What do all successful people have in common?

Everyone wants to be successful … until they see what it actually takesWhat is success? Everyone wants it, but we all seem to have a different definition of what it is and what it means to us. Success is formally defined as: the favourable or prosperous termination of attempts or endeavours; the accomplishment of one's goals. For some this may revolve around career, academia, relationships, wealth, sports or a range of other affairs. So how do we achieve it?While teaching 7^th grade math, Angela Duckworth began to notice that IQ was not the only factor separating her best and worst students. She therefore set out to conduct her own research in order to determine what individual factors appeared to consistently predict success. She studied both children and adults in a range of settings including educational attainment, GPA of undergraduates, retention of Military Academy cadets and rankings of children in national spelling bees. So what was it that emerged as a significant predictor of success?IQ? NoSocioeconomic status? NoPhysical health? NoPopularity? NoAttractiveness? NoTalent? NoSo what was it???It was grit. Grit is defined as ‘passion and perseverance for long-term goals’, grit is determination, grit is long-term motivation and grit is working hard on a daily basis despite challenges, failures or not receiving immediate gratification. We are all familiar with that initial spike of motivation, smashing out work for hours, days or weeks at a time; but how many of us want our goals enough to do this for years? How passionate are we about them that we can continue our endeavours even when they provide us with more difficulty than enjoyment.Well it turns out that those who really want it, who are willing to put in the work; day in and day out all have ‘grit’ in common.Okay … so how do I become grittier?Duckworth suggests there are a few major factors of grit, which we must develop if we wish to become grittier:Interest: The first step is developing your self-awareness and identifying what it is that really interests you. What lights your inner flame, what makes you excited to do, or talk or even think about. It is essential you find something you are passionate about, or you are unlikely to pursue it when it gets tough.Practice: Yep, there’s no escaping this one. If you ever hope to improve, develop or progress in your chosen area of interest you must commit to practicing and progressively challenging yourself.Purpose: Why are you doing what you’re doing? What is it about your work that is giving you meaning? Why does it matter to you? Everyone’s reason is different but by establishing your purpose you are ensuring that your work holds some value to you and society.Hope: Hope is what drives us to keep going when we fail, when it gets hard or when every door seems to get shut in our face. Without the hope that we, or our situation, will improve it is near impossible to keep persevering.Finally, Duckworth has also suggested having a gritty mentor, who will provide us with support, challenge us and give us a realistic appraisal of our work and work ethic; something that can often be difficult to identify alone. A mentor doesn’t have to come with a specific title, they can be a parent, grandparent, teacher, boss, friend … really anyone who will provide you with the practicality and encouragement to be your best.So there you have it, no longer can we make excuses around IQ, talent or circumstance. If you want to be successful bad enough its time to knuckle down, persevere and be gritty.[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H14bBuluwB8[/embed]