4 ms·

I see a lot of negative connotations in the comments so far. But honestly, the first thing that popped into my head was the relatively recent book "Grit: The Po

I see a lot of negative connotations in the comments so far. But honestly, the first thing that popped into my head was the relatively recent book "Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance". In it, the author argues that success has more to do with the amount of energy and time you invest in improving, rather than any natural gift you may have for a specific job or sport. Or at least, that talent is not sufficient for success. I see a lot of truth to this; e.g. there are plenty of people who are super intelligent, but have lackluster skill portfolios, or are way to quick to switch jobs or environments when it's anything but ideal. In a controversial way, this may even be somewhat correlated with being very talented, since there's a history of having things go easy for you and not needing to learn healthy coping mechanisms for adversity. Before we get too far along that wagon though, there's probably also the flip side, where people are _too_ gritty, and don't solve problems that should be solved, because they can endure through it. It's something of a balance. But the core message is good; people who are passionate and enduring about their profession tend to be good at it.

Brian_K_White 4y ago
The negative reactions are entirely appropriate. Using other words like passion and perseverence is no better. The problem isn't being dedicated, the problem is using those virtues as a good sounding way to say "We want people we can abuse and work like dogs for no real reward," I exhibit all those qualities of liking what I do and doing it almost 24/7 by choice, and overcoming all the hard problems that come along that others give up on etc, and I see ads like that as toxic AF. No way am I working for anyone that thinks it's cool to demand that sort of work-worship. I give it voluntarily to people who treat me like a human, and such people by definition don't ask for slavish devotion. And if they had to ask for above & beyond for some outstanding reason, they for damned sure don't try to couch it such language, and it's the exception not the rule.
- danielbarla 4y ago
  Another way to read the ad might be "we prefer people who are good at their job, rather than being good at IQ tests during the interview", which might be a positive interpretation. I don't disagree with your points, I just have a different set of connotations attached to 'grit', I guess. For me, it's not necessarily an indicator that a place will work you harder, or expect overtime heroics, etc, it could just mean they have a preference for a certain personality type, which I have no issue with. But you could be right, if it's used as a pre-filter for people who put up with a toxic workplace.

Brian_K_White 4y ago

The negative reactions are entirely appropriate. Using other words like passion and perseverence is no better. The problem isn't being dedicated, the problem is using those virtues as a good sounding way to say "We want people we can abuse and work like dogs for no real reward," I exhibit all those qualities of liking what I do and doing it almost 24/7 by choice, and overcoming all the hard problems that come along that others give up on etc, and I see ads like that as toxic AF. No way am I working for anyone that thinks it's cool to demand that sort of work-worship. I give it voluntarily to people who treat me like a human, and such people by definition don't ask for slavish devotion. And if they had to ask for above & beyond for some outstanding reason, they for damned sure don't try to couch it such language, and it's the exception not the rule.

danielbarla 4y ago
Another way to read the ad might be "we prefer people who are good at their job, rather than being good at IQ tests during the interview", which might be a positive interpretation. I don't disagree with your points, I just have a different set of connotations attached to 'grit', I guess. For me, it's not necessarily an indicator that a place will work you harder, or expect overtime heroics, etc, it could just mean they have a preference for a certain personality type, which I have no issue with. But you could be right, if it's used as a pre-filter for people who put up with a toxic workplace.