The Rules to Break, 2nd Edition

RULE TO BREAK

“Stick to what you’re good at”

I’ve read a lot lately about how you should push children to do things that are challenging in order to give them more ‘grit’. You know, send them on long hikes, boot camps and so on. Give them positions of responsibility and leadership to see how they handle them. And if they fail – well apparently that develops grit just as well as succeeding at these challenges.

Hmmm. Yes and no. I think what people mean by ‘grit’ is a combination of self-confidence and resilience. And that’s certainly a good thing to have, at any age. But, whether you’re at school, uni or much further along the road, the way to achieve it is not quite so clear-cut.

I’ve seen kids stretched by these kinds of demanding activities ...