Angela Duckworth, author of Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance, offers advice to college graduates in today’s New York Times. Here are some selected quotes related to Spelman’s CPI activities.
Don’t panic if you can’t think of a career path that’s a perfect fit. In large part, this is because interests are not just discovered, they’re developed…
A good-enough fit is a more reasonable aim than a perfect one. Consider your first job as an opportunity to begin an unpredictable, inefficient trial-and-error process…
People are hard-wired not only to gratify their personal desires but also to care for others. So rather than ask, “What do I want to be when I grow up?” ask, “In what way do I wish the world were different? What problem can I help solve?” This puts the focus where it should be — on how you can serve other people…
Psychologists have found that asking people to reflect in writing on their core values has miraculous effects on motivation. Because these are often the values you will be remembered for — what David Brooks calls “eulogy virtues” — you might consider writing a paragraph about what you would like people to say about you after you’ve drawn your last breath…