Part III. Essay. 60 points.

Read the passage and write an essay responding to the ideas it presents. In your essay, be certain to summarize the passage in your

own words, stating the authors most important ideas. Develop your essay by identifying one idea in the passage that you feel

is significant and explain its significance. Support your claims with evidence or examples drawn from your own experiences and/or the

experiences of family or friends.

If you have trouble getting started, try following this outline:
Paragraph 1: Introduction-Tell your reader what the author of the passage is saying
Paragraph 2: Body Paragraph-Tell your reader what you think about one of the authors ideas. Explain if you agree or disagree with the author? Is there a new way of looking at the issue that the author hasn’t considered?
Paragraph 3: Body Paragraph -Give examples (at least two) that supports your view of the authors idea.
Paragraph 4: Conclusion-Why is this topic important to think about and how have what you presented in the body paragraphs contributed to the way we think about this topic.

The Truth about Grit By Jonah Lehrer

Genius is 1 percent inspiration and 99 percent perspiration, Thomas Edison famously remarked.  What researchers call “grit,” or persistence, is about the willingness to work hard, setting a specific long-term goal, and doing whatever it takes until the goal has been reached. Its always much easier to give up, but people with grit can keep going. Grit, it turns out, is an essential (and often overlooked) component of success.  Id bet that there isnt a single highly successful person who hasnt depended on grit, says Angela Duckworth, a psychologist at the University of Pennsylvania who helped pioneer the study of grit. Nobody is talented enough to not have to work hard, and thats what grit allows you to do.

While researchers have for a long time focused on measurements of intelligence, such as the IQ test, as the crucial marker of future success, many scientists point out that most of the variation in individual achievement – what makes one person successful, while another might struggle – has nothing to do with being smart. Instead, it largely depends on personality traits such as grit and conscientiousness.  Its not that intelligence isnt really important, but that having a high IQ is not enough.

But grit isnt just about stubborn perseverance – its also about finding a goal that can sustain our interest for years at a time. Consider two children learning to play the piano, each with the same level of raw talent and each expending the same effort toward musical training. However, while one child focuses on the piano, the other child experiments with the saxophone and cello. The kid who sticks with one instrument is demonstrating grit, Duckworth says. Maybe its more fun to try something new, but high levels of achievement require a certain single-mindedness.

Woody Allen once remarked that Eighty percent of success is showing up. Duckworth points out that its not enough to just show up; one must show up again and again and again. Sometimes it isnt easy or fun to keep showing up. Success, however, requires nothing less. Thats why it takes grit.