Is resilience the most important factor for success?

Last week, Jensen Huang the co-founder, President and CEO of Nvidia which is now the fourth most valuable company in the world was interviewed at an Economic Summitt at Stanford and provided some fascinating insights into his journey building the company and his thoughts on the future of Nvidia and AI over the next 5-10 years (you can see this interview on YouTube).

One answer he gave to the popular question at University events “what advice would you give to Stanford graduates to improve their chances of success” was slightly different to the usual work hard, get good grades, do internships and other platitudes you often hear. Huang’s answer was fascinating and in my view spot on.

He explained, one of the greatest advantages he felt he had was low expectations and that graduates from top schools such as Stanford generally have very high expectations.  But he then paused and said “people with high expectations have very low levels of resilience and resilience matters in success.” He then went on “to wish pain and suffering to you all in order to be successful” (which ironically received a loud applause).

This view is also supported by Social Psychologist Angela Duckworth who wrote a book summarising her research entitled “Grit”. She identifies the single quality that marks out those that succeed in life are those that understand that your personality and character are not fixed but can be shaped and strengthened by difficult experiences.  She defines Grit as a combination of passion and perseverance toward long-term goals and that talent alone is not enough for success.  Instead, people need to cultivate grit to achieve their goals and that anyone can develop grit with the right mindset and approach.  Duckworth also highlights the role of effort in achieving success, arguing that deliberate practice and sustained effort are critical for mastery in any field.  On the sustained effort point, Huang has been leading Nvidia for 30 years and as Jeff Bezos once said “All overnight success takes at least 10 years”

I think developing grit and resilience in business is crucial to overcome the challenges we face every day, navigate uncertain situations, and thrive in the face of adversity. As Huang commented  "you need setbacks, pain and suffering to develop resilience and achieve success and greatness". Many successful business leaders such as Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and Steve Jobs have demonstrated remarkable resilience in their careers.  Each of these individuals faced adversity, setbacks, and criticism but remained resilient, adaptive, and motivated and determined to achieve their goals.

For those of you who have watched the Netflix documentary "Beckham" I think he showed extraordinary levels of grit and resilience from his 1998 World Cup experience and the subsequent public hatred that followed.  Watching that programme I had forgotten the chain of events and it was remarkable how he dealt with it and the subsequent success he achieved on and off the pitch.

Along with success and greatness, resilience is closely linked to emotional well-being. With developed resilience, we are better able to manage stress, cope with adversity, and maintain a positive outlook even during difficult times.   This can also strengthen relationships, both personally and professionally with your team members who look to you as a the leader during challenging times.

All in all, I think resilience and grit is a trait that is fundamental to enhance your chances of success. It is a quality that we can all train and develop and enables us to navigate the ups and downs of life with grace and determination, ultimately helping us to reach our full potential.