In the WIT GRIT FIT Framework, we use GRIT as a shorthand for Performance Character.
Performance Character traits are what amplifies our natural abilities and skills, which includes grit, curiosity and other positive traits.
In our career guidance workshop, we help students and working professionals discover what their GRIT is.
Grit is passion and perseverance for long-term goals, and that is incredibly important in determining long-term career success.
One way to think about grit is to consider what grit isn’t.
Grit isn’t talent. Grit isn’t luck. Grit isn’t how intensely, for the moment, you want something.
Instead, grit is about having what some researchers call an”ultimate concern”–a goal you care about so much that it organizes and gives meaning to almost everything you do. And grit is holding steadfast to that goal. Even when you fall down. Even when you screw up. Even when progress toward that goal is halting or slow.
Talent and luck matter to success. But talent and luck are no guarantee of grit. And in the very long run, Angela Duckworth, the best-selling author who popularized the concept of Grit, thinks grit may matter as least as much, if not more.
In his book “How Children Succeed”, Paul Tough identifies these Performance Character traits:
Curiosity
A strong desire to learn or know something
Gratitude
A thankful appreciation for what one receives, whether tangible or intangible
Grit
The ability to persevere and have passion for long-term goals
Optimism
An active recognition of the positive aspects of life
Self Control
The ability to control behaviours in order to avoid temptations and to achieve goals; the ability to delay gratification and resist unwanted behaviours
Social Intelligence
The ability to get along with others; the capacity to communicate and form relationships with empathy and assertiveness
Zest
The ability to go about life with energy and enthusiasm, giving enough time and attention to relish each experience
Learn about WITGRITFIT through a simulation game and apply career design principles to find your unique advantage
