🏆 How do you develop GRIT with your TEAM?

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What is GRIT?

How does it apply to team sports and coaching?

GRIT is defined as the following:

Grit is a personality trait possessed by individuals who demonstrate passion and perseverance toward a goal despite being confronted by significant obstacles and distractions. Those who possess grit are able to self-regulate and postpone their need for positive reinforcement while working diligently on a task. (https://gostrengths.com/what-is-grit/)

In other words, GRIT is toughness and resilience. It is the ability to overcome adversity and failure.

How do you develop GRIT?

How can coaches build GRIT in their team?

How can parents develop GRIT with their kids?

Adversity and failure will happen. It is guaranteed. Once you know this and accept this, you can begin to think about how you will respond or overcome this.

This is your GRIT.

Here are a few ideas on how to develop GRIT with your team.

1: NO excuses allowed

GRIT is about adversity and how you handle it. If you make an excuse for the circumstances that happen to you, you will never achieve your potential.

People with GRIT do not let themselves make excuses.

They are tough-minded and take responsibility for the choices they make.

2: NO complaining allowed

Tough things will happen. In sports and in life.

When you complain, you shift from a solution-based mindset to a "woe is me" mindset. You turn the responsibility to the outside of your control.

GRITTY and resilient athletes/people always shift the responsibility back to what they can control. They are solution based.

Don't complain; find a solution.

3: Maintain a Growth mindset

Follow the Tomato Theory!

You are either "Green and Growing" or Red and Rotting."

A growth mindset is a mindset of GRIT. It allows you to believe that you can always work through any challenge that comes your way.

Those with fixed mindsets believe that "we are what we are."

They look at a talented athlete and only see the end result. They forget all of the hard work that goes into what is seen on the court or field.

Have a growth mindset.

Know that the key to success is pretty simple:

• Great daily Habits

• Persistence with these Habits

• Relentless Consistency

Those that persist GROW. They know they will overcome any obstacle in their way through hard work.

They have GRIT.

4: Keep a ➕Attitude

The world will throw a lot at you. There are a few things that we always have control over each day.

One of these is our ATTITUDE.

A Positive Attitude will allow you to overcome any challenge that comes your way.

Stuff happens, but your response is always what is most important.

Again, it puts you in CONTROL, not the external circumstances.

Choose to live a life that you can control as best as possible.

A bad play happens in a game; your Attitude will turn that into a "NEXT PLAY" mindset.

GRIT is your response to circumstances. It all starts with Attitude.

5: Embrace Challenges

You are playing a great team or a great player; how do you respond?

Do you accept the challenge head-on? Are you excited about the opportunity? Do you believe you can win? Are you excited to play the best?

OR

Do you idolize the team you are playing? Do you fear the team you are playing? Do you think you even have a chance? Are you scared to compete?

I have seen many teams get scared, play in fear, or give up before they even begin.

The game is over before it even begins.

GRIT is about accepting and embracing challenges. It is about having a perspective that playing the best is going to bring out the best in you. It is a mindset.

6: Create strong daily HABITS

Habits Win.

This is one thing that the pandemic really brought out in individuals and schools. We took away the routines and habits of school, activities, and sports from kids for a period of time, and it really hurt them.

We all need routine.

We are all creatures of HABIT.

Don't think of the end product. It is overwhelming, and most people never achieve their goals when they only focus on the end.

Instead, focus on great Daily Habits. Do these every day. Start small. Do simple things. Commit to doing simple habits over time.

In sports, during pressure situations, you will always sink to your HABITS.

Most do not "rise" to the occasion.

These simple daily habits create an attitude and confidence that will help you develop GRIT and overcome anything thrown your way.

7: Have a healthy perspective of "Failure."

Finally, do not believe in Failure. It does not exist.

Kobe Bryant talked about this in a great interview (see below).

If you believe that failure does not exist, you believe that it is just a step in the process. We can always grow and get better.

Many view failure as final. It is a fixed mindset. They stop. They quit.

Winners do not believe in failure.

They have GRIT. They continue to persevere.

There you go! Seven strategies to work on with your athletes to help them develop GRIT.

GRIT is an incredibly important life skill that team sports allow us to develop and grow. As coaches, we do this naturally, and we do it all of the time. I hope these strategies give you a couple more tools in your tools box to help develop GRIT in your team.

Good luck!

KOBE BRYANT - "FAILURE DOESNT EXIST" — www.youtube.com

Kobe Bryant explains how he doesn't love to win or hate to lose, he strives to get better. Motivating, Inspiring.

TWO QUOTES

“The vision of a champion is someone who is bent over, drenched in sweat, at the point of exhaustion, when no one else is watching.”

— Anson Dorrance

"When you hang out with the wrong people in the wrong place, you will soon do the wrong things."

— Greg Laurie

THREE TWEETS

BOOKS: Coaching GOLD 🥇 & Culture WINS 🏆: Find both books & other FREE resources here: [email protected]. Paperback version? Culture Wins on Amazon (click here)