Grit by Angela Duckworth Book Summary

The Power of Passion and Perseverance

Why do some people succeed while others fall short of their full potential? The answer to this simple question has broad implications within sports, business, and life. Not only can it help us improve our odds for success, but it can also help us recruit better team members, identify better business partners, and help others develop and grow.

So, to answer this question, let’s explore three of the most valuable insights from Grit by Angela Duckworth.

1. Grit Predicts Success Better Than Talent Or Luck

When seeking to predict the potential for success in people, we often focus on assessing natural talent. We have a bias for valuing innate abilities, so it’s tempting to assume that such abilities predict future success. However, simply having natural talent isn’t the same thing as being able to apply that talent productively. As a result, innate talent alone is not an effective way to predict future success.

Beyond talent, other theories that were considered include assessing historical achievements, measuring recent performance, and even accounting for blind luck. However, these too fell short in their ability to make accurate predictions.