Personal Catalyst
In 2018 I was involved in a motorbike accident and because of the injuries I suffered I was diagnoses with post-concussive syndrome and PTSD. The hardest part wasn't only the symptoms; it was realising how few supports spoke directly to young men aged 17 – 30. My psychologist at the time introduced me to GRIT; that concept helped me persist when progress was slow and ultimately shaped my psychology studies and current work in Positive Behaviour Support (PBS).
What grit actually is
Duckworth defines grit as passion and perseverance for long-term goals – two parts:
- Consistency of interests (a stable, values-aligned direction), and
- Perseverance of effort (showing up, again and again)
A core takeaway often summarised as "effort counts twice": talent x effort = skill; then skill x effort = achievement. Practically, this means progress comes from small, repeated reps that compound over time-not from one big push.
From grit to growth
Post-traumatic growth describes positives changes that can emerge through struggling with major adversity commonly across five domains: new possibilities, relating to others, personal strength, appreciate of life, and spiritual/existential change. In practice, grit provides the behavioural engine (rehearse, refine, persist), while post-traumatic growth provides the meaning frame (why this effort matters and who I'm becoming). Both sit inside broader resilience science, which emphasises mental, emotional, and behavioural flexibility under stress.
It's also worth remembering resilience has multiple pathways and often looks ordinary rather than heroic.
NDIS – aligned PBS Practitioner View
My approach is person-centred and rights-based, anchoring plans to quality-of-life outcomes (education/work, independence, community participation) and explicitly minimising, reviewing, and aiming to eliminate any restrictive practices. We translate a person's values into one or two North-Star goals (grit's "consistency of interests") and then use deliberate-practice routines (grit's "perseverance of effort") – breaking aims into small coachable skills (sleep cues, emotional recognition, communication scripts, graded exposure) with short, frequent reps and tight feedback. We tune environments – routines, sensory load, prompts, and supports – so that the desired behaviour is easy behaviour, and we engage men in male-sensitive ways that normalise help-seeking and leverage peer/mentor models. Progress is tracked on both process and outcomes (streaks, minutes practiced, exposures completed; participation and wellbeing), with periodic reflection using post-traumatic growth domains to notice adaption over time. Practice is guided by the Positive Behaviour Support Capability Framework and current NDIS behaviour support guidance.