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Grit: A Complete Guide on Being Mentally Tough

What is Grit?

Let's define grit. Grit is the perseverance and passion to achieve long–term goals. Sometimes you will hear grit referred to as mental toughness. Angela Duckworth, a researcher at the University of Pennsylvania, suggests that grit is a strong predictor of success and ability to reach one's goals.

Duckworth's research on grit has shown that…

West Point cadets who scored highest on the Grit Test were 60% more likely to succeed than their peers.

Ivy League undergraduate students who had more grit also had higher GPAs than their peers — even though they had lower SAT scores and weren’t as “smart.”

When comparing two people who are the same age but have different levels of education, grit (and not intelligence) more accurately predicts which one will be better educated.

Competitors in the National Spelling Bee outperform their peers not because of IQ, but because of their grit and commitment to more consistent practice.

(If you'd like more, I wrote about Duckworth's research here.)

A Video Explanation of Grit

This short TED talk by psychology professor Angela Duckworth explains the concept of grit and how it helps foster mental toughness in our everyday lives.

How to Be Mentally Tough

Step 1: Define what grit or mental toughness means for you.

For you, it might be…

going one month without missing a workout

delivering your work ahead of schedule for two days in a row

calling one friend to catch up every Saturday this month

Whatever it is, be clear about what you’re going after.

Step 2: Build grit with small physical wins.

So often we think that grit is about how we respond to extreme situations, but what about everyday circumstances?

Mental toughness is like a muscle. It needs to be worked to grow and develop.

Choose to do the tenth rep when it would be easier to just do nine. Choose to create when it would be easier to consume. Choose to ask the extra question when it would be easier to accept. Prove to yourself — in a thousand tiny ways — that you have enough guts to get in the ring and do battle with life.

Read more: The Proven, Reasonable and Totally Unsexy Secret to Success

Step 3: Build strong habits and stop depending on motivation.

Grit isn’t about getting an incredible dose of inspiration or courage. It’s about building the daily habits that allow you to stick to a schedule and overcome challenges and distractions over and over and over again.

Mentally tough people don’t have to be more courageous, more talented, or more intelligent — just more consistent.

Grit comes down to your habits. It’s about doing the things you know you’re supposed to do on a more consistent basis. It’s about your dedication to daily practice and your ability to stick to a schedule.

Read more: How to Build Good Habits and Break Bad Ones

Examples of Grit

Mentally tough athletes are more consistent than others. They don’t miss workouts. They don’t miss assignments. They always have their teammates back.

Mentally tough leaders are more consistent than their peers. They have a clear goal that they work towards each day. They don’t let short–term profits, negative feedback, or hectic schedules prevent them from continuing the march towards their vision. They make a habit of building up the people around them — not just once, but over and over and over again.

Mentally tough artists, writers, and employees deliver on a more consistent basis than most. They work on a schedule, not just when they feel motivated. They approach their work like a pro, not an amateur. They do the most important thing first and don’t shirk responsibilities.

https://jamesclear.com/grit?fbclid=IwAR3hDs3DdbdNpLNrJVF1lDByYRy5MmioQtMNcnxoTo5KZeaTHBd8AIFxH6k

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Happy Thanksgiving from all of us here at e.d.e.t. Marketing 

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We love to reward our team with things they love! So if they’re a University of Michigan fan so are we (for the day any way 😜)! 💙🏈💛

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t's National Indiana Day! This is our favorite part of the state. (Not like we're biased or anything or had our logo designed after it) 😜👏

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Are you ready to build and lead a better LIFE! Take these tips and use them as a blueprint to propel yourself in all your future endeavors. 

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Happy Halloween from all of us here at e.d.e.t. Marketing

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To say we love blue, would not be enough. We are thrilled to be part of three markets, and have plans for a 4th. Looking forward to seeing wants new for e.d.e.t. Marketing

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Customer satisfaction 👌is one of our top priorities at e.d.e.t. Marketing, which is why we always take the time to get to know our customers and provide them with top services☝️. This has afforded us many opportunities to work with prestigious brands across the country and globe!

