Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance
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- Create Date：2021-04-03 11:58:29
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Angela Duckworth
- ISBN：1501111116
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Summary
In this instant New York Times bestseller， Angela Duckworth shows anyone striving to succeed that the secret to outstanding achievement is not talent， but a special blend of passion and persistence she calls “grit。” “Inspiration for non-geniuses everywhere” （People）。
The daughter of a scientist who frequently noted her lack of “genius，” Angela Duckworth is now a celebrated researcher and professor。 It was her early eye-opening stints in teaching， business consulting， and neuroscience that led to her hypothesis about what really drives success: not genius， but a unique combination of passion and long-term perseverance。
In Grit， she takes us into the field to visit cadets struggling through their first days at West Point， teachers working in some of the toughest schools， and young finalists in the National Spelling Bee。 She also mines fascinating insights from history and shows what can be gleaned from modern experiments in peak performance。 Finally， she shares what she’s learned from interviewing dozens of high achievers—from JP Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon to New Yorker cartoon editor Bob Mankoff to Seattle Seahawks Coach Pete Carroll。
“Duckworth’s ideas about the cultivation of tenacity have clearly changed some lives for the better” （The New York Times Book Review）。 Among Grit’s most valuable insights: any effort you make ultimately counts twice toward your goal; grit can be learned， regardless of IQ or circumstances; when it comes to child-rearing， neither a warm embrace nor high standards will work by themselves; how to trigger lifelong interest; the magic of the Hard Thing Rule; and so much more。 Winningly personal， insightful， and even life-changing， Grit is a book about what goes through your head when you fall down， and how that—not talent or luck—makes all the difference。 This is “a fascinating tour of the psychological research on success” （The Wall Street Journal）。
The daughter of a scientist who frequently noted her lack of “genius，” Angela Duckworth is now a celebrated researcher and professor。 It was her early eye-opening stints in teaching， business consulting， and neuroscience that led to her hypothesis about what really drives success: not genius， but a unique combination of passion and long-term perseverance。
In Grit， she takes us into the field to visit cadets struggling through their first days at West Point， teachers working in some of the toughest schools， and young finalists in the National Spelling Bee。 She also mines fascinating insights from history and shows what can be gleaned from modern experiments in peak performance。 Finally， she shares what she’s learned from interviewing dozens of high achievers—from JP Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon to New Yorker cartoon editor Bob Mankoff to Seattle Seahawks Coach Pete Carroll。
“Duckworth’s ideas about the cultivation of tenacity have clearly changed some lives for the better” （The New York Times Book Review）。 Among Grit’s most valuable insights: any effort you make ultimately counts twice toward your goal; grit can be learned， regardless of IQ or circumstances; when it comes to child-rearing， neither a warm embrace nor high standards will work by themselves; how to trigger lifelong interest; the magic of the Hard Thing Rule; and so much more。 Winningly personal， insightful， and even life-changing， Grit is a book about what goes through your head when you fall down， and how that—not talent or luck—makes all the difference。 This is “a fascinating tour of the psychological research on success” （The Wall Street Journal）。
Reviews
Luv
，
I really enjoyed the book， but came away thinking there is no hope for me。 I think I'm doomed to remain lazy。 I really enjoyed the book， but came away thinking there is no hope for me。 I think I'm doomed to remain lazy。 。。。more
Andy
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More of an academic paper than a best-seller。 The author's passion for the subject is evident but it could have been written in a far more digestible format。 Nevertheless it still contains some useful takeaways that on balance probably make it worth a read。 More of an academic paper than a best-seller。 The author's passion for the subject is evident but it could have been written in a far more digestible format。 Nevertheless it still contains some useful takeaways that on balance probably make it worth a read。 。。。more
Nikhilesh
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A really well-researched book in power of perseverance。 One of the challenges with self-help books is that they tend to be anecdotal。 However， prof。 Duckworth's approach is very systematic and scientific。This is a really good book and a must read。 The only two challenges I have with book is thata） It exemplifies grit too much and there is no exploration of topics like burn-outb） It is too sanitized and professional。 I wish the examples were a little more vulnerable and grittier。 A really well-researched book in power of perseverance。 One of the challenges with self-help books is that they tend to be anecdotal。 However， prof。 Duckworth's approach is very systematic and scientific。This is a really good book and a must read。 The only two challenges I have with book is thata） It exemplifies grit too much and there is no exploration of topics like burn-outb） It is too sanitized and professional。 I wish the examples were a little more vulnerable and grittier。 。。。more
