Security Magazine logo
search
cart
facebook twitter linkedin youtube
  • Sign In
  • Create Account
  • Sign Out
  • My Account
Security Magazine logo
  • NEWS
    • Security Newswire
    • Technologies & Solutions
  • MANAGEMENT
    • Leadership Management
    • Enterprise Services
    • Security Education & Training
    • Logical Security
    • Security & Business Resilience
    • Profiles in Excellence
  • PHYSICAL
    • Access Management
    • Fire & Life Safety
    • Identity Management
    • Physical Security
    • Video Surveillance
    • Case Studies (Physical)
  • CYBER
    • Cybersecurity News
    • More
  • BLOG
  • COLUMNS
    • Cyber Tactics
    • Leadership & Management
    • Security Talk
    • Career Intelligence
    • Leader to Leader
    • Cybersecurity Education & Training
  • EXCLUSIVES
    • Annual Guarding Report
    • Most Influential People in Security
    • The Security Benchmark Report
    • The Security Leadership Issue
    • Top Guard and Security Officer Companies
    • Top Cybersecurity Leaders
    • Women in Security
  • SECTORS
    • Arenas / Stadiums / Leagues / Entertainment
    • Banking/Finance/Insurance
    • Construction, Real Estate, Property Management
    • Education: K-12
    • Education: University
    • Government: Federal, State and Local
    • Hospitality & Casinos
    • Hospitals & Medical Centers
    • Infrastructure:Electric,Gas & Water
    • Ports: Sea, Land, & Air
    • Retail/Restaurants/Convenience
    • Transportation/Logistics/Supply Chain/Distribution/ Warehousing
  • EVENTS
    • Industry Events
    • Webinars
    • Solutions by Sector
    • Security 500 Conference
  • MEDIA
    • Videos
      • Cybersecurity & Geopolitical Discussion
      • Ask Me Anything (AMA) Series
    • Podcasts
    • Polls
    • Photo Galleries
  • MORE
    • Call for Entries
    • Classifieds & Job Listings
    • Continuing Education
    • Newsletter
    • Sponsor Insights
    • Store
    • White Papers
  • EMAG
    • eMagazine
    • This Month's Content
    • Advertise
  • SIGN UP!
CybersecurityManagementPhysicalSecurity NewswireTechnologies & SolutionsSecurity Enterprise ServicesSecurity Leadership and ManagementLogical SecuritySecurity & Business Resilience

Shannon Polson offers lessons on grit at ISC West

Shannon Polson
October 7, 2020

Shannon Polson, author of “The Grit Factor: Courage, Resilience and Leadership in the Most Male Dominated Organization in the World” and the founder of The Grit Institute, gave the final keynote today at ICS West.

Presented by the SIA Women in Security Forum, titled, “Leading From Any Seat: Stories from the Cockpit & Lessons from the Grit Project,” featured Polson discussing courage, resilience and leadership, using examples from her personal life as one of the first women to fly the Apache helicopter in the U.S. Army and ideas outlined in her book.

Polson began her keynote with an assurance that grit — the concept popularized by psychologist Angela Duckworth in 2016 — is innate, but can be learned.

In the COVID-19 pandemic, along with the social unrest happening in the world, Polson said that grit is now more important than ever.

“All of us need grit, but perhaps never before like we do now,” she said.

Throughout her presentation, Polson weaved tales from her military past with concepts from her book. To outline her first point, she mentioned feeling nervous and full of doubt one cold winter morning standing on the tarmac at Fort Rucker in Alabama. Instead of turning away from fear, Polson leaned in and “owned her story.” She pointed out how Apache helicopters take off: like most aircrafts, the pilots face them toward the wind, and the resistance helps them rise.

“Owning your own story as a leader is the foundation of grit,” she said. According to Polson, grit is a triangle, with equal focus on looking to the future and having faith in the outcomes of a challenge; being engaged with the present and taking ownership of what you can control; and acknowledging the past by owning your story and purpose.

All of this, she said, is centered in grounded optimism, a mindset that combines hope in a positive outcome with the reality at hand.  She used an example of a study that showed that Navy SEALs who believed that stress enhances their performance graduated at a higher rate and were better team players. In short, a growth mindset entails a better outcome.

“Going in with that mindset matters,” she said. “You train for hard things by doing hard things.”

According to Polson, it’s OK to tune out noise that prevents you from focusing at the task at hand.  “The world throws a lot at us, especially now,” she said. The last part of the grit factor is courage of ownership, or the realization that job rank does not mean you can’t be a leader.

“You’re a leader when you decide to lead,” she said.

Finally, in terms of leadership and organization, grit means valuing every voice from bottom to top. “When you’re empowering everybody in your organization, that means you honor that every single voice matters and makes the whole stronger,” she said.

