By: Cooper McKeehan

Introduction

Do you feel like a small pawn in a world of intelligent people? You may have a lot more to offer than you think.

Grit is more important than GPA.

That is right: the grade you got in your college accounting class, it means nothing. Your 34 on the ACT —  means zilch. What matters is how hard you are willing to work, how much grit you have, and how much you can accomplish.

As the world evolves and becomes more competitive, it is more challenging to achieve anything. Whether it is getting into your desired college/major, or battling your way into a job that you want, difficulties like these are at an all-time high. During these many processes, it may be very overwhelming to think about your competitors and how much more “intelligent” they are. But what does Google’s innovation expert and Senior Vice President of people operations, Lazlo Bock tell you? “GPAs are worthless as criteria for hiring.” ^IX

Grade Point Average (GPA) is commonly used to measure academic achievement, which is oftentimes seen as an overall representation of intelligence and an indicator of success in life. While colleges, internships, and employers may paint GPA as the only measurement to abide by, there is a much more important factor that needs to be considered: grit.

Grit is “a personality trait possessed by individuals who demonstrate passion and perseverance toward a goal despite being confronted by significant obstacles and distractions”. ^III Grit is a characteristic that should be of the highest consideration, as it can forecast achievement, belief in one’s self, and can be developed by anyone.

Predicting Success

When it came to predicting who was least likely to drop out of boot camp for the U.S Military Academy at West Point, the clearest indicator had nothing to do with test scores, GPA, High School Rankings, or even Fitness Assessment Scores. Instead, the most reliable predictor of who made it through boot camp was grit. ^V

The importance of grit is not only limited to the West Point cadets, it can also be seen in other spheres of the world. Michael Jordan, one of the greatest basketball players of all time, was infamously cut from his high school varsity basketball team. Instead of giving up, he got back to work so he could make his team and the rest is history. A senior on the basketball team said they had no reason to think Jordan would be special. Jordan is known for displaying an immense amount of grit throughout his struggles. He was shooting for high goals and was not letting anyone get in the way of his dreams. This allowed him to become the world-renowned athlete he is today. ^XII

Interestingly, according to a 2008 study by Carol Dweck, grit is a predictor of many successful traits as well. On a 20-item mindset quiz, participants responded to several statements in relation to the five scales provided. Students with high levels of grit scored 43% higher in self-control, 38% higher in resilience, and 16% higher in mindset. These

traits that come from a gritty person are all strategically looked at when employers look to hire. While this data may not pull from a person’s IQ, it shows that if you want an individual who is likely to succeed, look at how much grit they possess.^VI 

These traits contain many aspects that employers try to spot in potential employees. Self-control will indicate good time management and self-awareness, resilience will show that an employee can deal with failure or unexpected issues, and their mindset that shows they are ready to get the job done.

Belief in Self

Those who have been found to have high levels of grit have also been known to be associated with self-efficacy. Self-efficacy is defined as “the belief that people have about their own ability to organize and execute the necessary courses of action to attain specific  achievements.” ^IV

If you do not believe you can get the job done, you are not going to. If in your mind you know that you are going to get the job done because of your grit, you are going to be able to find success no matter what field you are put into. A 2021 study was done in Mexico on adults to measure the correlation between grit and living a healthy lifestyle. After completing the questionnaires, it was determined that the individuals who lived a healthy lifestyle were able to maintain effort and interest despite facing challenges throughout their lives. The study also found a strong correlation between grit, self-efficacy, and autonomous motivation, these study variables all returned a score of .84 or higher. ^IV

The attributes of grit, self-efficacy, and autonomous motivation all create a cycle that allows for success. The correlation between these attributes allows them to work off of each other. For example, someone who is gritty is going to be able to motivate themselves, they are not going to need another person to get them going. This self-discipline comes from their self-efficacy of knowing that they will get the job done. While a person who is naturally intelligent may be able to succeed in some areas of life, if they do not have grit, they will be wasting their potential. An individual with grit will find a way to get the job done no matter what the problem is, while a person that is more intelligent, with no grit, may give up at the first sight of trouble.

Test Yourself

This test was the same one that was given to the West Point Cadets. Try it out for yourself.

Know that this test is a measure of passion and perseverance. ^XI The average grit score is 38, with 50 being a perfect score. Take a moment to reflect on your score and see where you stand.

How can I Become More Gritty?

