Sometimes Perseverance can be Severe

By Shana Young

Perseverance is necessary and good.  People who preserve, sometimes referred to as grit, pursue things with energy, drive and a need to finish.  They seldom give up, especially in the face of resistance or setbacks.  However, perseverance can be overused.  Perseverance in overdrive looks stubborn, unyielding, someone with unbalanced priorities, someone who finds it difficult to switch gears, pursues efforts beyond reason and can confuse the personal pursuit of have-to-do's with what actually needs to be done.

Below are some things to consider when trying to identify, foster, and manage perseverance/grit in the workplace according to Dugan, Hochstein & Rouziou in their article 'The Pros & Cons of Grit’ for Training & Development magazine:

When trying to identify those with perseverance:

Instead of:                                                       
 Looking for a myriad of extracurricular activities when reviewing resumes (which might indicate that a candidate struggles with commitment and may be continuously looking to jump to other job opportunities)

Try this:

Look for candidates that dedicate themselves to fewer activities.  Those who succeed in achieving goals associated with the activity, demonstrates productivity and loyalty in addition to perseverance.

When trying to foster perseverance in the workplace:

Instead of:  
Trying to motivate your team through competition (which is the killer of collaboration)

Try this:  

Create an environment where employees feel confident in their abilities to learn, develop and perform.  Provide timely advice and calm reassurance during tough time.  Assist in helping them set actionable goals to fostering perseverance rather than pitting them against one another (intentionally or unintentionally).

When managing perseverance in the workplace:

Instead of:  
Focusing on closing the sale, completing the task, achieving individual/personal goals, etc. (which forces people to be less in tune with what the actual client needs/is asking for and can cause them to become an annoying pest).  

Try this:  
Accentuate the importance of teamwork over individual success.  The ability to commit unwaveringly to a goal is admirable but employees also need to know when to cut bait and reallocate their time to other, more worthy, task.  Refocusing everyone on the team effort allows for them to appreciate their own area but also what everyone else is contributing as well.

Perseverance/girt is great, you need it and you need people on your team with it.  Just make sure you are creating a climate that fosters the positive side of perseverance rather than the severe.