grit

The Vulnerability and Grit to Try New Things

The Vulnerability and Grit to Try New Things

When I was a sophomore in high school, I ran for the student council to be in the activities committee as a junior. A year before in middle school, I had been the student body president, and I was running against three other people for a three-person committee, so I felt pretty confident that I could earn a spot. I ran a hard campaign. I talked to lots of strangers, handed out all sorts of flyers, and I even lit myself on fire on accident while making my campaign video (I was ok). For me, it would all be worth it to earn an opportunity to do something I loved for the second time. I wanted to spend my time doing something I was confident and familiar with. I gave my best effort and felt incredibly confident when I went to hear the results of the election. But, as you may have guessed, I found out that I had lost.

Although I was really sad as a result of this and learned a lot about self-acceptance and moving on from disappointment, this isn’t a story about failure. It’s about trying new things.

Two Ways to Become More Gritty

Two Ways to Become More Gritty

Innate intelligence and talent can’t be sole predictors of success because skill-building effort is required—which is great news! You can’t change your genetics, but you do have power over the effort you put into learning and accomplishing. Being successful and achieving your potential in life requires the exertion of your own will and energy.