Angela Duckworth: What are the Keys to Success?

Angela Duckworth is a Professor of Psychology at University of Pennsylvania, Founder and CEO of Character Lab, winner of the MacArthur Award (Genius Award), and New York Times Bestselling author on grit.

In this episode, Professor Duckworth and Dr. Paryavi explore the keys to success while sharing reflections from their own growth experiences. Their conversation is full of great insights, reminders, and advice to help us reach our goals and live our best lives.

Episode Notes from Maliheh Paryavi, PhD:

"Psychologists have spent decades searching for the secret of success, but Duckworth is the one who found it." - Daniel Gilbert, Professor of Psychology, Harvard University

I feel so grateful for having had the opportunity to host the amazing Angela Duckworth as my first guest on this podcast. Angela is a Professor of Psychology at University of Pennsylvania, Founder and CEO of The Character Lab, winner of the MacArthur Award (Genius Award), and New York Times Bestselling author on grit.

I had been following Angela's work for quite a while and was so excited when I finally had the chance to meet her. We had a wonderful time as we explored the keys to success. Angela also enriched our conversation with candid stories from her own life and growth journey. This episode is full of great insights, reminders, and advice to help us reach our goals and live our best lives. Enjoy!

Episode Breakdown:

• 00:59 - What are key factors to success?

• 03:09 - Importance of grit

• 05:45 - How can we become experts at anything?

• 08:34 - How to embrace challenges

• 10:39 - How to cultivate a growth mindset

• 13:31 - How to deal with fear, anxiety, and self-doubt

• 18:20 - How to deal with perfectionism and failure

• 24:17 - How to set goals for success

• 32:57 - How to deal with expectations

• 35:55 - Embracing curiosity and character development

• 38:19 - How to reach for your goals even when feeling unprepared

• 40:27 - How does Angela manage all of her responsibilities?

• 43:38 - Importance of saying "No"

• 46:57 - Importance of self-care

• 49:36 - How to balance it all!

More about Angela Duckworth: Angela Duckworth is the Founder and CEO of Character Lab, a nonprofit whose mission is to advance the science and practice of character development. She is also the Christopher H. Browne Distinguished Professor of Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania, faculty co-director of the Penn-Wharton Behavior Change For Good Initiative, and faculty co-director of Wharton People Analytics. A 2013 MacArthur Fellow, Angela has advised the White House, the World Bank, NBA and NFL teams, and Fortune 500 CEOs. Prior to her career in research, Angela founded a summer school for low-income children that was profiled as a Harvard Kennedy School case study and, in 2018, celebrated its twenty-fifth anniversary. She has also been a McKinsey management consultant and a math and science teacher in the public schools of New York City, San Francisco, and Philadelphia. Angela completed her undergraduate degree in Advanced Studies Neurobiology at Harvard, graduating magna cum laude. With the support of a Marshall Scholarship, she completed an MSc with Distinction in Neuroscience from Oxford University. She completed her PhD in Psychology as a National Science Foundation Graduate Fellow at the University of Pennsylvania. Angela has received numerous awards for her contributions to K–12 education, including a Beyond Z Award from the KIPP Foundation. Angela's TED talk is among the most-viewed of all time. Her first book, Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance, is a #1 New York Times best seller.