Does Your Child Have “True Grit?”

We love this story.

At 11 years old, a young, talented swimmer wanted to quit. (He would later go on to be an elite athlete, but at the time was experiencing a slump. Training was hard, and he was in the middle of a losing streak.) He asked if he could abandon swimming, and his parents’ reaction to this changed the course of his life, a course that would eventually lead to the Olympics.

His father’s response to the request to quit was this: “If you want to quit, that’s fine. But I don’t want you to quit simply because you’re losing… So I’m going to continue to drive you to workouts and force you to swim and once you turn twelve and [are] at the top of your age group, you’ll start to do well. If you want to quit then, that’s fine.”

Of course, once he started winning again, the swimmer rediscovered his love for the sport. He was impassioned, motivated and later went on to compete in the Olympics. Quite simply, sometimes training for a sport or learning an instrument is just hard.

We heard this anecdote, from Benjamin Bloom’s book, Developing Talent in Young People, discussed during an episode of the program “Radio Times.” The episode grabbed our attention enough to warrant passing it along to you. Inspired by the remake of the famous western, the program focused on “True Grit” in children, which guest psychologist Angela Duckworth defined as “sustained perseverance and passion for especially long-term and challenging goals.”

Duckworth, a well-respected and widely published author on the subject and professor at the University of Pennsylvania, explained that children who were successful at a skill, sport or instrument weren’t necessarily the ones who were the most naturally gifted. Rather, the most successful children were the ones who were the most determined. Instruments or other skills, she noted, require determination and self discipline to learn, but the key ingredient to success is simply sticking with it.

True Grit /tru:/grıt/ - sustained perseverance and passion for especially long-term and challenging goals. (As defined by psychologist Angela Duckworth)

As demonstrated in the story of the swimmer, children need support to get through the tough times (like when the sun is shining and the back yard is far more tempting than the piano) to make it to the victories. Push through spring fever to make it to the Year End Shows. Practice the tough pieces and then celebrate like crazy. The success, in the end, is worth it. Of course, the “grit” — the self-discipline and determination — is what will make that success happen.

Our office staff talks to parent after parent who took music lessons as a child, and regrets quitting. We have yet to hear ONE story of someone who regrets sticking with it. If your child is experiencing a slump, talk to your teacher or call the office to come up with an action plan. Success is within reach. All is takes is practice, determination and a little grit.