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I lost most of my "grit" in a split second when I was hit by a car at age 17. Until that moment, I was amazingly conscientious, and combined with a very high IQ it was logical to assume that I'd do very well in life. I still have the same IQ, but I can't for the life of me finish an education, save money, or eat the dessert last. Apparently, "grit" is dependent on functions located somewhere in the left frontal lobe [1], and if you damage that particular part of the brain, no amount of training can bring it back to what it was. After years of training and therapy, I'm still essentially a reckless, gifted child. I've learned wonderful tricks to keep me on track in life, but they only get me so far. I suspect that parenting has a similar effect to my training: It teaches the tricks, but doesn't address the underlying reality of sheer, physiological ability. [1]: Probably the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex |