Grit In My Life Analysis

If grit is a significant predictor of success, then I feel I have reached that goal. An article in Forbes Magazine talks about how the topic of grit, and whether or not young people have it anymore, was the focus of a TED Talk and a book by Angela Duckworth about the power and passion of perseverance. I started swimming competitively when I was in the second grade and am still swimming. Like any competitive sport, there are plenty of days when I don’t feel like getting in the pool -- I’m tired, I’m sore or I have other things I’d rather be doing. But swimming is part of who I am and I wouldn’t feel complete without it in my life. One of my strengths is perseverance. I don’t like to give up and when it comes to swimming in particular, the only way to get better, to swim faster and make better times is to practice. It’s just like learning an instrument -- the more you do it, the better you become. I took the same approach when I attended lifeguard training. Meeting the swimming requirement wasn’t that difficult, but studying for CPR AED and first aid requirements were a bit more challenging. I was determined to become a certified lifeguard. However, that wasn’t the most challenging part. One thing all of the training …show more content…
I’m close to this particular cousin and witnessed firsthand the heartache and grief she and his family experienced. It was a horrible time for all of us and one that I’ll never forget. I felt helpless in that there was nothing I could say or do to make her feel better. I had never experienced the death of a young child and it haunts me to this day. If anything positive could have come from this event, it’s that it was the catalyst for me to want to be a lifeguard. Even though I wasn’t there when it happened, I felt I could somehow contribute to saving someone else who was drowning. I wanted to be part of the solution and never wanted to see someone close to me suffer the way my cousin