The Difference Between Grit and Grind
The “Grow without the Grind” philosophy often brings up one critical objection.
“I don’t believe in The Secret, the idea that you can just believe it and it will come true.”
And I agree.
I believe that no progress comes without a combination of beliefs and thoughts AND intentional action.
But, there’s a difference in the quality of action.
Intentional action during the messy middle where success isn’t immediately apparent….
Versus extractive action designed to keep you hustling, overwhelmed, grasping and burned out.
I call this Grit versus Grind.
What is grit?
Grit is defined by Angela Duckworth as “passion and perseverance for long term goals. It’s not talent. It’s not luck. It’s having an ‘ultimate concern’ - a goal you care about so much that it organizes and gives meaning to almost everything you do. And grit is holding steadfast to that goal.”
I want to add one element: I define grit as operating in accordance to your mission and your values, even when it’s inconvenient to your comfort. But not when it’s threatening to your safety.
If you have a value like mine of sustainability, then grit doesn’t mean sacrificing that sustainability in service of short-term, “expected” results.
In contrast, the grind is about sacrificing your values for urgency, perfection, productivity and ultimately external definitions of success.
It’s about treating our bodies and businesses like machines, and getting caught up in the never-ending grind of the machinery.
It’s about running so hard for results that we crash and burn - ourselves OR our community.
It’s about succumbing to the performative nature of patriarchal business, setting aside your values and needs in service to the expectations of others or the algorithm.
How do we balance both action while staying in grit versus grind?
It’s easy to balance both when times are easy. (When are times easy though?)
But when times get challenging, ask yourself these questions:
Are you making your decisions from a story of fear, a story of urgency, of false perfectionism?
How would you move forward if your values were an equal partner at the table?
Are you taking these actions due to external pressures or an internal drive?
Are you avoiding actions because they are inconvenient? Or truly out of misalignment?