Grit: the power of passion and perseverance | Angela Lee Duckworth - YouTube

At 27, I left a demanding job in management consulting to teach seventh-grade math in New York City public schools. I noticed that IQ wasn't the sole determinant of my students' success; some with average IQs excelled, while some with high IQs struggled. This observation led me to believe that every student could master the material with enough effort and time.

After years of teaching, I realized we needed a better understanding of student motivation and psychology. IQ is commonly measured in education, but success in school and life may hinge on more than just learning ability. To explore this, I became a psychologist and conducted studies in challenging environments, seeking to identify predictors of success.

My research at West Point, the National Spelling Bee, in tough teaching environments, and in sales positions revealed one consistent success predictor: grit. Grit is the passion and perseverance for long-term goals, the stamina to persist day after day, year after year, towards a future. It's about living life as a marathon, not a sprint.

In the Chicago public schools, I found that grittier students were more likely to graduate, even when controlling for factors like family income and test scores. Grit is crucial not just in high-stakes environments but also in everyday schooling, particularly for those at risk of dropping out.

The challenge we face is understanding how to develop grit. While talent doesn't equate to grit, and in fact, they can be inversely related, "growth mindset"—the belief that learning ability can improve with effort—seems promising for fostering grit. This concept, developed by Carol Dweck at Stanford, helps kids persevere through failures by understanding that intelligence can grow with challenges.

However, more ideas are needed to build grit. We must test our intuitions, measure success, and learn from failures. Essentially, we need to apply grit to the process of making our kids grittier. Thank you.

The original article: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=H14bBuluwB8&list=PLV7xfBoJKBNQ3yhYgQRqocSWs1MKF7j0n&index=23