Noor Shabbir
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this book is highly motivational， that’s no doubt。 i did find it to be very repetitive， but the point of that was to reiterate the main points， on grit， passion， and perseverance。 all in all， i do think this is a really good read when you feel like you don’t know what you’re doing in life， it does get your motivated hearing other individuals’ stories on getting to where they are today。
Dinh Duyen
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The scientific study that we need when we tell others the importance of taking time for ourselves to improve and perfect the crafts， skills， and knowledge。 #deliberate_practice
Alice Qi
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Inspiring！
Chithamparanathan Rajathagireesan
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Whenever I’m reading success stories of Bill Gates， Steve Jobs， Abdul Kalam， I was thinking why we see a pattern in each and every success story？ How they become more successful and some people are struggling even though they have better qualifications？Answer is simple。 You’re not following your passion。 Yes， the book “Grit” by Angela Duckworth made me think of passion。Is Talent a bad thing？ Are we equally talented？ No and no。 Like it or not， some of us are better at it than others。 Of course， t Whenever I’m reading success stories of Bill Gates， Steve Jobs， Abdul Kalam， I was thinking why we see a pattern in each and every success story？ How they become more successful and some people are struggling even though they have better qualifications？Answer is simple。 You’re not following your passion。 Yes， the book “Grit” by Angela Duckworth made me think of passion。Is Talent a bad thing？ Are we equally talented？ No and no。 Like it or not， some of us are better at it than others。 Of course， there are limits， the tree doesn’t grow into the sky。 But do we really know what we want？ What we want to become？ I think it’s fair to say that， back then， neither of us knew quite what we wanted to be when we grow-up and we were both trying desperately to figure it out。For me still I couldn’t find it。 When people asked， whether I want to be a Banker， Doctor， Teacher？ I simply said I want be a Computer Engineer。 I thought Computer Engineering is a field and I made the correct choice based on my passion as I like to play with computers and network devices from my childhood。 After entering into this field only， I realized Computer Engineering is not a single field。 It has multiple arms like Software Engineering， Hardware Engineering， Project Management and the list goes very long。 Then I figured out， I want to be a Network Engineer， Again the I made a choice。 But still I’ve not reached my final destinations。 Still， I’m figuring out exactly what should I do in my date to day work。 What’s my exact passion？ What’s my strength？ It takes time。 But I’m in that journey。 But how many of us are open to make choices towards our destinations。 Aren’t we becoming more money oriented than passion？ Of course， money is important。 You cannot go to super market and say， I’ve a passion to become Astronaut give me some groceries。As Angela correctly motioned there’s no species on the planet more adaptable than ours， we change， we rise to the occasion。 Let’s adapt， Let’s rise。 Let’s walk towards our passion with resilience towards our success。 。。。more
Frank
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Good for parents I guess？ Just didn't feel I learned anything personally。 Plus， not really interested in hearing studies with animal testing。 Good for parents I guess？ Just didn't feel I learned anything personally。 Plus， not really interested in hearing studies with animal testing。 。。。more
Gretchen Schock
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I really enjoyed this book and if you are， like me， raising teenagers and worry at night about what they will grow up to become this book puts a fresh perspective on what is genetically available to them versus individual grit that can be created in each of us。 Within the book， she tells a story about the three little pigs （it’s not the classic story you immediately think of）So when asked， one pig says they are laying bricks。 A bricklayer。 The second pig when asked， says they are building a chur I really enjoyed this book and if you are， like me， raising teenagers and worry at night about what they will grow up to become this book puts a fresh perspective on what is genetically available to them versus individual grit that can be created in each of us。 Within the book， she tells a story about the three little pigs （it’s not the classic story you immediately think of）So when asked， one pig says they are laying bricks。 A bricklayer。 The second pig when asked， says they are building a church。 A bricklayer。 The third pig when asked， says they are building the house of God。 A bricklayer。All three pigs are bricklayers but how they look at what they are doing is entirely different。 One is doing a job， the other has a career and the third has a calling。 