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Sometimes our fears can stop us from being successful. How we adapt to, and overcome those obstacles can make a difference is success and failure. Being successful can also come from our failures. Share your success stories with us.

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A smile can go a long way. Not only are they contagious, but they can also help you get a promotion at work. Something so small yet so powerful.

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e.d.e.t. Marketing has a bright future.

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Make sure to check out our pinterest page

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You’ve got this

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Happy Labor Day from our family to yours.

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Never stop trying to find a way. 

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Being a Successful Entrepreneur Isn’t Only About Having the Best Ideas

Most people think that being an entrepreneur is about having that big idea. And it is. To start something new, you need to have an idea that works: something people need, something they’ll want, and most importantly — at least for the people investing in your idea — something that’s scalable.

But what I’ve found from interviewing multiple entrepreneurs who focus on consulting, the internet, and software development is that without the capacity to execute an idea — to take an idea and turn it into a living, breathing, viable organization — you’re doomed to fail. And for many entrepreneurs who are thinkers, rather than doers, this is a frightening notion.

For example, an owner of a software company told me about how anxious he felt making sales to customers. He loved developing the product, and he also enjoyed speaking about the product to potential clients, because he truly believed in it. But when it came time to making the “ask,” he’d freeze. He’d stumble, bumble, and in many cases, simply not even ask for the sale. The CEO of a small consulting firm I spoke with lamented how hard it was for him to spread the word about his company at conferences and networking events because of his introverted and shy nature. And the CEO of a start-up internet company deeply believed in the mission of his company, but struggled morally when pitching potential employees on the “dream” without disclosing the full reality: they might not have enough runway of cash to make it through the month.

How can idea-oriented entrepreneurs become doers and learn to raise money, pitch to investors, hire, and fire employees — especially when it forces them outside their personal and professional comfort zones?

The first step is to actually recognize — and own up to — the challenges. None of us likes to admit our weaknesses and flaws, but in order to improve, we have to. Each of the successful entrepreneurs I spoke with ultimately recognized the importance of these necessary but difficult tasks and that, in many cases, they were things they had been avoiding or procrastinating about — to the detriment of their business.

The next critical step is to embrace your purpose and mission, because that is going to give you the motivation and courage to actually take the necessary leap. For example, Maran Nelson, CEO of Clara Labs, said this about the power of conviction with respect to acting outside her comfort zone as a CEO, especially when fundraising: “The most important thing I’ve learned about fundraising is just really fundamentally believing in what you are doing. Knowing that it is good. You have to know what you are doing is good and that it must exist in the world.” Conviction is the feeling, deep down, that what you’re doing — and even struggling with — when acting outside your comfort zone is worth it. That the pain is worth the gain. And given the inherent challenge many tasks present to budding entrepreneurs, having this conviction is a critical part of the puzzle.

Finally, the last piece of advice I learned from speaking with entrepreneurs is the importance of finding your own way. Just as there is no one-size-fits-all strategy for becoming an entrepreneur, there also is no one-size-fits-all strategy for learning to act outside your comfort zone. For example, if you need to pitch to investors but hate asking for money, script out the first few sentences of your message, or bring a colleague with you who makes you feel more confident or who can help with your pitch. Or remind yourself of your mission before stepping into the room, so have purpose top-of-mind, which may make it easier to pitch. Whatever it is, you can find your own way of handling these necessary but difficult moments. The entrepreneurs I spoke with who were successful at acting outside their comfort zones were able to find simple ways like these to be effective, without losing themselves in the process.

In the end, most people equate entrepreneurship with ideas. But for many, the real entrepreneurship happens internally — with the process of stepping up, having courage, and doing things that you never thought you’d be able to do. By flexing your behavior and learning to act outside your comfort zone, you’ll be well on your way toward achieving your goals.

https://hbr.org/2016/08/being-a-successful-entrepreneur-isnt-only-about-having-the-best-ideas

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you always have a choice. The outcome depends on which path you choose.