Today, I opened my e-mail to
find yet another tiresome article from Linked In about “grit”: Does your child
have it? How can they get it? How can this quality be used to make more money
for corporate America?
I’m fed up with reading
articles about how to give your kids “grit”. If you’re worried about your kid’s lack of
grit, your kid does not have grit, nor are they likely to get it. Grit is not another consumer item that you
can buy, finagle, or “create an experience” around for your child. Grit does
not come from some manufactured experience that you can cook up, nor is it just
another consumer good you can purchase to ensure your child’s success in a
capitalistic system.
Grit is an authentic quality that develops when the adults
in your life don’t make your mental, emotional, and physical safety their top
priority every given second. Grit develops when you are truly alone in the
world, in over your head, and those around you are completely indifferent to
your pain. Grit develops when no one is there to rescue you, and you have to
keep enduring day after day, no matter what. Grit is the pearl developed
through long years of agitation and discomfort. Grit is a survival instinct, a necessity
that blooms in those of us who did not enter this world with a safety net
billowing below us 24/7. Grit is not a corporate buzzword or another trendy anti-Millennial
movement. Grit is real, and it’s serious stuff, and if you’re obsessed with how
to obtain it for your child, your kid ain’t got it, and is never going to get
it. So please, stop writing pithy articles about grit. Grit is not cute. It’s
not something you can shoehorn into your kid’s experience or otherwise
purchase. Grit is serious stuff, and it should be left to the professionals.
Kristen McHenry
2 comments:
Actually, "grit" does seem like a corporate buzzword these days. Speaking of which, I highly recommend a new book by Nicole Aschoff, The New Profits of Capital. It has case studies of four super-rich people who are very public in explaining how to "fix" capitalism. (I'm with Aschoff: capitalism isn't something that can be tweaked; it needs fundamental reform.) One of the people she profiles is Oprah. And the main thing there is her philosophy that very real, very harsh external obstacles are really just internal obstacles. It's the typical New Age philosophy, turned into a weapon of the plutocrats. We don't need a higher minimum wage or greater union power; we just need to see every setback and a great opportunity! This kind of thing has been shown to be nonsense when it comes to suffering through cancer (that is: being "positive" doesn't increase your chances). But in the economic realm, we are still getting it crammed down our throats.
I don't have grit; I'm just stubborn.
Great comment, Frank! I agree completely.
Post a Comment