Why is it that some people with lots of talent don’t achieve that, much while others who are less talented seem to accomplish truly great
things?
Today we will explore how great achievement happens through the lens of positive psychology science. I’ll teach you four basic ingredients that can drive your performance way way up.
The granddaddy of positive psychology— a guy named Martin Seligman, even puts a special emphasis on achievement as fundamental to our well being.
One of Seligman’s’ best students has taken the study of accomplishing meaningful goals to a whole new level. That student now a scholar in her own right is Angela Duckworth. Duckworth has made her major focus of research on the concept of grit.
She describes grit as the combination of passion and perseverance. Importantly she points out that our society over emphasizes the significance of talent. Talent; the
natural ability to learn a skill; is of course important. But, study most high achievers and you quickly see the talent was not the main thing that drove their success.
Record-breaking Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps has won more gold medals than any other Olympic athlete. He clearly has gobs of natural talent and a body that seems strangely well made to swim. He has a gargantuan wingspan, huge feet and quite literally bizarre ankle flexibility that aids in his kicking motions.
Now too often we look to people like Phelps and chalk up their success to talent, but undoubtedly lots of people have unusually good physique for
swimming or stunning voices for singing or mathematical instincts or any number of natural talents. What sets Phelps and other superstars apart is more often
than not grit. Phelps has a passion like few others in his sport. In fact he demonstrates this passion by having set completely new standards for training. The man literally doubles the training time of most Olympic swimmers. He trained 5 to 6 hours a day, six days a week and before he retired he sustained this regimen for nearly 20 years. Now that’s passion and perseverance!
The science of grit is not crystal clear on how a person can become more gritty. Some people may be born with a high level of grit, but we do know what grit consists of. It boils down to four basic principles.
One: A passionate interest.
What do you care most about if money were no object? How would you spend your time? I’ve got a special resource for you to help with this find it in the link below.
Two: The ability to practice.
This is often a function of building good habits to begin a new behavioural pattern. We often rely on willpower but once the pattern is established we can
put the habit on cruise control because routine and ritual behaviors automate our consistent practice.
Three: Purpose.
We have to be clear on the why of what we do. If a desired achievement is truly worthwhile we have to be able to list the reasons with power and clarity for optimistic hope founded in realism. Gritty people envision the future that they want and hold that vision steady. Hope carries people to the biggest obstacles and keeps the fire
burning even in the darkest times. What drives you? What fuels your interests? Can you build the habits that sustain performance long enough to accomplish
your goals?
These kinds of topics are great to work through with a coach. You may find success and greater life satisfaction is just around the corner for you. If you’re not sure where your biggest passions lie, then check out the link below.
It’s a short exercise that helps you find your passions, which is really helpful if you’re struggling to find out what really interests you. If you already know your passions it’s still nice to go through and see if you discover something new. There’s also a link to a handy info-graphic.
This summarizes the proven truth of grit as the secret to great accomplishment