And that’s the real secret of success. Try again, again and again until success cannot be denied to you anymore. Simple to say, but much, much harder to do. Setting long term goal and sticking to it for years on end is the formula.

While researchers have long focused on measurements of intelligence, such as the IQ test, as the crucial marker of future success, these scientists point out that most of the variation in individual achievement – what makes one person successful, while another might struggle – has nothing to do with being smart. Instead, it largely depends on personality traits such as grit and conscientiousness. It’s not that intelligence isn’t really important – Newton was clearly a genius – but that having a high IQ is not nearly enough.

From The truth about grit article in The Boston Globe.