Regardless of your score, you may be asking yourself “how can I become more gritty?” One of the best things you can do is clarify and physically state what your goals are. ^X If you do not have goals to lead yourself toward, you will constantly be in a space of no guidance or motivation. What is important is that you have somewhere you can keep your goal. Whether it is on a piece of paper in your room or written down somewhere on your phone, having a physical goal somewhere allows you to hold yourself accountable and be able to measure where you are at.

Being able to deal with failure and unexpected obstacles is one of the things that people with grit are best at. Now, just because you have grit does not mean that you will be perfect at everything you do in life. In fact, those with grit tend to be the ones who have dealt with more hardships than most.^VII What is important is that despite our failures, we continue to persevere. Doing this allows us to learn from our experiences and become better than we were before.

The last important tip is practicing positive self-talk. While this skill seems foolish to a lot of people, being able to change your narrative to a growth mindset is crucial when times are tough. Instead of saying “you’re doing awful” try saying “let’s get going, you got this.” It may seem odd at first, but it will genuinely help you make a change. Michael Phelps states that using positive self-talk has helped him win. ^I If the most decorated Olympian of all time is able to do it, so can you.

Conclusion

If you are striving for success, grit is something that you need to possess. If you have grit, you are more likely to display prominent qualities that will lead you to achievement in your life. By being gritty, you will also live a life where you are confident that you can get things done in any scenario. This will allow you to have the consistent motivation to accomplish whatever goals you strive for.

Grit should be the number one trait that anyone looks for when trying to evaluate someone for a position. It has proven to be a much more effective indicator than someone’s intelligence. A gritty person may not be the smartest person in the room, but they will treat life like the marathon it is. They will continue to do their best to be the best and will let nothing stand in their way. Whatever you do, go the extra mile, and do not give anything but your best.

 

Notes

1. “- Kidshealth in the Classroom.” n.d. KidsHealth. The Nemours Foundation. Accessed November 2, 2022. https://classroom.kidshealth.org/.
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3. Court12, Will Will, Chris Kollar, Ziba Mbense, Randy Bentley, Shailesh, Sushil kumar patel, et al. n.d. “What Is Grit?” GoStrengths! Accessed November 2, 2022. https://gostrengths.com/what-is-grit/.
4. De La Cruz, Manuel, Alex Zarate, Jorge Zamarripa, Isabel Castillo, Angelica Borbon, Hector Duarte, and Kathryn Valenzuela. 2021. “Grit, Self-Efficacy, Motivation and the Readiness to Change Index toward Exercise in the Adult Population.” Frontiers in Psychology 12. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.732325.
5. Duckworth, Angela L., Christopher Peterson, Michael D. Matthews, and Dennis R. Kelly. “Grit: perseverance and passion for long-term goals.” Journal of personality and social psychology 92, no. 6 (2007): 1087.
6. Dweck, Carol S. 2007. “The Secret to Raising Smart Kids.” Scientific American. Scientific American. December 1, 2007. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-secret-to-raising-smart-kids/.
7. Eskreis-Winkler, Lauren, Elizabeth P. Shulman, Scott A. Beal, and Angela L. Duckworth. “The grit effect: Predicting retention in the military, the workplace, school and marriage.” Frontiers in psychology 5 (2014): 36.
8. “Grit: The Most Important Skill You’re Not Interviewing For.” 2022. Lighthouse. August 3, 2022. https://getlighthouse.com/blog/grit-skill-interview-for-how-to-look-for-it/.
9. Hamilton, Kristen. 2015. “Why Grit Should Matter More than Grades.” ERE. November 24, 2015. https://www.ere.net/why-grit-should-matter-more-than-grades/.
10. Janz, Silke. 2020. “Here Are Six Ways You Can Become ‘Grittier’ That We Learned from Reading Grit in Our Book Club.” Sanger Leadership Center. March 31, 2020. https://sanger.umich.edu/news-9-17-19-book-club/.
11. Kannangara, Chathurika S., Rosie E. Allen, Gill Waugh, Nurun Nahar, Samia Zahraa Khan, Suzanne Rogerson, and Jerome Carson. 2018. “All That Glitters Is Not Grit: Three Studies of Grit in University Students.” Frontiers in Psychology 9. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.01539.
12. Oldskoolbball. 2020. “Michael Jordan on Being Cut from High School Varsity: ‘I Just Wasn’t Good Enough.”.” Oldskoolbball. April 7, 2020. https://oldskoolbball.com/michael-jordan-high-school-varsity/.