Best-selling authors Robin Koval and Linda Kaplan Thaler tell INSIDE EDITION what it takes to be a winner.
Robin Koval and Linda Kaplan Thaler cofounded an ad agency behind some of today's most memorable commercials - and now they're sharing their secrets to success.
The duo brought audiences the Aflac Duck and “The Kodak Moment,” among other top advertising campaigns.
Click Here to Download a PDF and Read an Excerpt of 'From Grit to Great'
They are also bestselling authors whose latest book, Grit to Great, looks at what it takes to be a winner. And they say it boils down to one word: Grit.
Robin told INSIDE EDITION: “It’s an acronym. You need Guts, Resilience, Initiative and Tenacity.”
Linda added: "The people who know how to focus, the people who know how to bounce back from failure, the people who know how to dig in and really do the hard work."
An old boss was an example of that.
Have You Got What it Takes? Click Here to Take the 'Grit to Great' Quiz
Linda said: “This guy named Jim would get up every morning at 4 a.m. and write for four hours and then come in and put in a full day's work. He did that every day and his first best seller came when he had done this for 21 years.”
Jim is James Patterson -- who is now widely regarded as the most successful author alive today.
Some of the greatest minds and influencers of today give examples of true grit, such as Former Secretary of State Colin Powell, who was a C student throughout college.
Basketball great Michael Jordan didn’t make his high school varsity team and filmmaker Steven Spielberg was rejected from film school three times.
The authors say you can acquire these traits.
“Be an over preparer. If you spend 30 minus more on a project, preparing for a presentation, you will have worked 100% longer than the person you are competing with,” Robin said.
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Linda added: “Lose the safety net. We tend not to embark on a great project or goal because we're scared. Mentally fire yourself. If you were fired, think about how energetic you would be the next day to find a new job. "
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