What is Grit and How Do You Get It? Give yourself a break if you don’t have it.

Grit is a trait that has been studied and determined to have two aspects: perseverance of effort and consistency of interests. It’s your ability to stick with something to the end even if it’s a hard road. Researchers have found that grit trait predicts future life successes like graduating from school, staying in a job, and even achievements with a sport or a skill. These are all things that take effort and stamina to see the end results.

This could explain why if you have trouble sticking with something when things get tough, it may not be that you’re inadequate or lazy, it's just not your nature to keep going. It's like brushing an animal’s fur the wrong way. Pushing through goes against the grain for you.

But all is not lost if you don’t naturally have grit. In this video I show you 4 ways you can develop grit.

Reference: Rimfeld, K., Kovas, Y., Dale, P. S., & Plomin, R. (2016). True grit and genetics: Predicting academic achievement from personality. Journal of personality and social psychology, 111(5), 780–789.

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Disclaimer: All of the information on this channel is for educational purposes and not intended to be specific/personal medical advice from me to you. Watching the videos or getting answers to comments/question, does not establish a doctor-patient relationship. If you have your own doctor, perhaps these videos can help prepare you for your discussion with your doctor.

[sarahwbs]

I think a lot of "grit" actually comes from having a good support system, and a sense of security and safety in life. It's easy to have grit when you have loving and supportive people around you, and when you don't have to worry about where your next meal is coming from. If you grow up in a situation where support, safety, and security are not present, it can be very hard to break out of that way of thinking/feeling as an adult, even if your circumstances have improved.

[pricklypear]

I have so much grit! I am tenacious, resilient and won't give up easily. I feel empowered when I push myself.

[rachelhoward]

As someone who tends to start out strong, but by the end often feel my best efforts fall short and lose motivation (I’m specifically thinking about college and high school here), I think these are very good tips.

[tayzonday]

Thank you! As a highly sensitive person, when people talk about “grit” as a character attribute or moral behavior, I find that notion to be tone-deaf and ableist.

[NeseretBemient]

A growth mindset is such a critical piece. To me, it is having humility and willingness to be a student of life. It is also taking responsibility for who you are and where you are in life. When you have a positive, growth-minded mindset then you're open and can allow new information to help you change/transform. It's also nice to know that we're not held hostage by our genetics or environmental background - that we can acquire new skills and develop new qualities. Grit is a great one to work on and cultivate. Thank you for sharing!

[PreppyPrincess]

Dr. Marks, you’ve just changed my life in 5 minutes and 48 seconds! I thought there was something wrong with my brain, I couldn’t figure out why I was so distracted and get bored so easily. Thank you for teaching me about grit.

[shannaseigel]

Interesting to reflect on. And kind of timely as I had a job interview that asked me to discuss a time I showed grit. With ADHD inattentive type, I *want* to be on one end of that conscientious spectrum but the reality is I’m not. I was diagnosed recently so I spent the last 30+ years fighting myself by wanting all those desirable attributes (especially in a world that prizes and praises grit) and feeling like a failure when I consistently fell short. I’ve often been told I’m an adaptable, go with the flow kind of person but I’ve never seen the two put side by side like in this OCEAN idea. It’s one more eye opening moment of how I have unrealistic expectations of myself when I’m basically wanting to be two sides of the same coin at the same time.

[fe]

That's a great video. It was after watching one of your videos on ADHD and misdiagnosis that I convinced myself it was a possibility for me. After an appointment with a specialist, I've been diagnosed with ADHD (combined type) at 35, and I'm on my second week of treatment rn. The contents in today's video relate so much with the struggles ADHDers have. Would love to see your take on the relationship between grit (or lack of) and ADHD, in case it becomes pertinent at any moment. Thank you for your content and availability in educating us.

[ginaellingsen]

Amazing. I am ADHD at 42 and struggled growing up in the 80’s undiagnosed. Fast forward to present day and each of these values are what I’ve been teaching to my ADHD son to help him keep focused and build the “grit” so many ADHD folks aren’t born with. I love how you’ve explained them here, it’s very possible to build grit with practice.