The session can be viewed on the ISC West virtual event engagement hub, and begins the final day of ISC West. From Oct. 5-7, ISC West will offer more than 25 SIA Education@ISC sessions, nine virtual vendor solutions sessions, networking events, discussion group chats and demonstrations from exhibitors in the Exhibitor Tech Center. The conference concludes today with the Mission 500 Virtual 5k/2k Awards Ceremony at 5 p.m.

To attend ISC West sessions or to see recorded sessions you may have missed, visit www.iscwest.com.

This article was originally posted on www.sdmmag.com

KEYWORDS: ISC West law enforcement leadership Women in Security

Share This Story

Looking for a reprint of this article?
From high-res PDFs to custom plaques, order your copy today!

Recommended Content

JOIN TODAY
To unlock your recommendations.

Already have an account? Sign In

  • Security's Top Cybersecurity Leaders 2024

    Security's Top Cybersecurity Leaders 2024

    Security magazine's Top Cybersecurity Leaders 2024 award...
    Cybersecurity
    By: Security Staff
  • cyber brain

    The intersection of cybersecurity and artificial intelligence

    Artificial intelligence (AI) is a valuable cybersecurity...
    Security Enterprise Services
    By: Pam Nigro
  • artificial intelligence AI graphic

    Assessing the pros and cons of AI for cybersecurity

    Artificial intelligence (AI) has significant implications...
    Logical Security
    By: Charles Denyer
Manage My Account
  • Security eNewsletter & Other eNews Alerts
  • eMagazine Subscriptions
  • Manage My Preferences
  • Online Registration
  • Mobile App
  • Subscription Customer Service

More Videos

Sponsored Content

Sponsored Content is a special paid section where industry companies provide high quality, objective, non-commercial content around topics of interest to the Security audience. All Sponsored Content is supplied by the advertising company and any opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and not necessarily reflect the views of Security or its parent company, BNP Media. Interested in participating in our Sponsored Content section? Contact your local rep!

close
  • Crisis Response Team
    Sponsored byEverbridge

    Automate or Fall Behind – Crisis Response at the Speed of Risk

  • Perimeter security
    Sponsored byAMAROK

    Why Property Security is the New Competitive Advantage

  • Duty of Care
    Sponsored byAMAROK

    Integrating Technology and Physical Security to Advance Duty of Care

Popular Stories

Coding

AI Emerges as the Top Concern for Security Leaders

Half open laptop

“Luigi Was Right”: A Look at the Website Sharing Data on More Than 1,000 Executives

Shopping mall

Victoria’s Secret Security Incident Shuts Down Website

Laptop with coding on ground

Stepping Into the Light: Why CISOs Are Replacing Black-Box Security With Open-Source XDR

Gift cards and credit cards

Why Are Cyberattacks Targeting Retail? Experts Share Their Thoughts

2025 Security Benchmark banner

Events

June 24, 2025

Inside a Modern GSOC: How Anthropic Benchmarks Risk Detection Tools for Speed and Accuracy

For today's security teams, making informed decisions in the first moments of a crisis is critical.

July 17, 2025

Tech in the Jungle: Leveraging Surveillance, Access Control, and Technology in Unique Environments

From animal habitats to bustling crowds of visitors, a zoo is a one-of-a-kind environment for deploying modern security technologies.

View All Submit An Event

Products

Security Culture: A How-to Guide for Improving Security Culture and Dealing with People Risk in Your Organisation

Security Culture: A How-to Guide for Improving Security Culture and Dealing with People Risk in Your Organisation

See More Products

Related Articles

  • Security newswire default

    SIA Announces Security Project Management Resources at ISC West 2018

    See More
  • isc west 2020

    ISC West opens virtual conference with keynote on securing the IoT

    See More
  • Security newswire default

    SIA Announces Event for Women in the Security Industry at ISC West

    See More
×

Sign-up to receive top management & result-driven techniques in the industry.

Join over 20,000+ industry leaders who receive our premium content.

SIGN UP TODAY!
  • RESOURCES
    • Advertise
    • Contact Us
    • Store
    • Want More
  • SIGN UP TODAY
    • Create Account
    • eMagazine
    • eNewsletter
    • Customer Service
    • Manage Preferences
  • SERVICES
    • Marketing Services
    • Reprints
    • Market Research
    • List Rental
    • Survey/Respondent Access
  • STAY CONNECTED
    • LinkedIn
    • Facebook
    • YouTube
    • X (Twitter)
  • PRIVACY
    • PRIVACY POLICY
    • TERMS & CONDITIONS
    • DO NOT SELL MY PERSONAL INFORMATION
    • PRIVACY REQUEST
    • ACCESSIBILITY

Copyright ©2025. All Rights Reserved BNP Media.

Design, CMS, Hosting & Web Development :: ePublishing