Angela Duckworth
Angela Duckworth is a psychologist, bestselling author, and founder of Character Lab. She is best known for her groundbreaking work on grit—the power of passion and perseverance in achieving long-term goals. A MacArthur “Genius” and professor at the University of Pennsylvania, Angela has advised everyone from NBA teams to Fortune 500 companies on cultivating high performance.
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Angela at Nordic Business Forum 2026
How to Build Grit to Win the Long Game
Angela dives into the core of sustained performance. She reveals why grit—passion and perseverance for long-term goals—is a stronger predictor of success than talent. Through practical insights, she shows leaders how to spot grit in others, nurture it within their teams, and build a culture where persistence is valued, setbacks fuel growth, and long-term achievement becomes the shared mindset.
Learning points:
- How to identify the one trait that predicts success more than talent—and how to spot it in your team and new hires
- How to intentionally cultivate the passion and perseverance required to achieve ambitious long-term goals, especially when faced with setbacks
- How to create a culture where perseverance is rewarded, failure is treated as a learning opportunity, and your entire organization is aligned to win for the long haul
More from Angela Duckworth
Read
After years of studying high achievers across diverse fields, Angela has identified what she calls the most reliable predictor of success, challenging conventional wisdom about talent and intelligence.
Watch
Leaving a high-flying job in consulting, Angela took a job teaching math to seventh graders in a New York public school. She quickly realized that IQ wasn’t the only thing separating the successful students from those who struggled. Here, she explains her theory of “grit” as a predictor of success.
Listen
What if the one thing that matters most for your success isn’t talent, luck, or intelligence, but something you can build starting today?
In this eye-opening conversation, Angela joins Mel Robbins to reveal the real science of success and what drives achievement.
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