You can go through these various stages within the work that you do。 This part really struck me because I’ve definitely felt it myself， within my work as a yoga instructor。When I started teaching yoga I taught kids classes。 My classes were popular and filled to max capacity。 I was insanely busy going from various public and private schools to home school communities。 I enjoyed the work but it wasn’t until I switched my focus on teaching adult classes that I would say I found my calling。 Seeing the light in a student's eyes when they had an ah-ha on the mat within a pose or hearing a student thank me for getting them through a difficult time in their life or noticing the tears as they lay in savasana。。。 those moments confirmed that I was doing what I was put on this planet to do。 That I found my calling。If you are raising teenagers I highly recommend reading this book。 It will give you some fresh ideas or maybe confirm what you’ve already been doing to instill grit in your child based on research and data。 。。。more
AMC
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This book is exceptional！ I am hugely interest in resiliency。 I often wondered why some are able to thrive in the face of adversity while others crumble。 Can we be taught how to be resilient？ The title of the book is “Grit” so it wasn’t the least bit shocking or annoying to me that Duckworth’s focus in the book is。。。grit。 I liked the various angles and perspectives from which she chose to discuss it。 It reaffirmed for me that grit is a habit/mental exercise/way of thinking that can be beneficial This book is exceptional！ I am hugely interest in resiliency。 I often wondered why some are able to thrive in the face of adversity while others crumble。 Can we be taught how to be resilient？ The title of the book is “Grit” so it wasn’t the least bit shocking or annoying to me that Duckworth’s focus in the book is。。。grit。 I liked the various angles and perspectives from which she chose to discuss it。 It reaffirmed for me that grit is a habit/mental exercise/way of thinking that can be beneficial in every area of life。 She also provided well-thought examples within in each context （e。g。， parenting， leading， or winning at life in general） to illustrate the benefit of grit in that area of life。 While I didn’t necessary learn anything earth shattering from this book; I certainly have broader perspective on and better understanding of grittiness and the enduring impact it can have on my personal and professional growth。 I am also better equipped to lead， manage and develop the talent and support others on their journey toward’s living a life of meaning and allowing thing we are truly passionate about inform the journey。 。。。more
Joshua Daniel
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Amazing life advice。 If you follow this advice， you will accomplish more。 Teach this to your kids too！ Very important book for parenting children who can succeed。
Anushka Navetia
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I adore this book now。I am so going to come back sometime in the future， and regard this book as the turning point in my traditional view of talent， skill and passion and whatnot。Thank you so much for this amazing read。 This is a boo for everyone。 Everyone from all ages should read this book and understand what it takes to achiev success。 This book is forever。
Leib Mitchell
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Good for a young person; Obvious for an older oneReviewed in the United States on September 21， 2020This book reminds me a lot of the Malcolm Gladwell book "Outliers" （She even cites his well-worn "10，000 hours of practice" p。 129。）The subject matter notwithstanding （Psychology versus Sociology）， there are a bunch of trivial anecdotes / narrative arc type stories wrapped around a number of fairly trivial observations。But， no one would ever read a list of Psychology bullet points that synopsizes Good for a young person; Obvious for an older oneReviewed in the United States on September 21， 2020This book reminds me a lot of the Malcolm Gladwell book "Outliers" （She even cites his well-worn "10，000 hours of practice" p。 129。）The subject matter notwithstanding （Psychology versus Sociology）， there are a bunch of trivial anecdotes / narrative arc type stories wrapped around a number of fairly trivial observations。But， no one would ever read a list of Psychology bullet points that synopsizes the same topics that are dealt with in this book。And in that way， the 1% of useful information in this book only exists with the other 99%。Major concepts introduced:1。 Perseverance and native intelligence are two different things。2。 Passion and perseverance are two different things。 Passion， for the purposes of this book， is defined as a stable interest in something over a very long period of time。 So， a person may not enjoy practicing piano for every single hour that he does it， but if his interests is stable over many years than it indicates passion。3。 A lot of people have an end goal as a floating abstraction。 Whereas people who are more "gritty" are able to set up levels of tasks that are useful in the ultimate end goal。And the causality can work both ways: once you ask someone to identify/ discretize the steps that they need to take to get to an end goal， it can induce them to have more endurance。4。 