Angela Lee Duckworth, UPenn, speaks on her career experiences teaching middle school math in a New York public school and how she learned IQ is not a fair assessment of intelligence. She explains that success can be predicted by a very different factor -grit.
Angela Duckworth, the psychologist and researcher, defines grit as a passion and perseverance for long term and meaningful goals.
PhD students most certainly have grit- they choose to dedicate 3+ years to answering a specific question and then possibly several more years developing an individualized research plan.
However, how many students went to college and decided to go to graduate school just to be greeted by the reality of academia and a level of uncertainty for their future?
During graduate school or your postdoctoral fellowship, take the time to consider what goals are meaningful to you. Redefining your path is one step closer to finding the career path for you. Don’t let your future be a jumbled mess of a cookie cutter academic plan just because you have been in school for the majority of your life. Use your grit to give yourself direction and pave your own path towards success. You most certainly have the tools. You can do anything.
Get it done.
