Recently, the group discussed the book Grit by Angela Duckworth.
Grit, as Duckworth has defined it in her research, is a combination of perseverance and passion — it’s just that the former tends to get all the attention, while the latter is overlooked. “I think the misunderstanding — or, at least, one of them — is that it’s only the perseverance part that matters,” Duckworth told Science of Us. “But I think that the passion piece is at least as important. I mean, if you are really, really tenacious and dogged about a goal that’s not meaningful to you, and not interesting to you — then that’s just drudgery. It’s not just determination — it’s having a direction that you care about.”
Essential to our discussion of Grit, was taking time to think about what grit means at ECS and how we can “grow our grit.”
- Be courageous
- Be conscientious
- Have long-term goals and endurance and follow through: Duckworth writes: Fall 7 times trying but rise 8.
- Have resilience: Optimism, Confidence and Creativity: Optimism + Confidence + Creativity = Resilience = Hardiness = (+/- )Grit.
We all have some level of grittiness and it can change over time. Duckworth encourages readers to find their own grit and let it grow. At ECS, we are all exceptionally gritty. The work we do is demanding, it takes guts to show up again and again and do the hard things, but those of us that are proud to call ECS home wouldn’t have it any other way (because we are GRITTY).
Learn more about our PAWS program here.
About the Author: As the first female to open an office for ECS history of the company and a mother of 5 children, Elizabeth Ross has the determination and strength to overcome any obstacle. She is loyal, passionate and committed to her clients’ success. With a positive attitude, her work is professional and punctual. She is a former OSHA compliance officer and has over 17 years of Industrial Hygiene consulting experience.