Developing some sort of perseverance requires: interest/practice/purpose/hope。 （Part II）5。 There are some techniques that can be used to develop perseverance in children。 （Giving them an instrument to practice， or putting them in some type of extracurricular activity。）*******Whom is the book for？-I could say that it is most useful for parents who are trying to raise self-directed children。-In just a couple of sentences， I would say that this book basically tells us to not have a TV in the house， and watch your children's extracurricular activities/practice routines。-Other authors have noted （Lukianoff/Haidt in "The Coddling of the American Mind） that it seems like people in America are becoming a bunch of snowflakes。Anybody that needs some snowflakery undone can benefit from this book。Strengths:The author does have a good way with words， and her writing is very pleasant to read。 （"Additional time is drained away checking social media feeds， texting friends links to cat videos， and tracking the Kardashians as they figure out which outfit to wear。" p。 225）p。 133 "Challenge-exceeding-skill-practice leading to moments of challenge-meeting-skill-flow。"Weaknesses:1。 There are a number of questions that the author does not answer， and that is because she seems to sweep under the carpet that there is a genetic component to "stick-to-it-ivness。"2。 In only the way that a Detached From Reality Academic can: the author seems to not notice that a lot of her anecdotes are not applicable to the real world。 Things for which anyone may have a passion are not necessarily things that will get a house or car note paid。 And， some people have a very painful time learning that a little bit later in adulthood than they might like。 （I know one couple that almost got divorced because the husband insisted on taking jobs based on how happy they would make him， rather than realize that the purpose is to pay the mortgage。）If a young person reads （and internalizes） much of the subtext of this book， are they setting up for failure when they find out that sports philosophy may be the thing for which they have a passion， but that it will not pay the house note？3。 In only the way that an academic can: Duckworth seems to define all type of success as college graduation。 Or some type of tertiary education。 （There are not many electricians or house painters that are short of work。） She assumes that students not finishing college is an issue of perseverance when in fact it may be that they realize at some point that college degrees are just worthless。 （p。224）4。 If a person does not have "grit" is all lost？ （Follow up to last point raised。） Are there acceptable ways of making a living for people who don't have the perseverance to do things for years on end？5。 In the back of my mind， I wonder how much this has long term mass。。。 given that people believe things in Psychology， and then all of a sudden when they fall out of fashion they just stop believing them。 There's also the question of how strong certain of these effects are。How strong is the co-responsive effect？ （p。 234。）*******Verdict:I don't think I'm going to read this book again， nor keep because almost everything that Duckworth brings down are things that I have learned the hard way。 （A lifetime of not being able to reach the highest heights because of inability to follow through with things。 also， the fact that when you want to learn something it requires focused practice and constant thinking about what is being done wrong and how it can be made better。）Worth about $3+shipping。 。。。more
Megan Posner
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Absolutely a very well written and beautifully presented book about how to br gritty
Petia Vladimirova
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Good but extremely boring book！Local bookstore reccomendet it to me， so I bought it。 Every once in a while every person needs a little "push"in his life to keep going。 Book turned out full of very useful lines and absolutely true thoughts about life。 And it's so boring I am forcing myself to finish the page and start another one。 Useless descriptions of daily stuff， long， long sotries about school kids。。。 What is said within one chapter I can say in two lines。 Nobody likes time-wasting stories o Good but extremely boring book！Local bookstore reccomendet it to me， so I bought it。 Every once in a while every person needs a little "push"in his life to keep going。 Book turned out full of very useful lines and absolutely true thoughts about life。 And it's so boring I am forcing myself to finish the page and start another one。 Useless descriptions of daily stuff， long， long sotries about school kids。。。 What is said within one chapter I can say in two lines。 Nobody likes time-wasting stories or every single thought about someone experienced something。 It could be written in much more short and clean way。 And I am still at page 30， for god's sake！ 。。。more
Camille Fabre
