Meta: How gritty are you?

Submitted by ST3 on

I was listening to a leadership seminar this afternoon. The speaker started discussing why people of similar IQ can have different career outcomes or results. His explanation for this mentioned two important trends:

  • *Attention to grit
  • Attention to star performers

Obviously, the first item caught my attention. The asterisk was for a note at the bottom of the slide that read, "*Take the grit assessment at https://www.authentichappiness.sas.upenn.edu/testcenter.

Go to about halfway down that page and you will see a link to test your grit. (All this time, I thought all I had to do was look in the mirror to determine my grit.)

After creating an account and taking the test (how gritty is that?) I got the following feedback:

Grit is perseverance and passion for long-term goals. Our research suggests that grittier individuals accomplish very difficult challenges – see http://www.sas.upenn.edu/~duckwort/research.htm for more information.

Thank you for your kind contribution to this research.

Jun 21, 2017
Score Range : 1 to 5
 
The Grit Survey : 4.75

That grit score of 4.75 puts me in the top 98% of gritty people.

MGoGrendel

June 21st, 2017 at 8:32 PM ^

and former wrestler. No need to take a grit test.

However, I define success differently. I never wanted to climb the corporate ladder because I wanted to coach my kids in sports. Good choice because I see how stressed my bosses have been through the years and don't make much more.

huntmich

June 21st, 2017 at 5:41 PM ^

I thought about taking that test but it seemed like it was going to take up too much mental energy. I'm just going to grab another beer.

MIGHTYMOJO91

June 21st, 2017 at 5:49 PM ^

I do wear a coarse grit sandpaper in my underwear every day so I guess that makes me pretty gritty. It works wonders for my disposition. People say I am quite the social butterfly.

Big Boutros

June 21st, 2017 at 5:52 PM ^

I don't know where greasy Mediterraneans fall on the grit scale. I presume I am less likely to contain copious amounts of grit than the Chitwood types, but how much less?

MGoBrewMom

June 21st, 2017 at 6:09 PM ^

Raising kids has me really thinking about this lately. I feel like I've made them soft by giving them too much, and am trying to figure out how to get them to give a bigger shit on many things. Hard times, having to work for things, things not coming easy--can all really help someone be more gritty, and I think it matters in terms of managing life when things are hard.

There's lots of OT posts that I'm not interested in...cars. GOT. Baseball (ugh!)...and I don't go on those threads and make fun...so people can poke at OP all they want... Grit is an important component of character imo, and I'm pretty sure JMFH oozes it. Its hard to measure, but Grit can make lesser athletes better; lesser sales people better; lesser anything better.

As for me, I have less now than I used to. But I'm old and don't care about some stuff like I used to--but when it counts, I have plenty of it.

DonAZ

June 21st, 2017 at 6:38 PM ^

but when it counts, I have plenty of it

This, I think, is a key.  I'm 57 years old, and there's more "noise" in today's world then ever.  I've come to realize there's a whole crap-ton of distracting stuff, and just a small handful of important principles to adhere to.

"Grit?"  I don't know.  I don't feel that "gritty" ... but when something is important I tend to focus and stay the course.  But like you mentioned, I'm old as well and don't get too wound up over many things any more.

Wendyk5

June 21st, 2017 at 7:02 PM ^

This seems to be the parenting concern of our generation, and I agree with you. Like you, I have it when I need it. I suspect it's because we both have effected change in our lives and know what it takes to get it done. I don't know about you, but my parents were pretty hands off. I grew up in downtown Chicago and my parents let me have a lot of freedom, even in grade school. I took the public bus to school, and by the time I was in 5th grade, pretty much had the run of the city by myself. I can't imagine letting my kids do that at age 9 or 10. But in hindsight, it instilled fearlessness, and I think that's what our kids are missing. Those experiences where they have to overcome adversity by themselves. 

MGoBrewMom

June 21st, 2017 at 7:22 PM ^

Are in line with what I'm saying.

I can't give my kids that freedom--because the dangers of all that are too real, or we're just way more aware of them now. Meanwhile, all the things that are available to them because I can give it to them, have put them in a place to not "get it" when it comes to knowing about hard work. That is totally on me. So, I am really worried I'm part of a society that is raising kids with less grit, and "get er done" attitude. Mine are 13--so maybe there's time. But I'll tell you, they do not get it-everything is easy. I even make sure they have good tutors, so if a teacher is hard, they get help--instead of figuring it out.

But then, if there IS something they want, they do work..so maybe they've got my "old" person's attitude..work when you have to; don't sweat when you don't have to.

