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To Be A Champion...
India White • August 27, 2021
You’ve done it! You’ve succeeded, whatever that may mean to you. It was a grueling process of hard work, pain, and grit, and now, no one can take that away from you. Succeeding at anything is an accomplishment worth celebrating. But of course, you shouldn’t let that get to your head. In the marathon of life, successes are just the milestones you find along the way. They are not the finish line.
Unfortunately, I’ve seen success feed into ego too many times. At times, people get too caught up in the excitement of their accomplishments that they forget where they come from, who helped them along the way, and honestly, the severe effort it took for them to get there. That last one is key because quite often, these individuals don’t necessarily forget the amount of effort they put in, but instead, forget what that effort meant. When you view effort as a justification for your arrogant behavior upon success, you disrespect the entire point of the journey: to learn.
Here’s an example: let’s say you have a really hard math final coming up in a week and to be honest, you haven’t necessarily been paying attention in online class. For the next 7 days, you feverishly scrounge up notes from your friends and online, desperately ask your teacher for office hours, watch Youtube videos to catch up, review the few class notes and problems you wrote down, and pray to God you pass. On the morning of the exam, you somehow wake up in a foggy stupor having stayed up all night studying, and hobble your way to your desk to take your final. The timer begins and the first question literally looks like hieroglyphics to you. But, you push on, and two hours later, you submit the test and jump right back into bed, instantly forgetting the entirety of the exam. When you wake a few hours later, you get an email from your professor/teacher announcing the release of the grades and test averages. You wince, knowing that you were going to have to bite the bullet some time soon or the suspense would kill you. Through squinted eyes and gritted teeth, you open up your class grades, and find that you… passed? Not only passed, but did above the average too. Somehow, some way, you exceeded your own expectations and succeeded. Stunned and, quite honestly a little doubtful, you reflect on the past semester and more specifically, the past 7 days.
Now, if you were unfortunate enough to let success get to your head, how would you react? Certainly, arrogantly. You would think, wow, I’m just a god at math. And you would continue on with your life, having learned nothing but how you could coast through life with only your talent. Well, here’s the reality; eventually, the wave comes crashing down no matter how talented you may be. After years of not working hard, you will experience the full brunt of a situation you cannot “talent” your way through, and having never learned the tools to overcome it through hard work, you will certainly drown. Maybe, in a couple years, you’ll do the same thing in a class you were ill-prepared for and find that even 7 months, let alone 7 days, wouldn’t be enough for you to pass. I know that’s a little dramatic, but it can be far worse than just a math class, trust me.
Don’t end up like that. Don’t let pride and arrogance prevent you from reaching further success and happiness down the road. Now, in that same situation, what would a humble person do? They would thank all the people that helped them get there: their teacher who gave her time to tutor you, their friends who gave them their notes, God, maybe even the Youtubers they watched. They would understand that although they worked really hard in the past 7 days to reach this point, they did not do it alone, nor did they do it on talent alone. Some would believe it was luck. But most importantly, the humble winner would reflect on the lessons they learned on the way and make sure to keep them in mind for the future. For the humble, value comes not from the success itself, but the lessons they learned on the path to it. In this scenario, they would realize that their laziness and negligence was what prevented them from doing even better than they did. Imagine if they had that same drive to study and had actually paid attention in class? With that in mind, in the next semester, they would certainly work to pay more attention in class.
In the end, no one really likes a sore winner, but anyone can see the drive and potential of a great loser. Even if you haven’t succeeded yet, stay humble. Constantly work to improve yourself and understand that you are not alone in your successes. That is the mark of a humble winner, the tenet of true champions.
Join us on the Let's Get Gritty Podcast with Dr. India White. On this show, we will repeat a show from the Grit and Equity talks Podcast with Dr. India White, where we walk through the recently released NAEP data from the National Report Card and speak about moving the needle forward. Listen on Spotify: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/india-white3 #grit #equity #naep #drindiawhite #nctm #ncsm #bwxme #math #teachers #students
🌟 Just wrapped up an incredible G.R.I.T. Training session with the amazing leaders from Imagine Schools! 💪✨ We took a deep dive into the G.R.I.T. framework, and I can't wait to see the results unfold! 🚀🙌 #drindiawhite #grit #imagineschools #tedx #nctm #ncsm #bwxme 🎉 (I don’t own music copyright
Check out my Feb. 2025 Newsletter!