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Interesting concept， basically natural talents are good but， what puts you over the top and make you the best is grit towards following one’s passion。 What I disliked though is that the author never addresses the fact that some passions are more conducive to « success » than some others。 And so we hear a lot about sportsmen， CEOs or celebrities in the book who are definitely passionate about swimming， running a bank or acting。 But， what if your passion is collecting lighters or pottery？ You migh Interesting concept， basically natural talents are good but， what puts you over the top and make you the best is grit towards following one’s passion。 What I disliked though is that the author never addresses the fact that some passions are more conducive to « success » than some others。 And so we hear a lot about sportsmen， CEOs or celebrities in the book who are definitely passionate about swimming， running a bank or acting。 But， what if your passion is collecting lighters or pottery？ You might be wildly successful in your area but， this won’t lead to « success » as defined in this book mainly by money and fame。 Also at no point is the concept of happiness fully addressed。 Maybe endless grit will make you excellent in a narrow area， but， what if trying a lot of different things and switching careers many times is actually more conducive to happiness？ 。。。more
Nic Ryan
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This book made my head clearer and more focused。 I will recommend this to everyone。 Angela is incredible。 Blessed she wrote a book for a commoner to enjoy。 I recommend all her work。
Tony
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This book is really an interesting read。 The first part especially。 I found the stories entertaining and there was plenty of research to support the anecdotes。 Where the book missed a bit for me was that it did sort of emphasize the importance of passion and perseverance over pure talent， but when I contrasted this with The Last Dance on Netflix， it is clear some have both。 Regardless， there was enough evidence provided to make this an awfully compelling characteristic and written in a very dige This book is really an interesting read。 The first part especially。 I found the stories entertaining and there was plenty of research to support the anecdotes。 Where the book missed a bit for me was that it did sort of emphasize the importance of passion and perseverance over pure talent， but when I contrasted this with The Last Dance on Netflix， it is clear some have both。 Regardless， there was enough evidence provided to make this an awfully compelling characteristic and written in a very digestible way。 。。。more
Julien Wera
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A good theory and study of its application， with data to show the results， and a humble admittance when the data is lacking。 I only regret that this book seems to be written solely for a US audience， with practically all examples and applications mostly ever referring to things that happens only in the US， making it hard to relate if that's not your case。 A good theory and study of its application， with data to show the results， and a humble admittance when the data is lacking。 I only regret that this book seems to be written solely for a US audience， with practically all examples and applications mostly ever referring to things that happens only in the US， making it hard to relate if that's not your case。 。。。more
Scout College Consulting
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It's not all about having the smartest kid on the block。 Duckworth uses her vast research efforts to show you that grit matters more than you might think。 Don't remain focused on genius， talent or even luck。 Think passion and perseverance。 The book has ideas you'll want to adopt for yourself - and for your children。 It's not all about having the smartest kid on the block。 Duckworth uses her vast research efforts to show you that grit matters more than you might think。 Don't remain focused on genius， talent or even luck。 Think passion and perseverance。 The book has ideas you'll want to adopt for yourself - and for your children。 。。。more
Debra Farrell
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I was really disappointed in this book。 I had heard so much about it and really expected to find it worthwhile but it seemed to me to be chapter after chapter of anecdotes that repeated the same theme。 Unfortunately， I was not able to finish the book。
Ivy
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I'd recommend reading a summary or watching one of the author's TED talks instead of listening to the entire audiobook （or reading the entire thing）。 The examples and stories started to feel incredibly repetitive and did not add to the overall message。 I kept hoping there would be some new revelation revealed further in the book， but now I wish I'd stopped earlier。 I'd recommend reading a summary or watching one of the author's TED talks instead of listening to the entire audiobook （or reading the entire thing）。 The examples and stories started to feel incredibly repetitive and did not add to the overall message。 I kept hoping there would be some new revelation revealed further in the book， but now I wish I'd stopped earlier。 。。。more
Peter Dixon
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Good content lost in too many words。 Could have been 1/5 the size。
Peter G
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Passion + Perseverance = Grit > TalentAwesome look at how resiliency outdoes talent over the long term in performance oriented organizations
Omar Fernández
