Book

I’ve just finished reading Grit, by Angela Duckworth.

This was an incredibly easy and enjoyable read and is well worth picking up.  There are lots of references to other researchers and thinkers so the book is well referenced but also shows connection to some of the other books about success and practice in the popular press (such as Peak, by Anders Ericcson and The Talent Code, Daniel Coyle).

The book helped me to understand what grit is, how it’s useful in life, how it could help me and how to cultivate it. It also explores the idea of talent – is it something we are born with or something we can learn and cultivate.  She uses plenty of examples from real life from chess to basketball, as well as academic research and this helped to answer all my questions and “yes buts…..” in my head.

There is a good discussion about how to practice effectively to learn a particular skill and how grit helps with this.  A lot of this discussion has helped my thinking about how I practice my swimming, how I can become a more skilled coach and how I can use grit to make me a faster triathlete! It’s an incredibly positive and upbeat book and is a must read for anyone interested in reaching outstanding achievement in any field.