Thankful for Partnership and Recognition: A Shoutout to Dr. Matthew Joseph and X-Factor EDU Network I am incredibly thankful to partner with Dr. Matthew Joseph and the amazing leadership of the X-Factor EDU Network! It is truly an honor to collaborate with such a visionary leader who is dedicated to amplifying voices in education and creating spaces for impactful conversations. This month, I was deeply grateful to be mentioned in Dr. Joseph’s newsletter during Black History Month. His recognition means so much, not just for me, but for the work we are all doing to inspire and empower educators and students alike. You can check out the newsletter here: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/drmxj_stongertogether-activity-7291502796753809408-0zX3?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAAmqD2wBkz8Qc7EA0bvwxWyMJH2HykCUA-Y But beyond the shoutout, I’m even more excited about the opportunities ahead—including the chance to have a podcast on Dr. Joseph’s platform! Partnering with X-Factor EDU Network opens doors to share insights, engage in meaningful discussions, and continue championing grit, resilience, and equity in education. Thank you, Dr. Matthew Joseph, for your support, encouragement, and belief in this mission. Looking forward to what’s to come! 🚀 #StrongerTogether #GRIT #XFactorEDU #BlackHistoryMonth #EducationalLeadership #Thankful
Fired Up for FDLA/FAMTE Keynote: Let’s Build Grit Together! I’m beyond excited to take the stage as the keynote speaker at the FDLA/FAMTE Conference tomorrow! 🎤🔥 We’ll be diving deep into the power of G.R.I.T.—Great Resilience in Time—and how it transforms both educators and students. This opportunity means so much, and I’m grateful to everyone who has supported this journey. Grit isn’t just a concept; it’s a movement. It’s about growth mindset, resilience, self-efficacy, and time management, and it’s what drives success in the classroom and beyond. Let’s empower educators and students across the nation to push past obstacles and embrace productive struggle. Who’s ready to get gritty? 💪🏾 #Grit #DrIndiaWhite #TEDx #FDLA #FAMTE #Education #GrowthMindset
Had an Amazing Time at the Imagine Summit! I had a fantastic time speaking at the Imagine Summit on G.R.I.T.! 🙌🏽 We engaged in powerful breakout sessions, had meaningful discussions about NAEP data, and explored strategies to build **growth mindset, resilience, self-efficacy, and time management** in education. Thank you to everyone who participated and brought such great energy to the conversations! Let’s continue working together to bridge gaps and empower students through grit and perseverance. 💪🏽 #GRIT #ImagineSummit #Resilience #Education #GrowthMindset #EquityInEducation #drindiawhite
Building Grit in Teachers at the Imagine Leadership Summit I am beyond excited to be speaking at the Imagine Leadership Summit today, sharing insights on how we can build grit in teachers and empower them to foster resilience, self-efficacy, and growth in their students. 🌟 This summit is an incredible opportunity to collaborate with principals and education leaders who are committed to supporting and strengthening teachers. When we invest in teacher grit, we build stronger, more effective classrooms where students develop the perseverance to tackle challenges and achieve success. A huge thank you to the Imagine Summit leaders for this amazing opportunity! It’s an honor to be among such an outstanding lineup of speakers, including the incredible Kyle Pearce and Jon Orr. Join our sessions today and take GRIT with you—because when teachers grow in resilience, our students thrive! #GRIT #Teachers #Principals #DrIndiaWhite #NCTM #NCSM #ImagineSummit 😊
🌟 What an incredible time at the ICTM conference in Indiana! The lineup was amazing, and the energy was contagious! 🎉 Since I missed the snow back in Florida, I embraced it fully here and made my very first snow angel! ❄️ So grateful for the fun and gritty spirit of the ICTM rockstars! Huge thanks to Angela and every rockstar for this fantastic opportunity! 💙 #drindiawhite #grit #ictm25 #math #teachers #students #indiana #nctm #ncsm
✨ Today’s Grit training at Stockton Unified was absolutely amazing! We had a fantastic time connecting with friends and meeting some incredible rockstars in California. 🌟 I can’t wait to see how gritty Stockton becomes! Huge thanks to Andrew and the tribe for the opportunity to train your amazing leaders. Let’s all take grit with us as we move forward! 💪 #Grit #Leadership #StocktonUnified #drindiawhite #tedx #nctm #ncsm #nabse
🎊Super excited about this opportunity! Looking forward to connecting with these amazing leaders! 🥰🥳🎉 Please register below and let’s connect so we can bridge the achievement gap together! hashtag#drindiawhite hashtag#ncsm hashtag#grit hashtag#math hashtag#teachers