I am writing this because lately I have been seeing people who quit easily. I have seen people who “jump off” the ship with the little “shaking of the boat.” I have seen people who start well but their enthusiasm is so short-lived. I know of college students who quit easily just because of the tough challenges they face. I know some people who were so excited about their new jobs but once they get into the difficulties of work situations, they quit.
Worse is when those who get married who were once excited about their married life yet when they face the challenges, they bail out. That is why we see divorces. We see people quitting their families, relationships and even their ministries and churches. But worst of all, We see people quit on God.
We need to teach the value of grit or perseverance to our young ones…. and for that matter, everyone.
Teddy Roosevelt, a Grand Sire of Grit, spoke about the importance of overcoming fear and managing vulnerability in an address he made at the Sorbonne in 1907.
He stated:
It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strived valiantly; who errs, who comes again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly.
Intelligence and creativity are great but you can’t quit when the going gets tough if you really want to accomplish anything big.
That’s grit. Perseverance. And it’s one of the best predictors of success.
A few years ago, I attended a seminar for business people. I remember one lesson. The guest speaker who is a successful businessman said, “The difference between a successful business venture and a failed one is Grit.” He said that in his many years as a business person, he has seen so many people who attempt to engage in business but easily quit. He also added that …when they fail, they waste much time lamenting; blaming; or, at the extreme, quitting. Instead, he said, “Successful people regard their failure as a learning experience. They persevere. They learn from their lessons and move forward into the future with greater wisdom.”
(For Christians, we are encouraged in our walk with God because we have a Loving Father who does not quit on us. Philippians 1:6 says, “…being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” God does not quit. Jesus did not quit. He finished the work given Him.)
It is sad that this is not so in the world today. People do not see the importance of perseverance.
We all know that our educational system put so much value on IQ. Yet, researchers have found that grit exists apart from IQ and is more predictive of success than IQ in a variety of challenging environments.
Here is a video clip that explains why Grit is important and must be taught again.