by Fatuma Abdullah
I get hot under the collar, when I attend seminars or conferences and entrepreneurs are presented in a romanticized fashion. Or worse, glamorizing the subject of entrepreneurship and neglecting the most important unseen component of the journey, the sleepless nights, the self-discipline, rejection, disappointments, failure, the lack of support and resources.
‘’Grit” a word introduced by Psychologist Angela Duckworth summed it up as “the sustained passion and perseverance towards reaching long term goals” In her studies grit surpasses talent, especially when talent doesn’t work hard.
I see grit as a combination of many things. Its having faith in your vision making you stand by it. Its having a positive attitude, when you recognize failures as stepping stones, challenges are opportunities to pause and reflect, rejection as redirection. I see grit is an internal motivation and putting in the hard work to achieve. All successful entrepreneurs and business leaders have sited situations and circumstances where grit has pulled them through, from Oprah Winfrey to our many homegrown successes like Dr. Victoria Kisyombe of SELFINA whose incredible inspirational journey started from a cow she called SERO and she is now empowering a whole generation of women through finance. Nobel Prize Winner Prof. Wangari Mathai she had passion for the environment, she persevered, she did the work no matter how insignificant it seemed and she was finally recognized on a global stage. Castor Semenya South African gold medalist despite the criticism and the ridicules she has pushed and managed to stay on top of her game.
Grit is an essential part of the entrepreneur’s journey, and the good news is that it can be developed. It starts by knowing thyself and what you want to contribute to society. I have put it mildly but you need to be clear. The classic business question on any entrepreneurs journey is “what problem are you solving for?” If you believe you have the solution, you need grit to succeed. My top 4 suggestions on developing grit are;
Surround yourself with different People - people who are able to expand your thinking, solution oriented people, a support team a cushion to land on when things get tough.
Flexible thinking - If things do not go according to plan, make another plan. If you experience a setback, what can you learn from that experience, what do you need to improve? I always remind myself it’s a journey not a sprint. There are more ways than one to get to the end goal and sometimes the detours are a blessing in disguise.
Meetings with yourself – It is important to make time for reflection within the 24hours we get. Journaling is a good way to reflect on your goals and most importantly being clear on your ‘Why’. Being clear on my why plays a very big role on why I continue doing what I am doing. Reflection is also good time to exercise gratitude, it helps improve your attitude.
Compete with yourself – We are all different with different intentions, values and priorities. Competing with others can your uniqueness and derail your focus. Compete with yourself to get better at your technique and your own race. I am not a fan of rap but I heard this from JayZ “I look in the mirror, my only opponent”. It’s about you being the best you can be on your lane. Marathon runners at the finish line, look at their own watch. Did I do better than I did yesterday?
“To be gritty is to keep putting one foot in front of the other. To be gritty is to hold fast to an interesting and purposeful goal. To be gritty is to invest, day after week after year, in challenging practice. To be gritty is to fall down seven times, and rise eight.” Angela Lee Duckworth
Fatuma is a student of life and an award winning author. She has self-published 5 children’s books of Akiki’s stories. She is the Founder and Director of Akiki Distributors Pty which manufactures and distributes Akiki Dolls. Fatuma is passionate about teaching children and connecting children through African relatable stories. She promotes reading for pleasure for children. She is the co-founder of Literacy Circles that focuses on improving literacy skills through storytelling and she is also part of the Schools Reading Road Show committee.