By now almost everyone has seen or heard Pharrell Williams' infectious, monster song "Happy!" But as I mentioned to our audience at the recent Rebels at Work panel at South by Southwest Interactive
, 25 years ago there was another infectious song about being happy--Bobby McFerrin's "Don't Worry be Happy. It was just as popular as Pharrell's monster hit and probably even more infectious.
What kind of advice was that for rebels, I thought. Don't Worry Be Happy. Pretty pollyannish if you ask me! Likely to be met by hollow, derisive laughter. Real Rebels at Work determined to make change are unlikely to just whistle away their setbacks. Instead they'll look for another opportunity and try to learn from their mistakes.
Or as Angela Lee Duckworth--the University of Pennsylvania professor who just won a MacArthur Foundation fellowship for her psychology research--puts it, successful people in any discipline or profession share one common quality--GRIT! In her view grit has two important dimensions; first is the positive habit of being resilient in the face of failure or adversity. But grit without a cause is rather pointless. According to Duckworth, the other half of grit is having focused passions over a long time. Resilience and passion--the two defining characteristics of a Rebel at Work.
Grit clearly is an admirable quality but in my view it doesn't have the happiest of auras. Being gritty conjures up clenched teeth, sweaty palms, and a touch of anxiety. Can a Rebel at Work be gritty and happy? I think so and here are some ways how:
Have more conversations about solutions than about the problems. Too many Rebels at Work, including me, fall in love with the problems of their organization and can't stop obsessing about them. Do an inventory for yourself--I think you'll be surprised by your own positive to negative ratio. Resolve yourself to talk more about solutions than about problems. Just try it sometime. Even think about divorcing your ideas for change from any discussion of the problem. When you introduce your change idea, don't connect it to what's negative in your organization. Connect it to a more prosperous future. (I know this is the opposite of a burning platform but I've never been too fond of that metaphor myself.)
Do your homework about your ideas for change. There is nothing worse for a Rebel at Work than to introduce an idea only to be informed that the same initiative was tried years ago and failed miserably. Not knowing the history of reform in your organization is a rookie error for rebels. If you think the idea still has merit, by all means pursue it. But being gritty should mean avoiding unforced errors by taking care of the details ahead of time.
Have a trusted ally who can help you be gritty. We've written often about the need for rebels not to go it alone. Having colleagues who support you is essential. But to succeed at being a gritty rebel, it's important to have someone who can talk you down when you're about to go ballistic. Grit means you don't indulge your temper, no matter how good it might feel in the short term. Before you tell people what you really think of them, talk to that trusted ally first. You'll be much happier.
Know how to pivot. Rebels at Work invariably have more than one idea for how their company or agency can improve. Moving on to a new idea when your first one hits too many roadblocks is a much more effective "gritty move" than continuing to pound your head against the organizational granite.
Develop a realistic timetable. How long will it take to get your ideas accepted in your organization? Well, that's a function of both your organization's resistance to change and your idea's distance from current norms. But knowing how long your change initiative might take will make you more patient and help you be gritty and happy at the same time.
Laugh it off. When I think back on some of my rebel episodes now, they're just kind of funny. I wish I could have had that perspective at the time. It would have been healthier for me. Finding the humor in your rebel journey is a powerful way to gain the perspective that will allow you to be gritty. Pick a trusted ally who can help you do that.
Don't worry. Be gritty!