There are 6 Foundations to forging GRIT:
1) Default-YES vs. Default-NO
2) Intensity vs. Check The Box
3) Suffer Together vs. Suffer Alone
4) Go, No Go vs. Random Check-Ins
5) Metrics vs. No Metric
6) Integrity vs. No Integrity
Here Are What Those Represent & Test For:
1 -----> Mindset
2 -----> Pain
3 -----> Team
4 -----> Consequence
5 -----> Progress
6 -----> Character
Without the proper ingredients and framework to forge GRIT, then forging GRIT isn't possible. The Lesser Self is a wile motherfucker. He is devious and cunning, driven by shortcuts and escapes. If you don't anticipate that and design the Game to proactively defeat him, then the Lesser Self outmaneuvers the Heroic Self. To prevent this, we design the Game to the advantage of the Heroic Self.
THE "STORYATHLETE WAY"
The StoryAthlete Way is also known as, "The Way of the Heroic Self." For us to become our Heroic Self, the Lesser Self must die. The Lesser Self is the piece-of-shit that sabotages us with excuses and is too mentally-weak to persist. There are four elements to living the "StoryAthlete Way" - Grit, Legacy, Fitness, Fuel. GRIT is first in the hierarchy, for a good reason. Without GRIT, nothing is possible. Hard shit requires mental toughness. It requires us to be able to endure pain; mentally, emotionally, physically. For years, I tried to teach tactics and strategies. And for years, most didn't do a damn thing with anything I taught. I could never figure why. Well, now, I know. I provided the tactics and strategies, but I never required GRIT as the admission into the party. It's easy and fun to learn. It sucks and is painful to execute. It's a truth I've seen in both of the first two StoryAthlete 28-Day Challenges, too. Through the 28 days, nearly 70% quit. Those who don't though, are the ones with GRIT, and end up transforming themselves and their abilities in unimagined ways.
SO, LET'S TALK GRIT
I can show folks how to write 200 to 400 words per day, and how to turn that effort into a high 6-figure income. But me showing people and people doing it. Are two very different things. The chasm that lies between those points is the four-letter word known as GRIT. Through intense research and testing in our StoryAthlete lab, we identified the Six (6) Foundations to elevate a person's GRIT-levels:
1 -- Default-YES vs Default-NO
This is a mindset. The Lesser Self is dominated by the Default-NO mindset. "It's too hard." "Oh, I could never do that." "I wish I could do that, but..." "I'm not athletic." "I'm not good enough." "I'm not smart enough." "I don't have enough time right now." Etc. You get the point. Where the Heroic Self though, with a Default-YES mindset, commits, then figures it out later. At least half the StoryAthletes that committed to run the Spartan Trifecta in 2020 had never even run a 5K before their commitment. Who cares! They'll figure it out. Those with elevated levels of GRIT don't just talk about living the Challenge Life. They live it. They "Embrace The Suck." After 20 days of the 100 Burpee Regimen, because it was so transformational, not just physically, but mentally and emotionally, I and others committed to sustaining the 100 Burpee Regimen each day for life. Oh my god, that sounds terrible. Yep. It's called GRIT. The funny thing is, as you sustain your commitment that pain soon turns to pleasure. Default-YES. Give me more. Former athletes will recall the pain of, and be reminded of how good it made them feel, after a great workout. "That sucked. But damn, it felt good." For entrepreneurs, this equates to being able to solve massively complex problems under pressure and stress. "That sucked. But damn, it felt good." GRIT pushes us to expand our limits.
