Cultivating Gumption
Or why some people never fix the leaking tap in their kitchen
Can someone develop courage and mental strength or are these traits coded before birth?
I still don’t know why there isn’t a book on the spinning wanker stand at WHSmiths called “Gumption”. Almost every other word, concept and idea is already done. If I saw it, Id break my “no self help books at the airport” rule and buy it.
Alongside books such as Grit, Mindset and Courage to be Disliked I feel like it would sit well, but once again the question would remain, is this something that can be cultivated? How would the author provide the actionable steps needed to get to gumption.
But what does gumption actually mean? A quick google reveals the following: shrewd or spirited initiative and resourcefulness. Something quite desirable even for the most quietly quit of corporate rats.
Despite being a familiar word, I had not really paid attention to it until It shotgunned into my brain whilst reading Zen and The Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. I felt seen. Or maybe not seen, depending on the level of my self esteem at the time.
In Zen, the author makes note of something called a Gumption Trap. This can be described as a loss of enthusiasm or initiative, experienced when feeling stuck in a project. You see, Robert Pirsig really knows how to pierce your soul.
“A person filled with gumption doesn’t sit around dissipating and stewing about things. He’s at the front of the train of his own awareness, watching to see what’s up the track and meeting it when it comes. That’s gumption.
If you’re going to repair a motorcycle, an adequate supply of gumption is the first and most important tool. If you haven’t got that you might as well gather up all the other tools and put them away, because they won’t do you any good.”
So, retrospectively, I trawled my mind for the moments I feel face first to the Gumption Trap. There was a moment of time last week that put me under the microscope of the street. Whilst attempting to draft proof my front door. True to my standard operating procedures that have seen me well for 41 years, I decided to do it without planning and simply start.
Minutes into the pressure cooker of easy DIY I had run out of screws and only managed to cover for 1/5 of the door frame gaps. Gumption test #1. I could proceed no further so would need to stop, go to the store, buy extra stuffs and come back and continue.
I call this gumption test #1 because I have been here before. This was not my first home depot trip. It was, at this moment, I realised that the real test is not in the craftsmanship of draft proofing (or whatever it may be) but the gumption to not give up, forget the task at hand and abandon hope. To demonstrate gumption, I would need to return to the work better prepared and complete it.
There are moments I can recall in my life where my gumption has evaporated or seeped out of my skin like a slow puncture. However, there are also lots of moments where I have shown it - namely, being turning up to jiujitsu twice a week for 8 years. That seems like good gumption. Situational gumption doesn’t count though, it needs to be ever present. It needs pervade you in all things. Well, maybe not you, but certainly me. Its a desired state.
So, can gumption actually be developed? Built like an atomic habit. A “I tried Gumption for 30 Days” youtube series?
Maybe.
In Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance a lot of the analogies are linked to how he maintains his motorbike. Crucially, he is not a trained mechanic and thus, these skills weren’t necessarily given to him. He developed them himself. In reading the instruction manual carefully, like he cared. In slowing down and staring at the problem in front of his face. In being prepared to make mistakes and adjust accordingly. In the book, he even talks about stripping a motorbike and taking notes/or laying the pieces out in order. Im not sure id have the gumption for that just yet.
In my own attempts to develop gumption I consulted ChatGPT during the making of this article. Initially, the overlord gave me 7.5 out of 10. However, after a lot of rewrites and submissions, I got this to 9 out of 10.