Hi, I'm Dr. Ellen Hendrickson, and welcome to episode 33 of the savvy psychologist.

I'll help you meet life's challenges with evidence-based research, a sympathetic ear, and zero judgment.

We'll use the best of psychology to help you be happy, healthy, and most importantly yourself.

It's time for back to school, a perfect time to showcase the topic suggested by

listener Ty C of New York City grit and

whether we're talking about metal, perseverance, doggedness, fortitude or tenacity

it can all be boiled down to four letters, GRIT.

G-R-I-T is the ability to stay interested in

and expend effort towards long-term goals.

In short, it's the opposite of flakiness. It's also more important for kids

school achievement and success in life than talent, social skills, motivation,

IQ, or practice.

Indeed, a key component of success is the now famous 10,000 hours of practice rule,

but grit is what compels someone to show up for 10,000 hours of practice in the first place.

Dr. Angela Duckworth at the University of Pennsylvania is the originator of and best-known

researcher of grit, which she defines as, quote,

working strenuously towards challenges, maintaining effort and interest

over years despite failures, adversity, and plateaus in progress.

In short, Grit predicts who will stay in for the long haul, who makes it through West Point's

grueling summer training program, who finishes a punishing surgical residency program, who wins the National Spelling

Bee, and who gets into the Ivy League even with lower SAT scores than their peers.

As a concept, grit is a bit of a chameleon because it's both a trait and a skill.

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