2 -- Intensity vs. Checking the Box
Transformation doesn't happen because someone goes to the gym. Just look at the majority of the people who are at the gym. They're all out of shape, on ellipticals, reading Us Weekly as they pretend to push themselves. Now, walk over to a CrossFit gym or go run a Spartan Race, and you'll find folks who appear to be superhuman. Fucking abs on top of abs on top of abs. Flying through the air like dolphins on a bar. Doing kipping pull-ups and Olympic lifts. Doing wall balls and burpees until they almost pass out. If you can listen to headphones while you work out, then you aren't practicing Intensity. Intensity is what tells the brain, "Hey, we're fucking dying here. Help us." Because of that signal, the brain triggers the release of growth hormone. Growth hormone burns fat and builds muscle. I highly recommend you read the book, "Learning to Breathe Fire," about the Rise of CrossFit. The StoryAthlete GRIT Regimen is rooted in Intensity. Will it hurt? You bet your ass. With it transform you? Absolutely. For the record, I have never seen a complete bad-ass on an elliptical machine. I know, "they're better for your knees." "Lower impact, more comfortable." Fuck comfort. Comfort is the home of the Lesser Self.
3 -- Suffer Together vs. Suffer Alone
This is pretty simple. When you're alone, and shit starts to suck and get painful, you quit. The Lesser Self has no issues or qualms whatsoever about quitting on himself. The Heroic Self, though, doesn't suffer or endure the assigned pain for his good. He does it to be "the rock" to those he's suffering alongside. I have heard Navy SEALs say, "I don't fight for me. I fight for my brother to the left and the right of me." Suffering alone is damn near impossible. Suffering, with others? Well, "Those who suffer together, bond together." It's these friendships, and social contract created, that leads the StoryAthlete to earn elevated levels of GRIT, as they transform to become their Heroic Self.
4 -- GO, NO-GO vs. Random Check-ins
To every StoryAthlete, that committed to StoryAthleteGRIT last month, it was made clear; if they missed one day, failing to post their required assignment by the deadline, they'd get booted from the Team. You want to check-in randomly and sporadically, and only do the GRIT tests when it is convenient for you? "Good!" Then do it by yourself without a team because clearly you're not a good teammate. "Go, No-Go." Each day is pass or fail. If you fail, you get to go home and get that warm bowl of soup and hot a chocolate. Meanwhile, your teammates will still suffer, by choice, because they have developed the elevated GRIT levels to do so. "It's not convenient." "I didn't have time." "I was traveling." "I forgot." None of that shit flies. GRIT is about commitment, not convenience. Through previous rounds of GRIT, we witnessed 'Tests of Will' completed in hotel rooms, airports. In office meeting spaces. On the beach. Even in a hospital emergency room. Your Team doesn't give a shit how you get it done. Just get it done.
5 -- Metrics vs. No Metrics
If metrics weren't necessary, then professional sports leagues wouldn't keep score. And players wouldn't seek to improve their stats. But they are essential because the scoreboard and stats don't lie. If you hit .200 in baseball, then guess what? You can't argue or brag about how good of a hitter you are. If you hit .300, your success as a hitter is evident. We track metrics to track progress. But also, to measure the effectiveness of our Regimen + Intensity. GRIT, just for GRIT's sake, is nothing but personal abuse. When GRIT becomes "Intelligent GRIT," though, through experimentation and testing different strategies to improve performance. That is how the average players become elite and sustain dominance. There are mental metrics. There are physical metrics. There are Intensity metrics. There are time metrics. Without tracking them, we could never improve them.
6 -- Integrity vs. No Integrity
The Heroic Self with GRIT, doesn't ever have to worry about his or her Integrity. If they say, "Default-YES," then they're all-fucking-in with no quit. Their word is not empty speech. When it gets hard, they don't quit. When it gets inconvenient, they don't make excuses. When their teammates need help, they jump in to carry the weight of their pack. Everybody says they have Integrity, but, if we're honest, damn few demonstrate it. On day 1 of the StoryAthlete Challenge, 90% say, "Here is the shit-list I want to change." Fast forward 20 days, less than 40% remain committed. The Scorecard doesn't fucking lie. You told me you were all-in. Then, by your actions, you lied to me. Integrity is not about talk. Integrity gets demonstrated. For the Burpee 100 Regimen, GRIT 1, we started with 26 GRIT teammates and finished with 26 teammates. In GRIT 2, we started with 63, and 59 finished for a 93.6% success rate. Talk is fucking cheap. Show up. Be there. Put in the work. Uphold your commitment. That is Integrity.