Range is a very interesting book. Has a generalist I felt inadequate for a long time when I was younger (the pressure being find a domain and stick with it).
I wish I had read something like this 10 years ago.
I was tricked into thinking I had “grit”
21–30 of 217 posts
Re: I was tricked into thinking I had “grit”
#22I disagree with the author's premise that you have "grit" only when it can be applied in any direction. To me, "grit" requires adversity instead of simply overall breadth. It's quite easy for us humans to do something if everything is going well. What about when it's not going well? Do we have enough to persevere through all times, including hard ones? Your startup is failing? Your research is yielding no fruit? You…
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Re: I was tricked into thinking I had “grit”
#23Boxer (Animal Farm) had grit. Whenever things got tough, he'd say "I will work harder!" After his death, his saying became a mantra and model for other good citizens to follow.
I revisited Animal Farm a few months ago. There are more and more mornings now where I'm reading the news, thinking about our world, and reminded of the animals on that farm.
Re: I was tricked into thinking I had “grit”
#24Grit = Just Do It (Nike Slogan).
My easy definition:
while(person_has_grit) {
if(pivot) continue;
if(give_up) break;
}
person_has_grit = false;Re: I was tricked into thinking I had “grit”
#25I disagree with the author's premise that you have "grit" only when it can be applied in any direction. To me, "grit" requires adversity instead of simply overall breadth. It's quite easy for us humans to do something if everything is going well. What about when it's not going well? Do we have enough to persevere through all times, including hard ones? Your startup is failing? Your research is yielding no fruit? You…
Right, is it grit to save your startup at the cost of your marriage? Life is all about tradeoffs.
Personally I think the ability to make appropriate effort / reward choices > "grit". Of course, to an investor, abandoning everything else in your life to focus on their investment is "grit".
Re: I was tricked into thinking I had “grit”
#26Grit = Just Do It (Nike Slogan). My easy definition: while(person_has_grit) { if(pivot) continue; if(give_up) break; } person_has_grit = false;
Grit is overrated. Determination is what matters. Grit implies you'd grind yourself down at a task you know probably won't go well for you, just because you'd never give up, even when you get zero enjoyment or satisfaction out of it.
Re: I was tricked into thinking I had “grit”
#27It is impossible to be really good at everything.... when I optimized for work, my fitness goals went through the window. When I optimized to get a project done, my reading (books) went down as well. When I optimized for fitness (working out and soccer), my work and side projects started progressing slower. It is very hard to work on your project at home, when you are in a intense bulking, or 'cutting' phase, and onc…
I think you hit the nail on the head. It's good advice, particularly if you're someone with a short attention span who's constantly jumping from project to project.
Nowadays, it's so easy to see just how far the talent pool is across the globe. You see the awesome cello player on Instagram, the amazing 3D games artist on Twitter, the world class gymnast on TikTok. You get so excited and inspired, and naturally, you want to be able to do the same.
But you can't pick up three things at once. Those people are exceptional because they focused on one thing - and only one thing only - for a long time. You only see what they produce, not the countless years of practice and frustration and experimentation that it took for them to get there.
That's not saying you can't get good at multiple things. But particularly for adults (who have far less free time than children), you are much better off concentrating on a single "improvement" goal at any one time. Maintain your other skills, sure, but accept that other people will overtake you in those areas. If you try and compete with everyone at everything, you'll just end up losing.
Re: I was tricked into thinking I had “grit”
#28Grit = Just Do It (Nike Slogan). My easy definition: while(person_has_grit) { if(pivot) continue; if(give_up) break; } person_has_grit = false;
Grit is overrated. Determination is what matters. Grit implies you'd grind yourself down at a task you know probably won't go well for you, just because you'd never give up, even when you get zero enjoyment or satisfaction out of it.
You'd be hard pressed to find a rewarding skill where you don't absolutely suck for at least a year when you start practicing it. If you pick up something and you don't fail immediately and often, it's probably trivial.
Re: I was tricked into thinking I had “grit”
#29I thought this was going to be about getting tricked to sell subscriptions to "Grit". There used to be comic book ads from the 1950s to the 1980s that got kids to go door to door to sell subscriptions to a newspaper/magazine called "Grit". Supposedly, if you sold a lot of subscriptions you could get a free bike or a stereo or something.
Re: I was tricked into thinking I had “grit”
#30It is impossible to be really good at everything.... when I optimized for work, my fitness goals went through the window. When I optimized to get a project done, my reading (books) went down as well. When I optimized for fitness (working out and soccer), my work and side projects started progressing slower. It is very hard to work on your project at home, when you are in a intense bulking, or 'cutting' phase, and onc…
..while having family/kids (but when you have them, your priority usually shifts anyway, so not a bad thing)