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The title is the punchline， it's all about Grit。 However， this book is definitely worth a read。 There won't be many surprises， but rather practical advice on how to cultivate grit and why it matters。 The book covers the science and research behind the importance of grit， it talks about how to cultivate it yourself， how communities and cultures contribute to this （think of West Point）， and some early insights into parenting。 On that last point， however， the author acknowledges that the science is The title is the punchline， it's all about Grit。 However， this book is definitely worth a read。 There won't be many surprises， but rather practical advice on how to cultivate grit and why it matters。 The book covers the science and research behind the importance of grit， it talks about how to cultivate it yourself， how communities and cultures contribute to this （think of West Point）， and some early insights into parenting。 On that last point， however， the author acknowledges that the science is not yet conclusive and more research is needed。 Key takeaways for me: 1。 Sticking until the end with something that you start is important。 2。 Caveat to 1， you should quit when you're not interested in something。 Interest is crucial。 3。 Caveat to 2， you shouldn't quit just because things got difficult and you're in a temporary low point。 Bringing those 3 points together， the author suggests the most useful piece of advice that I got from the book。 Pick up an interest and define an interval at which you will reassess whether to continue with that interest or not。 It could be every 6 months， every year， etc。 Within that timeframe， stick with it， particularly when it gets difficult。 Then reassess。 That way you'll develop your grit， but won't stick with something that's not a true interest for too long。 。。。more
Zahra MiresmaIli
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To be honest， it took me so long to read this book。 Actually， it is not like the books which make you read it regularly and curious about what is going to happen。 However， I liked this book so much。 Since we live in the age of social media and having unlimited connections with people who we do not know personally and do not have precise information about them， we may become envious of their life style and their successes。 Unfortunately， it makes us think if only I lived in that country that they To be honest， it took me so long to read this book。 Actually， it is not like the books which make you read it regularly and curious about what is going to happen。 However， I liked this book so much。 Since we live in the age of social media and having unlimited connections with people who we do not know personally and do not have precise information about them， we may become envious of their life style and their successes。 Unfortunately， it makes us think if only I lived in that country that they live I would be successful too！ Or if only I had been that much intelligent， I would have finished my phD years ago。 Considering all these points， this book convinces you that perseverance， consistency and diligence are the main points that keep you going。 Don’t worry if you think you ‘re not smart enough or are not gifted in any kind of field。 Just keep going， look at these statistics and believe that the power of passion and perseverance are the most important prerequisites for success， neither money nor intelligence is that much important。 。。。more
Scott
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Great book for anyone interested in why some people do well in life when they might not be as intelligent as others。 Common sense in a way， but hard work and sticking to something difficult truly is the path to success。 At least that's what I took from this book。 Great book for anyone interested in why some people do well in life when they might not be as intelligent as others。 Common sense in a way， but hard work and sticking to something difficult truly is the path to success。 At least that's what I took from this book。 。。。more
Celine Ko
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Great read。 I'd heard so much about this book from other books that I knew I needed to get my hands on it。 I particularly enjoyed The Hard Thing Rule （everyone has to do one; you keep at it until a natural end point; you get to pick your hard thing） and will definitely apply it to myself and my daughter。 It was a bit longer than I expected， but the examples were all pertinent and demonstrated all the steps to get there。 As a naturally gritty person， it was still eye opening to see what others ha Great read。 I'd heard so much about this book from other books that I knew I needed to get my hands on it。 I particularly enjoyed The Hard Thing Rule （everyone has to do one; you keep at it until a natural end point; you get to pick your hard thing） and will definitely apply it to myself and my daughter。 It was a bit longer than I expected， but the examples were all pertinent and demonstrated all the steps to get there。 As a naturally gritty person， it was still eye opening to see what others had done， what they decided to do if it was for something that wasn't their calling。 。。。more
Arun Shivram
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No wonder this book comes highly recommended。 Everyone who thinks or ever thought i am not good enough to be xyz。。must read this and rethink。
Valeriana
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