Growth Mindset
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Introduction
There are probably a lot of things you do well. Maybe you’re a great cook, or an expert parallel parker. Maybe you can sing the entire national anthem backwards and in perfect pitch. Maybe you greet each new day with a smile and a positive outlook.
Take a minute and think about what you are great at. Now ask yourself, did you work hard to get to where you are? Okay, did you work at least moderately hard at improving your skill? In all likelihood, you did. Even if you put in the smallest effort, you did put in the work.
Very few of us are born knowing how to play the electric guitar, paint a still life with stunning realism, or even understanding how to be a good neighbor. But through hard work, trial and error, making mistakes and rebounding, we all find our groove.
By nurturing a growth mindset, we are saying to others, and to ourselves, “I believe you can do it. No matter how much hard work it takes, you can achieve your goals and dreams.”
Believers in a growth mindset are believers in people.
People with fixed mindsets believe they were born with their basic abilities. They believe qualities, like intelligence and talent are fixed traits, which no amount of work can alter. On the other hand, people with growth mindsets believe that traits can be developed over time. They believe that through education, effort, and tenacity, they can improve themselves.
You can see where a fixed mindset could be a problem. If you believe, “I’m a terrible artist,” you will likely never pursue work or hobbies to improve your drawing or painting skills. People with fixed mindsets follow paths that keep them from failing in the short term. However, these same paths keep them from developing new skills over time.
People who cultivate a growth mindset tend to see failure as an indication that they need to work harder to learn and master something. A person with a growth mindset says, “I should keep working at this” rather than “I’m terrible at this.” Overall, people with growth mindsets are more likely to maximize their potential, because instead of telling themselves they can’t do something, they work, instead, to achieve their goals.
