One of six children raised by a single mother, Misty Copeland became the first African American to be named principal ballerina for the American Ballet Theater (ABT), one of the three best classical ballet companies in the United States. It was not an easy road for Copeland. She had to overcome a vertebrae fracture, a tibia fracture, and over a decade of work until she was selected as a principal dancer. Fear of failure shadowed her throughout her odyssey.

Today, Misty is the most famous ballerina in the United States. To get to this position, Copeland leveraged her perseverance. She is known for her many hours spent in the studio, as well as using Pilates, barre-a-terre, and swimming to build her strength and agility. She also had to overcome ballet’s bias against black dancers.

I define grit as the will to persevere to achieve long term goals. A person’s grit is built upon six components: a purpose, a goal, perseverance, resilience, courage to deal with the fear of failure, and motivation. Misty Copeland has an incredible amount of grit.

I researched Misty Copeland and her grit for my book Grow Your Grit (available for order here). I wanted to share five quotes from her that didn’t make the book:

Start unknown, finish unforgettable.
I may not be there yet, but I am closer than I was yesterday.
Decide what you want. Declare it to the world. See yourself winning. And remember that if you are persistent as well as patient, you can get whatever you seek.
Don’t underestimate yourself. You are more capable than you think.
There are no taking days off. There are no distractions. If I had that, I physically wouldn't be capable of going onstage and performing live theater. It's extremely demanding. I have to be in ballet class every day.

Use Misty Copeland’s quotes to grow your grit and inspire you to go on the offensive in 2021.

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