OUR METHOD
IT STARTS WITH GRIT.
Handshake America is a framework for building character in the next generation. Here's what it is and why it works.
WHAT IS GRIT
GRIT IS PASSION + PERSEVERANCE
The drive that keeps you pointed in one direction, paired with the determination to push through setbacks rather than quit. Grit is more about stamina than intensity. It's staying the course, learning from a loss, and getting back up to take the next rep, make the next play, and take the next challenge.
Grit is not talent, and it's not a clean record. The grittiest kid in the room is rarely the most gifted one. They're the ones who keep showing up and taking coaching. That's the whole starting point.
If you're a coach, parent, teacher, or counselor, you already know these kids. They've weathered something real and kept going, and they hold themselves to a high standard. Most of all, they're coachable, which means they'll hear a hard truth and act on it.
And if you're a student reading this: if you've ever been underestimated and kept working anyway, this is for you. You don't have to be a finished product. You have to be coachable and take the next rep.
THE FIVE PRACTICES
The practices, in the founder's words
Written by Doug Probst in February 2019, after seven years of coaching them in the field. Preserved from the original overview.
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Perseverance is about not giving up. It's more about stamina than intensity. It's not just about working incredibly hard but staying the course, resisting temptation and recognizing there are no shortcuts in life. It's being tough, strong, determined, courageous, and resolved. It's realizing that life is not about going undefeated, but about learning from setbacks and bouncing back.
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Passion is a steady feeling of enthusiasm in doing something. It's waking up thinking of questions you fell asleep thinking about. You stay pointed in the same direction, eager to move forward and devoting your limited time and efforts toward it.
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Positivity is a wide range of positive emotions, not just being happy. It's an optimistic attitude that triggers positive emotions, open minds, and relaxed limbs. Like negativity, it has a long-term impact on your character, relationships, communities, environment, and personal trajectory, and it shapes our souls.
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People is knowing that you're significantly influenced by the people around you. Good people bring you up and bad people bring you down. It includes who you choose to admire, read, watch, and listen to. It's knowing the difference between 'real' friends and 'counterfeit' ones. It's also being a good friend, family member, and teammate.
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Presence is true poise and confidence. It's being comfortable in your own skin and not trying to be someone else. It comes from knowing that you're doing the right things and being prepared. It includes a firm handshake, combed hair, speaking clearly, good posture, arriving early, making conversation and sending 'thank you' notes. It yields being respected by others.
PROOF IN ACTION
WHY IT WORKED FOR 15 YEARS.
The students do the talking.
These are discussions, not lectures. The coach draws them out, names the reps, and keeps the spotlight on the kid. Two ears, one mouth.
The team comes first.
Students hold to standards they set themselves. The commitment runs on belonging, not bookkeeping.
It’s coached, not taught.
A coach isn’t a lecturer or a hero. They bring real experience and a steady hand, and they earn the right to say the hard thing by showing they care first.
Reps, not theory.
Every practice gets practiced. Setbacks become lessons, lessons become the next rep, and progress beats perfection every time.
It’s proven.
Coached in the field for fifteen years before anyone wrote it down. The lineage runs from John Wooden’s Pyramid of Success through Angela Duckworth’s research on grit. The clearest proof is the 604 students who ran the reps.
“Being exceptionally smart or a natural leader can take you far, but coaching and guidance will enable you to apply your talents to their fullest.”
Will Troutman • Roswell HS / Harvard University
SUCCESS
Bringing it all together
Founder Doug Probst, addressing the 2018 Central Ohio student-athletes at their Annual Assembly. This is where the Playbook has always been pointed.
The sources behind the practices: John Wooden, A Lifetime of Observations and Reflections On and Off the Court · William J. Bennett, Book of Virtues · Henry Aaron, speech to Handshake students · Angela Duckworth, Grit: The Power of Passion & Perseverance · Walter Isaacson, Steve Jobs · Barbara Fredrickson, PhD, Positivity
“You will become leaders, ‘5P Leaders', because you will reveal your grit and perseverance to get through tough times while you're figuring out what your passions are that are driving that determination. "
You will inspire people with your positive mental attitude; you will surround yourself and associate with good people and begin to identify and separate yourself from the bad ones.
You will continue these practices, and because you are coachable, you will continue to benefit from being coached, learn from your experiences, and keep getting better, and better, and better. You will continue to develop and consequently have more poise and confidence every day because you know deep inside that you're doing the right things.
And with these virtues, you'll ultimately have a presence that will not just be noticed when you walk into a room but, more importantly, you'll be more appreciated and respected by people when they get to know you, work with you, and live with you.
For if you continue to practice the 5Ps we discussed over the year, you will experience success. And do you know how you'll know it? You'll know it because the people who know you the best, love and respect you the most, and you will be living with no regrets because you've done your very best.”
IT’S YOUR TURN
READY TO RUN IT?
The playbook is open. The next move is yours.