Skip to content

Tag: Angela Lee Duckworth

Angela Duckworth, The War of the Worlds, The Hunt, The Art of Improvement, and a Bhagavad Gita Verse

Sunday Supplement #173 (September 1st, 2024)

Below is another Sunday Supplement with a quote worth sharing, a book worth reading, a movie worth watching, brainfood worth consuming, and a spiritual passage worth pondering.

Please take something away from these recommendations that enriches your week ahead!

Quote of the Week:

“Enthusiasm is common. Endurance is rare.”

– Angela Duckworth

Book of the Week:

The War of the Worlds – H.G. Wells

H.G. Wells was a prolific writer with over fifty novels and dozens of short stories. His famous book The War of the Worlds was serialized in 1987 Pearson’s Magazine and Cosmopolitan.

The novel follows the first-person narrative of an unnamed protagonist and his younger brother as Martians invade southern England.

As the aliens move across the country in huge three-legged machines, they incinerate those in their path with a heat ray and toxic gasses.

The War of the Worlds is one of the first novels to depict a conflict between humans and extraterrestrials.

H.G. Wells’s science fiction classic has never been out of print and has been adapted into many different mediums, including the famous radio drama by Orson Welles.

Movie of the Week:

The Hunt

The Hunt, directed by Thomas Vinterberg and written by Vinterberg and Tobias Lindholm, currently ranks at #95 on IMDb’s Top 250 movies list.

Mads Mikkelsen stars in this Danish film about a teacher living a solitary life while struggling over his son’s custody.

The teacher’s life slowly improves as he finds love and receives good news from his son, but the new boost is shattered when an innocent little lie gets loose.

The Hunt was nominated for Best Foreign Language Film of the Year at the 2014 Academy Awards. It is an upsetting story, but it is well done and worth watching.

Brainfood of the Week:

Ten Ways to Build and Develop Resilience | The Art of Improvement

This The Art of Improvement video starts by stating that we all encounter hardships and that we can either let them swallow us up or make the best of them.

Resilience is the ability to pick yourself back up and move forward after tragedy or challenges—deciding not to quit. 

The Art of Improvement explains that resilience is a skill, not an innate ability. It must be built up and developed over time through mindset shifts, practice, and healthy habits.

The video then highlights ten ways to build and develop resilience. Two of my favorite tips are to be proactive about problems and to change your mindset about adversity.

I’ve featured The Art of Improvement in a few previous Sunday Supplements. Their videos focus on helping viewers learn how to better themselves and be more productive.

Closing Spiritual Passage:

“And that determination which cannot go beyond dreaming, fearfulness, lamentation, moroseness, and illusion— such unintelligent determination is the mode of darkness.”

– Bhagavad Gita 18:35

This Bhagavad Gita passage is an interesting insight into how we can determinately get lost in our own negativity.

We often stumble or find ourselves facing adverse situations. In those moments, it can be easy to drop your head or to think of past failures.

This Bhagavad Gita verse reminds us that this way of thinking is lost in emotion and will only lead us to darker places.

We must pay attention to our emotions but find balance and remind ourselves that we can take action to improve our situation.


Find the right mode of resilience, and have a blessed week ahead!

Comments closed

Antonio Brown, The Way of the Superior Man, Garden State, Angela Lee Duckworth, and a Quran Passage

Sunday Supplement #87 (January 8th, 2023)

Below is another Sunday Supplement with a quote worth sharing, a book worth reading, a movie worth watching, brainfood worth consuming, and a spiritual passage worth pondering.

I hope you take something away from these recommendations that enriches your week ahead!

Quote of the Week:

“The journey is never-ending. There’s always going to be growth, improvement, adversity; you just gotta take it all in and do what’s right, continue to grow, continue to live in the moment.”

– Antonio Brown

Book of the Week:

The Way of the Superior Man – David Deida

I almost didn’t check out this book because of the title, but a friend whose recommendations I trust put The Way of the Superior Man on my radar.

David Deida’s book is a mixed bag for me because some of the language he uses is dated and oversimplifies certain topics.

However, many excellent takeaways from his book share wisdom for communication, relationships, and life purpose.

I recommend The Way of the Superior Man with a grain of salt, but it’s worth the read and has some moments of excellent insight into how to show up and be your best self.

Movie of the Week:

Garden State

Garden State follows a young man who returns home for his mother’s funeral after being estranged from his family for a decade.

The movie has wonderful performances from Zach Braff, Natalie Portman, and Peter Sarsgaard.

Braff wrote, directed, and starred in the 2004 film Garden State during his run on the ABC show Scrubs.

His writer/directorial debut earned a spot at Sundance Film Festival and was nominated for the Grand Jury prize.

Brainfood of the Week:

Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance | Angela Lee Duckworth | TED Talks

Angela Lee Duckworth is a MacArthur Fellow, New York Times bestselling author, and psychology professor at the University of Pennsylvania. 

In this TED Talk, Duckworth discusses how she left a consulting job when she was 27 years old to teach seventh graders in a New York public school.

Her experience as a teacher led her to study psychology and search for the qualities that separate people who succeed in their various fields.

Duckworth explains how her studies and analysis led her to the findings that grit was a determining factor in successful individuals.

The six-minute video is certainly worth a watch, and it goes into more detail about the findings of Duckworth’s studies. 

Closing Spiritual Passage:

“Do not lose heart of despair— if you are true believers, you have the upper hand.”

– Surah Ali ‘Imran 3:139

This passage from the Quran reminds me of the importance of belief. 

Belief doesn’t have to be religion, but faith that things will work out can get you through tough times.

For me, belief and faith don’t have to be blind, but they should be there even in dark times. You can accept the situation and look for opportunities to move forward.

The ability to believe is something truly powerful. It can be misused, but a healthy faith can be one of your best allies.

Give yourself the support you need, cultivate your beliefs, and have a blessed week ahead!

Comments closed
2021 © Drew Alexander Ross