Book Notes - Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance by Angela Duckworth
Buy this book here.
An excellent book about the ability to persevere over time and not give up even when things are hard. As a parent I found this book useful and it gave me some ideas that I’ve been able to implement.
I loved the section which introduced the concept of the “Hard Thing Rule.” In Duckworth’s family, everyone has a hard thing - something that requires daily, deliberate practice in order to improve. Both parents have hard things that they work at, for example, Duckworth works at psychological research and yoga. Her husband works at real estate development and running. This is how they role model the “Hard Thing Rule”. This is a good place to reference one of my favourite quotes from the book,
“Children have never been very good at listening to their elders, but they have never failed to imitate them.”
The second component of the Hard Thing Rule is that you can quit, but must fulfil your commitment. For example, if you commit to a season of soccer, you must finish the full season. You can’t quit after a bad game. I’ve found this concept to be particularly useful when talking to my kids about setbacks when it comes to extracurricular activities.
Essentially, this book boils down to sustaining effort over a long period of time. It is well researched and is easy to read.