[dimitra]

this video kept coming up on my recommended and i kept postponing watching it, because i thought "huh? what is this grit? this seems like a complicated video. better not watch it now", but now that i finally watched it, i regret not watching it sooner. because, right now in my life because i dont have grit i feel like i cant continue and i feel so inadequate to the point where i want to give up *everything*
now that i think of it, this must be the reason why i stopped so many of my out of school activities when it became too hard or uninteresting. this gave an answer to many of my questions and struggles, truly thank you Dr. Tracey.

[mindymac_does_stuff]

Any thoughts on the dangers of "grit"? As someone who has pushed myself through situations only to harm my mental health (stayed with a job far too long and had severe burnout) or stuck with a workout that left me injured, there's definitely a downside to this trait. Sure it's great when it helps you hit societies life metrics, but when you constantly don't listen to your mind/body and push past the warning signals, it gets dicey. I completely understand that's not what Dr. Marks is suggesting. But I'm curious if others have experienced this in a negative way? And if so what were some ways you approached dealing with this?

[sweekley]

I had never heard of the term grit before, but I am glad to know it is something you may be born with. I am not someone who pushes through things that are hard. If I really want something I might, but I have found that for me personally it just ends up with making my depression worse and making me feel worse. But then I think about how much of a failure I am for quitting. Now I know that it is okay and that I am not failure and grit just doesn't come naturally for me. However, with certain things I do find that quitting isn't the best option and I will be better about pushing through to the end. Thank you Dr. Marks

[dmystfy]

My friend told me the same weightlifting analogy when I was struggling. I had also been weightlifting for months and saw my physical progress. Now I see all challenges that way, “I can’t do it yet, but eventually I’ll be able to lift this weight”

[AeriaGlris]

I had thought for a while that grit was a combination of what you learned from family and something inborn. It's great to see that science has reached the same conclusion, and that there are ways for people to develop their "grit". Sometimes those who have tons of grit can get discouraged so I think the tips you gave near the end of the video can be immensely helpful to many people.

[IsomJacobs]

I'm not going to lie, with everyone saying bad things about the internet but with your page and pages like it helps me find the people that I am told I should have around me. When I can't find productive friends to give good advice I can find people here, therefore thank you.

[patriciabittencourt]

OMG, your videos are the best! I can't imagine YouTube without them, you helped me so much, and inspired me to go to Medical School and become a psychiatrist myself. Maybe, someday we could attend to a conference and I will have the pleasure to thank you in person. Keep making the videos!! I watch from Brasil, Rio Grande do Sul, Bagé city.

[WindKing]

This is EXACTLY what I'm struggling extremely hard with at a new job.. The timing couldn't have been better. Thank you! Bless!

[allinory]

I have no idea if I have grit or not, honestly. I just do what I do, I want to become an excellent artists and draw popular comics, so I just draw and develop new stuff, and I don't stop no matter how little engagement I get with my art

[tumblingrosesstudio]

I score modestly on conscientiousness but am one of the most determined people in my circle of friends, my scatteredness is just something I have to work with and I have to relearn to be tidy and organized over and over!

[TeresaDLeecomedy]

I find it super easy to find a greater meaning and want to do things, and I think it was a breakthrough revelation for me when a friend said that I could choose to not define my identity with individual successes or failures and he read that women connect performance to identity more than men do. On the other end, I had strong negative feelings about the second point in this video about criticism and shifting to seeing obstacles as external situations outside of personal control. I am wondering if the kind of people who find it easy to process criticism already see everything as externally driven. I think it may be helpful for active narcissists, antisocial people, or borderline people but not so helpful to highly sensitive bipolar, unipolar, or physically disabled people who feel like they put in more effort only to be told it doesn't measure up to other people. I think I can art critique myself fairly in my head, but it's overwhelming and infuriating when someone else gets determined to encourage failure identity thoughts in other people and then calls them weak when they say that person has not earned the right to criticize with any redeeming points or friendship acts.