritten note. It is suggested three strikes and you are out. If the person does not respond after a phone call, email, and a hand written note move on. At the end of a year, you will have reached out to over 700 potential clients.

 

4. You have to keep your emotions in check
Being a student of listening actively and promoting listening actively with The Collaboration Effect, this is critical. Your natural instinct is to tell others how much you know. However, keep your emotions in check. Listen to the other party. That is paraphrase, ask open ended questions, summarize, suspend judgment, empathize, and do not offer advice. It can be very had to suspend judgment and not offer advice, but you can improve with practice. Let the other party know what you want, ask for it, have three reasons why it is beneficial for them and once again, simply listen.

8. You have to meet deadlines that are unreasonable and deliver results that exceed expectations
Under promise and overdeliver. Know your multiplier. If you think you can complete the task in one week and you know from experience it takes you twice as long as your best estimate, then indicate it will take you two weeks. Be honest. Others respect honesty and integrity. If you cannot complete the task in a quality manner, timely say so. As you develop a reputation to be on time with a quality product, others that want this type of service will search you out. If you complete the task presented here in a week, turn it in day early. That is even better. Do not turn it in a week early or you are setting yourself and your client up for potential failure in the future. The expectation will be that you can come in with half the time of your estimate.

An Expansive Look Based on Neuroscience
Dr. Richard Davidson shares the four science based keys to your wellbeing and you can practice them based on neuroscience.    He offers that the four keys to wellbeing are resilience, outlook, attention, and generosity. Think of these four keys related to the eleven signs of grit. I see a major tie in. We want to cultivate these positively in ourselves and in others, don’t we? You want to succeed, and you want your team to succeed, don’t you? What does that mean?
Consider resiliency, outlook, attention, and generosity and look at these 11 items above again. Dr. Davidson defined resiliency as “the rapidity at which you recover from adversity.”    Consider your own ability to do this and that of others. Cultivate and encourage this in yourself and others. Coaches cheer on their team. “When the going gets tough the tough get going.”  Encourage yourself and encourage others. When you are encouraging others and using your time to do this you are being generous with your time. Others notice. They may not say it, but they appreciate it.

Consider Gratitude
Each day you can decide to make the most out of today or not. You can look in the mirror as you start your day or on your morning trip to work consider and reflect on your blessings. Think about your blessings in terms of being alive, being able to breath, being able smell, taste, touch, see and hear. Consider your faith, forgiveness, family, friends, health, laughter, learning, food, culture, sleep, a place to sleep, sharing, clothing, shelter, hugs, music, exercise, nature, second chances, employment, school, teachers, coffee, coffee shops, socializing, dishes to do, laundry to fold, a place to clean, farmers markets, the ability to love and be loved, and finally the joy of so many little things and being able to be thankful.  When you consider these things, this may help with a positive outlook. Here are ten tips to improve your day based on neuroscience based on neuroscience starting off with gratitude.

Stay Focused
In order to accomplish anything, we have to focus our attention on the activity. Staying focused is when you are most productive. Our brains do not really multitask. Our brains only do one thing at a time. Those with grit force themselves to focus. Multitasking is not healthy.   Multitasking is actually unhealthy. Forcing ourselves to focus on a given task allows us to complete the task timelier. We need to set up ourselves for success by focusing on a given task at a given time and avoid interruptions. We need to encourage this in others as well.

Kindness Matters
By looking out for others and being more altruistic this actively enhances wellbeing. Exploring this concept relative to the eleven signs of grit above it is clear that the gritty person keeps negative emotions in check, gives more than is received in return, steps up when no one else will,  under promises and over delivers, remains kind, calm, compassionate, confident, and competent in trying circumstances, and is accountable no matter what. There is no blame. There is no blaming self with I should have done. Learn from the situation and apply lessons learned. There is no blaming others. The focus is what do we need to do now with where we are. True leaders are there to help. This takes practice, patience, and persistence to gain these skills.