Who has grit anymore? Where has our lush supply of brandished and unbridled hard workers gone? Has our infatuation with creative talent, prestigious affiliation, and innate intellect led the American job market perilously astray in its search for the "best" workers?

Nowadays, few boast the persistence and tenacity that employers thirst for. In times of economic stress, employers should resist the tempting urge to pluck out the straight A's and Fulbright scholars from the piles and dive toward the handful who truly have "grit" -- an unrelenting firmness in character and indomitable spirit for diligence.