Dictionary.com defines grit as firmness of character; indomitable spirit; pluck. The last time something got hard what did you do – quit, pause, or push forward? I never really thought about grit until about two months ago. I was taking a class on Positive Psychology and we were asked to take The Grit Survey. It measures the Character Strength of Perseverance (perseverance: the steady persistence in a course of action). Now, I have to tell you – my Grit Score was low. Why? Because usually things come pretty easily to me, so I figured if it didn’t come easy, then it’s just not possible for me to do it. But, it really made me step back and think…if my grit score is low, if I have a low level of perseverance, does that make me a quitter? When the going gets tough, does that mean I don’t get going? Hmmm. It didn’t sound like me…or rather, I didn’t want that to sound like me. In retrospect, it seems kind of silly to give up so easily because we aren’t born experts at everything. There are so many things in the world that took time, determination, and perseverance to achieve. How about landing on the moon? Fifteen consecutive unmanned lunar missions over a six year period failed. Thomas Edison experimented with thousands of different filaments before he found the right one that would glow well and be long-lasting.

Now, I’m not trying to be the next Neil Armstrong or Thomas Edison. But, I have thought a lot about grit lately and I have decided I’m not giving up when it gets hard. Easier said than done on days like yesterday but there is always tomorrow. When you fall, get back up. If you need to take a step back before taking a step forward, it’s ok.

If you’ve ever been in one of my financial skills classes, you know that I usually have to take the scenic route to get to my destination, so bear with me here while we detour…first of all, I have to tell you that it is again 2am while I write this. What is it about me and 2am? Second, I think it’s interesting that I decide to write about grit and determination and I’m watching The Biggest Loser and one of the contestants quit a challenge when he was in 2nd place and he realized that he needed to work on his grit.

Ok, so back to where I was going…how much grit do you have? When something gets difficult, do you give up or do you push on until you reach your goal, whatever it is? You know what’s cool about grit? It’s one of those things that each of us has the power to change within ourselves! I even moved my grit score from a 2 to a 3 on a 5-point scale. It’s progress and I’ll take it!

My Blog Nugget: Think about goals and accomplishments in your life. Do you give up easily or do you stick with it until the end?

Where’s your grit level? Click on that link up there and see how you do. What can you do to move that score closer to a 5? Tell me about your grit score and what you’ll do to improve it.

Peace and Prosperity!

Fear is an interesting animal. It either makes us jump to action or freeze in fear. Scientifically, it’s called the Fight or Flight Response and we typically think of it when we think about predator and prey – Eagle vs. Rabbit, Snake vs. Mouse, Cheetah vs. Gazelle – but similar responses happen in the human world, too.

For those of you who don’t know me very well (or at all), I am really passionate about things financial – creating goals and spending plans, organizing your records, credit reports, credit scores, predatory lending, scams, taxes, estate planning, emergency preparedness and on and on…I’m also passionate about teaching people and helping them get where they want to go – either by providing the knowledge, the skills, or the motivation. But, I seem to have gotten off track a little…let me go back…

Predator and prey, (some) financial service companies and consumers…I see lots of similarities.

• The predator will take advantage of the prey’s weaknesses.
• The financial service company will take advantage of the consumer’s weaknesses (usually lack of knowledge).
• The predator will chase it’s prey until it is too tired to run anymore.
• The financial service company will pursue the consumer until they give up or pay up.
• The prey will freeze when the predator is near.
• The consumer will freeze when the financial service company shows some muscle.

Hmmm…I’m not sure where I was going with that. It is 2am and I’m sitting here writing this when I should probably be asleep, so cut me a little slack in the comments section, please. I promise that future blogs will make more sense.

My blog nugget: What fears are keeping you frozen? What can you do to unfreeze yourself?

Peace and Prosperity!