True Grit: Why Effort is as Important as Talent

Angela L. Duckworth University of Pennsylvania

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The Treadmill

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Recipe for achievement

The truly eminent have “ability

combined with zeal and the

capacity for hard labor.”

-Francis Galton 3

Darwin to Galton

“… I have always maintained that…men did not differ much in intellect, only in zeal and hard work....”

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And Tiger Mom says…

•  “But just because you love something …doesn't mean you'll ever be great. Not if you don't work. Most people stink at the things they love.”

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Achievement = Talent x Effort

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“It takes about ten years to make a mature dancer”

“Dancing appears glamorous, easy, delightful. But the path to the paradise of that achievement is not easier than any other. There is fatigue so great that the body cries even in its sleep. There are times of complete frustration. There are daily small deaths.” -Martha Graham http://thisibelieve.org/essay/16583/ 7

Skill as a function of deliberate practice

Ski

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Age (years) Figure adapted with permission from “The scientific study of expert levels of performance” by K.A. Ericsson, p. 90, © 1998

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Common traits of 300 geniuses

•  Tendency not to abandon tasks from mere changeability. Not seeking something fresh because of novelty. Not “looking for a change”

•  Tendency not to abandon tasks in the face of obstacles. Perseverance, tenacity, doggedness.

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Grit predicts commission and retention among sales agents

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$-

$5,000.00

$10,000.00

$15,000.00

$20,000.00

$25,000.00

$30,000.00

Least gritty Most gritty

Sales

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

Least gritty Most gritty

Retention

National Spelling Bee

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Deliberate practice is hard …and not that fun

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3.5

4.5

5.5

6.5

7.5

DeliberatePractice

Testing VerbalLeisure

Activities

Enjoyment Effort

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West Point Beast Barracks

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0.88

0.9

0.92

0.94

0.96

0.98

1 2 3 4

Sum

mer

Ret

entio

n

Quartile

Summer Retention

Grit

Whole Candidate Score

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Counterfactual thinking

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Grit Retention

Counterfactual Comparison

B  =  -­‐.59* B  =  1.78*

B  =  -­‐.31*

(B  =  -­‐.05)

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Performance Optimistic

Explanatory Style

Grit

Life Satisfaction

.32***

.21***

.12*

.15***

Selecting for grit

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Searching resumes for grit

•  Warning signs – Multiple industry changes over a short period – No evidence of sustained commitment to any

activity, sport, or job throughout college – No objective evidence of advancement (e.g.,

promotion, transfer to better company) •  What to look for

– Multi-year projects in which there is clear progression over time

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Grit Score! Sample Profile! Explanation!

0! No multi-year involvement in any activities "

"

1! Member of the swim team for three years but did not advance or win an award; no other multi-year activities "

1 pt for multi-year activity; No other multi-year activities"

2! Member of the mock trial team for two years and won the most improved award; no other multi-year activities "

1 pt for multi-year activity +1 pt for moderate achievement in that activity; No other multi-year activities"

3! Member of a fraternity for three years but no leadership roles; Assistant manager at the local movie theatre for three years "

1pt for multi-year activity; 1 pt for multi-year activity + 1pt for moderate achievement in that activity"

4! Camp counselor at local summer camp for three years; Player on the volleyball team for three years and captain in her senior year "

1pt for multi-year activity; 1pt for multi-year activity + 2pts for high achievement in that activity "

5! President of the student body for three years; treasurer for the Kite and Key Club for two years "

1pt for multi-year activity + 2pts for high achievement in that activity; 1 pt for multi-year activity + 1 pt for moderate achievement in that activity "

6! Member of the cross-country team for four years and voted MVP in senior year; Founder and President for two years of the University’s Habitat for Humanity chapter "

1pt for multi-year + 2pts for high achievement in that activity; 1 pt for multi-year and 2 pts for high achievement in that activity "

Novice teachers

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Retention (d = .79***)

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0.5

1

1.5

2

2.5

3

3.5

4

4.5

Resigned Persisted

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n = 33 n = 121

Teacher effectiveness (d = .42*)

3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 3.9

4 4.1 4.2 4.3

Less effective Effective

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n = 41 n = 80

Building grit

•  Personality traits, including grit, are stable but not static…Think of them as habits – Stability comes largely from genetic factors – Change comes from experience

•  Build a culture of grit – People respond dramatically to the norms of

behavior established by the people around them

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First, help employees choose the path of least resistance

•  Choose easy. Work hard. –  “Race your strengths. Train your

weaknesses.” •  Choose based on

– Talents, interests, and personality traits •  Work on

– Specific aspects of your performance which most need improvement

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Sometimes you have to be gritty for someone else

•  “At eleven, I wanted to bag it because I was doing very badly...”

•  “My dad at that point did something that was very important. He said, ‘If you want to quit, that’s fine. But I don’t want you to quit simply because you’re losing…So, I’m going to continue to drive you to workouts and force you to swim and once you turn 12 and are at the top of your age group, you’ll start to do well. If you want to quit then, that’s fine.” (pp. 207-208)

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Why you’re needed

•  A partner (or manager) understands the situation but is “psychologically distanced”

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Teach them to be gritty for themselves

•  Your employee is losing motivation – what do you do?

•  First, listen. Second, mirror. Third, empathize.

•  Then, advise “Never quit on a bad day” – Rather, schedule “should I quit?”

conversations in advance – Don’t allow for “should I quit?” doubts

between these conversations – Patterned after worry postponement therapy

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Help your employee understand why they are losing motivation

•  One feeling – burnout – can have different causes: –  LACK OF IMMEDIATE PLEASURE: Practice/effort

feels tedious or frustrating in the moment –  PESSIMISM/FIXED MINDSET: I don’t think I can do

it, no matter how hard I try. I don’t think it’s possible to get better, just to show how good I “really” am.

–  OPPORTUNITY COST: There is a better, alternative goal

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Create a culture of coaching

•  Coaches provide –  Feedback on

performance –  Suggestions for

improvement •  Specific •  Strategic •  Targeted at a single

component, not the whole darn thing

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Making progress toward goals is the best motivator.

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Goal setting and planning* •  Goal setting

–  What specific goal do I want to achieve? –  What good thing will happen if I achieve this goal? –  What obstacles stand in the way of my reaching this

goal?

•  Planning where, when, and how you will get around or avoid the obstacles –  “If it is a weekday at 6pm, then I will go to my

bedroom and do my work.”

37 *work by Oettingen, Gollwitzer, Duckworth, et al.

Longitudinal study of fifth graders in Harlem

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MCII Control

GPA

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41.5

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42.5

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43.5

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MCII Control

Atte

ndan

ce

3.1

3.2

3.3

3.4

3.5

3.6

3.7

3.8

MCII Control

Con

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Will Power “I consider myself to be of basically average talent…” “The key to life is on a treadmill…When I say I am going to run three miles, I run five. With that mentality, it is actually difficult to lose.”

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The last word

"While the other guy's sleeping, I'm working… While the other guy's eating, I'm working… While the other guy's making love – I mean, I'm making love, too… …but I'm working really hard at it!"

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