I was reminded of this truth when I read a review of Angela Duckworth’s new book ‘Situated’ which focuses on the impact our environment has on our circumstances and behavior. Some have taken this as contradiction of the theme of her previous book ‘Grit’ which focused on the vital importance of an individual’s effort, resilience, and persistence.
Duh! Such a binary ‘either/or’ frame misses the point. ‘Situated’ compliments and perhaps completes ‘Grit’. There are many times when an inside-out approach (Grit) is best and there are others when outside-in is better and probably most times parallel process is best!
In Duckworth’s own words: “Grit is necessary but not sufficient.” and “A successful situation amplifies your effort, while a losing situation diminishes it.”
So, two messages to this blog: First, be skeptical of the false dichotomy of ‘forced choices’, much of life is more akin to a dial on a spectrum than a toggle switch. Second, “Never use your environment as an excuse—and yet also never ignore its impact”.
Closing Quotes:
“Properly organized, the environment will control behavior smoothly and effectively.” – B.F. Skinner
“A bad system will beat a good person every time.” – W. Edwards Deming (and so a good person avoids or reforms bad systems! – NSC)
“Environment is the invisible hand that shapes human behavior. You don’t have to be the victim of your environment; you can also be the architect of it.” – James Clear, Atomic Habits
As always, I share what I most want and need to learn. – Nathan S. Collier
Note: Every effort has been made to properly source any 3rd person material. I am, however, a voracious reader. If anyone finds any unattributed material, pls let me know asap and I will be delighted to give credit where credit is due.
“All intelligent thoughts have already been thought; what is necessary is only to try to think them again.” – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, 1749-1832
