Make Grit a Mindset

I have a litigator friend who just wrapped up a tough case. I thought he would be in the mood to commiserate, but he laughed off the insults and snarky comments the other side lobbed his way. He shrugged his shoulders and said, “Are you kidding? I’ve been called worse things during a pick-up basketball game!”

In the July series, Three Work Skills to Make Grit Cool and Easy, we’re talking about how to leverage work skills to make sticking to your goals—especially in challenging times—a little easier. My friend’s experience points out a hidden component of grit: Healthy self-esteem.

Here’s why: The old school way of bossing up was to do anything to win because W’s drove your self-image. But that outlook isn’t realistic or sustainable. If you only feel good about yourself when you’re getting your way, you’ll usually wind up feeling bad. So, developing a thick skin—where you see nasty surprises as separate from your identity—is a handy skill!

Balancing optimism with a thick skin was a lesson our case study subject, Janie Deegan, discovered. Let’s see what she can show us about grit.

Make Grit a Mindset

So far in the series, you’ve heard how Janie started a baking business after beating addiction and homelessness in her mid-twenties. Deegan knew she was on to something when she invented the Pie Crust Cookie, but the business was slow to take off. After years of selling at street fairs and pop-up markets, she reached the milestone of renting a commercial kitchen space and hiring staff.

But then COVID came to town, upending Janie’s plans. She put the downtime to good use, brainstorming with her staff about how to expand the business to include e-commerce. Fellow food service professionals chipped in their advice, and one word came up repeatedly: Scalability.

Janie kept noodling until she had a breakthrough. She remembers her a-ha moment as, “Pie Crust Cookies are scalable, and making Dora the Explorer cakes for local birthday parties is not.” So, she made the bold move to take cakes off the menu. Permanently.

The bet paid off, and now the combined revenue from her online and New York retail locations is over $1,000,000 annually. However, Janie considers her staff the heart of the business. She’s made a point of screening in candidates who may have had a difficult past but are ready for a fresh start. Janie’s Life Changing Baked Goods is more than a name; it’s a mindset.

Staying Power Mindset Swaps

You can overcome the odds, just like Janie Deegan. Some days, you’ll hit on The Big Idea. But most days, getting to the next level isn’t as glamorous—it simply requires staying power.

If your staying power energy tank could use a refill, try these mindset swaps:

1. Maybe I need to quit becomes There’s an answer—I’m just not sure yet
2. I don’t know what I don’t know becomes I’ll learn what I don’t know
3. I’m at a dead end becomes This is a sign to pivot

Three Work Skills to Make Grit Cool and Easy Series Recap

At the beginning of this series, we discussed how upleveling your grit expertise is essential because even the best projects or plans face challenges. But soft skills aren’t tricky or complicated—they’re as easy as 1, 2, 3! So, here’s a recap of quantifiable, marketable qualities that will make persevering easy:

1. The first skill was Persistence. Push through past mistakes instead of pushing them down. Turn a gut punch into a gutsy story.
2. The second skill was Constructive Creativity. Reach your goals by replacing magical thinking with a combination of critical thinking and imagination.
3. The last skill was Healthy Self-Esteem. Bounce back from temporary obstacles and disappointments by developing a thick skin.

Setbacks will happen, but whether you’re facing them in business or any other part of your life, they don’t need to be the boss of you. Courageously take charge and move past roadblocks like the creative, wise CEO of your life—a Soul Boss. Make resilience, stamina, and grit permanent parts of your mindset.