If their crappy teenage attitude continues, they'll be feeling some adversity pretty soon...((at least I keep telling myself that))

xtramelanin

June 21st, 2017 at 7:28 PM ^

to muck out the henhouse and the stalls, milk at 0-dark-hundred, and then go and help the neighbor herd cattle....before football camp starts later in the morning.   this will aid in the grit production. 

DonAZ

June 21st, 2017 at 9:11 PM ^

I was agreeing with your point about keeping focus on the important things. 

The thing about not giving the kids freedom because of the dangers in this world ... well, I'll agree this isn't 1965 (I was 6 then), but there are still opportunities to instill grit in your kids.  I think what XtraMelanin mentioned rings true -- make kids earn what they get; very few things should simply be given to them.  Make it age appropriate, but make them work for it.  As they get older, the more physical and dirty the job, the better.

(Nothing clarifies a young person's mind like mucking out a farm stall.  Horse shit is relatively easy.  Even cow poop is relatively benign.  I once mucked out a pig pen that was shin-deep in liquid poo.  But the worst was cleaning out a chicken coop.  The crap reeks of ammonia, and chickens are just plain nasty animals.  But when I was done, I sure knew I'd earned the few bucks I got for it.)

 

xtramelanin

June 21st, 2017 at 10:54 PM ^

so the 4 oldest sons were at football camp today as mentioned, the twins in the avatar participating, the two oldest sons are helping coach the kids.  one of the kids starts pitching a fit on oldest son and oldest is basically saying to him, 'get back in line, get to work'.  kid tries to kick oldest son who ignores him, but one of the twins, JT sees this going on and says 'no!'.  the kid keeps trying to kick at oldest and JT comes running like a frieght train and drills the kid, sending him flying.

JT (who has never seen pro wrestling in his life), stands over the kid and does a ric flair style 'wooo!!' and then a sharp 'no!' to the kid.   mind you the kid is bigger than JT, but JT was having none of that kid picking on his big brother.    i so wish i had a video of this one.  epic little bro protects big bro scene, evidencing some grit and great family loyalty.   

uminks

June 22nd, 2017 at 12:54 AM ^

There were as many dangers out there as there are Today. When we were running free we or our parents did not hear about these dangers. Occasionally, we would see the missing kids on the milk carton but that was old news by several months.

Now the millennial generation grew up with helicopter parents and the poor kids never developed much grit.

xtramelanin

June 22nd, 2017 at 5:04 AM ^

coming to a station near you....

and don't apologize for being a helicopter parent.  there is a way to do it, and unfortunately a need to do it that didn't exist when most of us were young and helicopters hadn't been invented yet.  

DonAZ

June 22nd, 2017 at 4:49 AM ^

For us who were kids in the 60s and 70s

I was born in 1959, and grew up in Redford Township.  The house I grew up in is a little 900 square foot bungalow ... 3 small bedrooms and 1 bath ... we had 6 kids in the family: 3 girls in one room, 3 boys in the other.  

I have dim memories of milk coming in bottles, delivered daily, and placed in the "milk chute," which was this little compartment with a door on the outside of the house and a matching door on the inside.  As very small kids, we could -- barely -- squeeze through that opening.

I also remember the Hostess bakery man coming by occasionally with his wares.

I was restricted to the 7 Mile / Inkster / Grand River / Beech Daiy area.  I could bike and play anywhere within that boundary, but I could not cross one of those roads on my own.

We'd go out after breakfast and not come back until lunch, then out again.  After dinner, we'd know to come home when the street lights came on.  Back then they'd take a while to warm up and be fully on, so we'd extend our away time by waiting until they were fully bright.

I rather enjoyed those days.  It lasted until 1969 when we moved out to Howell.  Howell then was quite a bit different from Howell today.  Tiny little town back then, and the void between Detroit and there was vast.

pescadero

June 22nd, 2017 at 9:15 AM ^

"I can't give my kids that freedom--because the dangers of all that are too real, or we're just way more aware of them now."

 

People are just more aware of them now.

 

The chances of our kids being a victim of violence or crime is much lower now than it was in the 1990s, and in the 1990s it was much lower than the 1980s, and in the 1980s it was much lower than the 1970s...

 

Basically - our kids live in the safest time ever in human history.

 

I basically let my kids (12 and 15) run free like I did at their age.

 

That being said - they still got no grit, and if their crappy teenage attitude continues, they'll be feeling some adversity pretty soon.

HireWayne

June 21st, 2017 at 6:43 PM ^

I'm in the middle of painting the interior of house right now.

Not fun...might be the grittiest thing I've ever done. 

So not very gritty.