Bodhi Book Summary: Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance

by Angela Duckworth, PH.D.

Summarized and Reviewed by Pete Landi

The Brief Summary

Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance, by Angela Duckworth, is a tremendously influential book for good reason. In this volume, she outlines the most important takeaways from her pioneering research into the question of what drives high levels of achievement and self-actualization.

A core insight to this research is that talent and IQ are, in fact, not highly predictive of success. More talent does not necessarily deliver high levels of achievement, nor does a high IQ. What does produce reliably higher achievement? Passion and Perseverance. Those two attributes together are what we call "Grit". People who care deeply about the subject of their work and who also apply themselves wholeheartedly to progressing that work are the ones who reach high levels of achievement. "Talent" is only helpful in the sense that it can accelerate the speed of mastery when combined with effort.

There are four foundational elements that make up a gritty person, which Dr. Duckworth digs into in some detail in the book. Those are Passion, Practice, Purpose & Hope. For people who judge themselves lacking in one or more of these qualities, Grit offers suggestions on how to build up strength in those areas.

Perhaps the most resonating message is the idea that effort is at the core of everything. Effort applied to talent creates skills; effort applied to skills creates mastery and achievement. The people who have reached high levels of self-actualization have typically exerted considerable effort over many years in the pursuit of their goals.

In summary, this book shares a few clear and simple concepts about what factors are proven by science to be predictive of success and high levels of achievement. For the Bodhi Band community, the concepts presented by Grit should be learned and taken to heart as we journey towards our own self-actualization. I couldn't recommend this book more.

The Long Summary

Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance, by Angela Duckworth, is a tremendously influential book that has benefited countless individuals and companies in a wide variety of fields since its initial publication in 2016. In this volume, she outlines the most important takeaways from her pioneering research into the question of what drives some people to reach higher levels of achievement and self-actualization than other people.

A core insight to this research is that the two things you might think are highly predictive of success are, in fact, not so much. Those are talent and IQ. Most of us would expect that a "talented" person (i.e., a person who shows natural or inborn propensity to excel at a particular task) would have a higher success rate at a given task than a less-talented person. This may be true at lower levels of achievement, but it more talent does not necessarily deliver high levels of achievement. The same can be said for IQ levels.

What does produce reliably higher achievement? Two attributes, Passion and Perseverance, are the most predictive factors of a person's success. Those two attributes together are what we call "Grit". Put another way, people who care deeply about the subject of their work and who also apply themselves wholeheartedly to progressing that work are the ones who reach high levels of achievement. "Talent" is only helpful in the sense that it can accelerate the speed of mastery when combined with effort.

There are four foundational elements that make up a gritty person, which Dr. Duckworth digs into in some detail in the book. Those are Passion, Practice, Purpose & Hope. For people who judge themselves lacking in one or more of these qualities, Grit offers suggestions on how to build up strength in those areas. For example, conducting a deep reflection on what topics and activities consistently bring you joy can be a hint towards what your lifelong passion(s) might be. Many successful people spend years exploring different interests before hitting on the one main pursuit of their lives, so you should allow yourself some patience and time in your own explorations.

Perhaps the most resonating message in this book is the idea that effort is at the core of everything. Effort applied to talent creates skills; effort applied to skills creates mastery and achievement. The people who have reached high levels of self-actualization have typically exerted considerable effort over many years in the pursuit of their goals. This is why passion is a prerequisite to success; we just aren't going to apply that much effort for that long into something we aren't deeply driven by.

In summary, this book shares a few clear and simple concepts about what factors are proven by science to be predictive of success and high levels of achievement. For the Bodhi Band community, the concepts presented by Grit should be learned and taken to heart as we journey towards our own self-actualization. I couldn't recommend this book more.

Enjoyable to Read: 4 out of 5

Grit is written in an approachable, narrative-driven form. While there is a lot of scientific research referenced throughout, there is also a considerable body of relatable stories from high-achieving people in a broad variety of contexts. The style and tone make this an easy and enjoyable read, and the insights provided make it well worth the investment of time.

Reviewer's Overall Rating: 5 out of 5

This book is, in our opinion, an incredibly important book for anyone who is striving to introduce change into their lives. Angela Duckworth's pioneering research lays out a clear and proven set of characteristics that are common to people who have achieved high levels of self-actualization, and then she provides examples of how those characteristics have played out in real people's lives. For the Bodhi Band community, Grit provides indispensable advice on how to improve upon those characteristics in our own lives, and how to think about long-term purposeful work and change.

Actionable Info: 4 out of 5

• Take yourself through this exercise:
• Identify your top-level goal
• Build out mid and low-level goals & milestones to support it.
• Review all of your other "goals" in life and see how they align with the top level goals. The ones that don't support your ultimate ambition should be eliminated.
• If you wish you had more grit, first ask yourself why so you can zero in on what to work on. It's likely either...
• Interest (is the subject persistently exciting to you?)
• Practice (do you want to do whatever it takes to improve on weaknesses?)
• Purpose (do you feel like this goal matters?) or
• Hope (do you find the energy to get back up whenever you stumble on any of the previous 3?)
• Discovering Passion - What occupies your thoughts during the day? How do you enjoy spending your time? What could you see yourself doing for the rest of your life? Be open to trying many different things before discovering your passion.
• Improving your Practice - Identify a goal that you'd like to achieve (professional, personal, fitness, etc). Design measurable goals designed to improve a specific aspect of that goal. Fully concentrate on the effort. Create a feedback loop, as measurable and immediate as possible. Then reflect on the results and refine the practice as necessary. Repeat and observe the change over time.
• Aligning with Purpose - Reflect on your life's work. In what ways are you contributing to a better world? Identify your core values, then brainstorm ways to adjust (or radically change) your work to align more closely to your values. Seek out a person in your life who is a role model for purposefulness.
• Cultivate Hope - When you are faced with a difficulty, thoughtfully shift your thinking to positive self-talk. How would an optimist view this situation? What different approaches can get this back on track? Focus on the long game in which your own continued trial & effort will lead to overcoming adversity, and in the process will give you more confidence to have hope in the future.
• Adopt the "Hard Thing Rule" in your household. Everyone has to:
• 1: Pick one hard thing to do (something that requires deliberate practice);
• 2: Stick with it at least until a natural breaking point to which you have committed; and
• 3: Pick the hard thing yourself (something that you are personally interested in).

Quality of the Ideas: 5 out of 5

Quotability: 4 out of 5