Angela Duckworth

“Do not let temporary setbacks become permanent excuses.”

— Angela Duckworth

There are no shortcuts to true excellence.

— Angela Duckworth

“We change when we need to. Necessity is the mother of adaptation.”

— Angela Duckworth

“Interest without purpose is nearly impossible to sustain for a lifetime.”

— Angela Duckworth

The words that we use I think are symbolic of the values that we hold.

— Angela Duckworth

“Optimists are more satisfied with their marriages.”

— Angela Duckworth

Grit and self-control are related, but they're not the same thing.

— Angela Duckworth

“Passion begins with intrinsically enjoying what you do.”

— Angela Duckworth

When people tell me I can't do something, I have a visceral reflex to say, 'Yes, I can.'

— Angela Duckworth

“callings have little to do with formal job descriptions. In fact, she believes that just”

— Angela Duckworth

“following through on our commitments while we grow up both requires grit and, at the same time, builds it.”

— Angela Duckworth

“whatever your occupation, you can maneuver within your job description—adding, delegating, and customizing what you do to match your interests and values.”

— Angela Duckworth

“complacency has its charms, but none worth trading for the fulfillment of realizing their potential.”

— Angela Duckworth

“Nobody wants to show you the hours and hours of becoming. They’d rather show the highlight of what they’ve become.”

— Angela Duckworth

“For the beginner, novelty is anything that hasn’t been encountered before. For the expert, novelty is nuance.”

— Angela Duckworth

“Optimistic young adults stay healthier throughout middle age and, ultimately, live longer than pessimists.”

— Angela Duckworth

“Grit depends on a different kind of hope. It rests on the expectation that our own efforts can improve our future. "I…

— Angela Duckworth

“In fact, he can’t remember a single case in which the development of purpose unfolded without the earlier observation of a purposeful…

— Angela Duckworth

One thing that's true of gritty people is they love what they do, and they keep loving what they do. So they're…

— Angela Duckworth

Grittier students are more likely to earn their diplomas; grittier teachers are more effective in the classroom. Grittier soldiers are more likely…

— Angela Duckworth

“As a psychologist, I can confirm that grit is far from the only—or even the most important—aspect of a person’s character. In…

— Angela Duckworth

“the very same commands can be issued in a way that inspires allegiance or seeds resentment. And the difference comes down to…

— Angela Duckworth

We have found a direct correlation between grit and positive emotions, but the fact that I have no evidence that grit is…

— Angela Duckworth

“The bottom line on culture and grit is: If you want to be grittier, find a gritty culture and join it. If…

— Angela Duckworth

“For now, what I hope to convey is that experts and beginners have different motivational needs. At the start of an endeavor,…

— Angela Duckworth

“As anyone who has started an organization from scratch can tell you, there are a million tasks, big and small, and no…

— Angela Duckworth

“I’m not going to lie,” he replied. “I never really enjoyed going to practice, and I certainly didn’t enjoy it while I…

— Angela Duckworth

“Over time, we learn life lessons we don't forget, and we adapt in response to the growing demands of our circumstances. Eventually,…

— Angela Duckworth

I now have Grit Scale scores from thousands of American adults. My data provide a snapshot of grit across adulthood. And I've…

— Angela Duckworth

“dogged perseverance toward a top-level goal requires, paradoxically perhaps, some flexibility at lower levels in the goal hierarchy. It’s as if the…

— Angela Duckworth

“MacKenzie still throws clay on the wheel every day, and with effort his skill has improved: “I think back to some of…

— Angela Duckworth

“key process in personality development involves situations and personality traits reciprocally “calling” each other. The corresponsive principle suggests that the very traits…

— Angela Duckworth

“How often do people start down a path and then give up on it entirely? How many treadmills, exercise bikes, and weight…

— Angela Duckworth

“In his best-selling 1928 parenting guide, Psychological Care of Infant and Child, Watson holds forth on how to raise a child “who…

— Angela Duckworth

“Encouragement during the early years is crucial because beginners are still figuring out whether they want to commit or cut bait. Accordingly,…

— Angela Duckworth

“Two indicators could easily be rephrased as passion items for the Grit Scale. Degree to which he works with distant objects in…

— Angela Duckworth

“One way to think about grit is to understand how it relates to other aspects of character. In assessing grit along with…

— Angela Duckworth

“Even supermotivated people who’re working to exhaustion may not be doing deliberate practice. For instance, when a Japanese rowing team invited Olympic…

— Angela Duckworth

“To be gritty is to resist complacency.”

— Angela Duckworth

“Stay positive,” Cody said. “Go past those negative beliefs in what’s possible and impossible and just give it a try.”

— Angela Duckworth