This surprising national study reveals what’s keeping people and organizations from adapting to change… and it’s not what you think.
Change Is Happening
Constant change and challenge mean that organizations and their leaders need to innovate faster than ever before. And although the workforce in the United States understands the need for flexibility, they often resist change.
“We have to change the culture of perseverance if we want to see true transformation.”
–Courtney Clark
Modern-day companies prioritize grit and perseverance over adaptability. 68% of working Americans believe organizations find it easier to persist in their plans versus change their plans.
68% of the U.S. workforce believe it’s harder for organizations to change their plans than it is for them to be persistent in their plans.
Grit resilience is defined as recovery from difficulty by using traits like toughness, tenacity, and perseverance.
Growth resilience is defined as mental recovery from difficulty by using traits like adaptability, creativity, and willingness to change.
Uncovering insights into both grit resilience and growth resilience is urgent, because companies today are facing constant change and challenge. Many organizations and individuals have hyper-focused on grit resilience, to the detriment of growth resilience.
Why Grit is Costing Your Workplace
What happens when organizations are overweighted on grit? The research found:
Courtney Clark’s groundbreaking national research study uncovers a key reason organizations struggle to adapt to change.
Adaptability within a company determines performance, innovation, culture, and much more. Although it’s easy to assume change is hard because people are unwilling, the research shows otherwise.
Courtney and her team are excited to reveal the true barrier to change may be a knowledge gap, not a willingness gap. The study’s findings can help organizations address change inflexibility as a skills problem, not simply an attitude problem.
See the surprising findings inside, and what it means for your workplace
A startling 71% of U.S. workers were raised to “never give up.” This grit mindset—to keep going and try harder in the face of obstacles, “no matter what” can lead to a culture of toxic positivity and problematic goal pursuit.
Modern-day companies prioritize grit and perseverance over adaptability. 68% of working Americans believe organizations find it easier to persist in their plans versus change their plans.
Leaders can be the worst champions of grit culture. Fewer than 1 in 3 working Americans believe their boss to be very strong in their adaptability. And people-leaders in the study were significantly less likely than non-people leaders to be able to abandon a goal that wasn’t working out.
64% of the U.S. workforce reported that they wouldn’t abandon a goal, even if they realized the goal was no longer achievable.
This is an important finding because 66% also said the most successful people DO know when to quit! This contradiction may reveal a reason for the disconnect many organizations are experiencing around change.
Despite being inundated with stories of “you can do anything you put your mind to!” deep down most of us recognize that true resilience requires not just grit, but also growth.
74% of working Americans believe having too much grit causes people to miss opportunities and not adapt to other paths.
Change adaptability expert Courtney Clark has a strategy to share that will boost your team’s change-readiiness and improve their ability to set and achieve goals.
“Flexible goal setting plays a key role in growth resilience because it provides an alternative to the “never give up” attitude that many companies and organizations have nurtured.” -Courtney Clark
Flexible goal setting involves the following:
The Grit Vs. Growth Study was conducted by Courtney Clark, M.A., CSP
Courtney Clark is the luckiest unlucky person in the world. After a series of major struggles beginning in her mid-20s, she has built two successful businesses and is the author of three books on transforming in the face of change and challenge.
Courtney is an in-demand Keynote Speaker who presents internationally to organizations on how to adapt faster and achieve more. Organizations like Nike, Dell, and Google hire Courtney to speak at their conferences and events because of her unique blend of “content-based motivation.” Her presentations balance left brain strategies with right brain storytelling, so every single member of the audience walks away feeling primed for success, no matter their personality or learning style. She works with teams who need to succeed during stress and change without burning out, lashing out, or giving up.
Courtney’s resilience work has been featured in Forbes, CNN, CBS, ABC, NBC, USA Today, Psychology Today, and The Chicago Tribune. Her research on adapting to change has been called “practical,” “powerful,” and “empowering” by industry leaders.
This study was conducted in partnership with The Center for Generational Kinetics.
The Center for Generational Kinetics is a custom research, speaking, and advisory firm dedicated to separating myth from truth through data.
CGK has led more than 65 research studies in multiple languages on four continents. Their clients include many of the most recognizable brands in the world as well as private equity firms and market-shaping start-ups.
CGK’s team members have been featured in hundreds of media outlets from a cover story in The New York Times to over 200 TV appearances on shows such as 60 Minutes and The Today Show.
Adweek called their President a “research guru.”
If your event needs a motivational speaker and a boost in resilience, contact me below so I can create a customized presentation to help your group adapt faster and achieve more. I look forward to working with you to deliver an unbelievable experience to your group.
courtney@courtneyclark.com
512.494.4276
PO Box 160158
Austin TX 78716
512.494.4276
courtney(at)courtneyclark.com
© 2024 Courtney Clark
