#5 Fixed Mindset VS Growth Mindset
Carol Dweck, a researcher at Stanford University, introduced these notions and wrote a book named “Mindset – The New Psychology of Success How we can learn to fulfill our potential “ for the purpose to describe each mindset in more detail.
He describes the fixed mindset as a state where you believe that your qualities are carved in stone, one that creates an urgency to prove yourself over and over. Conversely the growth mindset is based on the belief that your qualities are things that you can cultivate and change through your own efforts. Essentially, the growth mindset allows individuals to change and grow through application, effort and experience. Effort is one of the key principles that Dweck discusses throughout her book and it is clear that with tremendous effort, we can change, we can grow and we can become smarter.
Why is mindset important in developing positive habits?
Your fixed beliefs about you will hold you back from making positive change. If you have a trait that you believe cannot be changed, such as your intelligence, your weight, or your bad habits, you will avoid situations that could possibly be uncomfortable or that you think that are useless.
On the other hand, if you embrace the idea that your habits aren't static, then that belief will be the critical first step to creating actual change in your life. Whether it's building a new skill, learning a new language, or breaking a bad habit, having the growth mindset will help you form the belief that you are 100% capable of accomplishing any major goal.
The Main Differences between the two Mindsets:
1. Talent V Effort: One of the biggest differences between the two mindsets is that of talent versus effort. The fixed mindset believes that talent and intelligence is everything; it is what defines you and what protects you from failure. From this point of view, effort is only for people with deficiencies and as Dweck points out, if you have no deficiencies and are considered a genius, a talent or a natural, then you have a lot to lose and effort can reduce you.
Dweck states that the growth mindset is very different; even the ‘genius’ has to work and work hard for their achievements. There is no honour in being gifted but effort can be admired and aimed for. No matter what level of ability you are, effort ignites ability and ability turns into accomplishment and achievement.
2. Failure: The subject of failure is another point where the two mindsets differ greatly. To the fixed mindset the idea of trying and failing is terrifying. Dweck writes about individuals who describe the idea of failing as haunting and paralyzing because they believe geniuses are not supposed to need to put effort into their work. He continues to state that trying hard, robs the fixed mindset individual of all her excuses because without effort, there is always someone or something else to blame. Compare this approach with that of the growth mindset where individuals can find failure painful but not defining. Failure is important because it highlights a problem that allows the individual to face, deal with and learn from.
In creating a love of learning, teachers can foster a culture where being challenged is a positive thing. In a growth mindset, getting things right is attributed to effort, working hard and being determined in the face of pressure. Getting things wrong leads people with the growth mindset to ask the question why? and what can be done to help them improve. They learn from every negative experience they encounter.
Individuals with a fixed mindset do not entertain the notion of being challenged or that of curiosity, they merely see their intelligence as something they need to prove to others rather than build on. Avoiding a challenge guarantees success in everything that is attempted. Being correct is attributed to talent whereas a wrong answer evokes the response that they just don’t care; there is no love of being challenged and no love of learning.
In summary, I can’t do this, versus, I can’t do this yet. One is of the fixed mindset and one is growth; they are easily distinguishable.
3. How individuals view others in the learning environment: In Dweck’s research, she states that children with a fixed mindset say that they get constantly judged by their parents. It is this judgement that defines how they relate to other people around them,
“They [mindsets] guide the whole interpretation process. The fixed mindset creates an internal monologue that is focused on judging: “This means I’m a loser.” “This means I’m a better person than they are.””
Those with a growth mindset learn from people; people that help them improve by being honest and providing constructive criticism. They seek help from other people to ensure they develop and grow and, providing those who help them are of a growth mindset, they encourage and foster a love of learning. Individuals with a growth mindset get smarter because they put in a lot of effort, have positive learning strategies including good planning, they are committed to their work and work hard at it. They persist, practice and confront any obstacles, and together this leads to new skills, abilities, achievements and ultimately success.
We have all experienced a situation where what we are learning gets a little tough and walking away from the activity seems like the only reasonable strategy. But by placing ourselves firmly in a growth mindset, we can picture our brain forming new connections as the challenge is met and the lesson learned. It is this powerful mental imagery that should give us the drive to persist at what we seek to accomplish
Strategies to Develop Growth Mindset:
Acknowledge and embrace your weaknesses: Maybe you know that you are lazy and tend to put things off until the last minute. Try to plan around that by making modest goals and giving yourself a reasonable amount of time to accomplish them. One of the simplest ways to overcome your weakness is to be honest with yourself about your limitations and tackle them head on. Using the above example about “laziness,” if you know that you tend to procrastinate, then one way to build the growth mindset is to create specific habits in your life that will help you tackle your lazy nature.
View challenges as opportunities: We are constantly faced with important decisions, such as whether to accept a new job or signing up to take a new class. Taking on these challenges is a big part of developing as a person. The more we challenge ourselves, the more opportunities we have to learn about ourselves. New challenges equal new opportunities. Embarking on a new challenge may be frightening due to the risk of failure. This may result in avoiding various challenges and continuing down the usual path, holding onto excuses that we tell ourselves so we can remain in our comfort zone. The truth is, staying in your comfort zone because you are scared to venture out can become uncomfortable. If you avoid challenges, you will not be provided with opportunities to learn and grow. Instead, you will be troubled by the sense that things are not just right.
Know your learning style and use the right learning strategies: If you are able to identify the best ways that you learn, you can optimize your time while researching or attending classes. Various learning styles can work together for people who have a growth mindset, and learning styles allow students to blend and combine their own bits of intelligence into many different patterns. Learning styles relate to different learning approaches that students find to be the most effective for them, so once these are identified, people can feel that their knowledge is expanding and they are getting better at what they are studying.
Remember that the brain has the ability to change throughout life: Your brain forms new connections throughout life that allow it to make adjustments when you are faced with new situations or a new environment. Neuroplasticity explains how your brain can be retrained and reorganized, showing that there is always room to grow. If you are aware that your brain is constantly changing, then you are more likely to adopt a growth mindset. Remember that if the brain is not fixed, then the mind should not be fixed either. As you learn things, your mind will adapt to this new information.
Prioritize learning over seeking approval: When you are more concerned about getting approval from other people than about learning new things, you are giving up your own potential to grow. Don't worry about what other people think about you, and instead focus on bettering yourself for your own benefit. Our suggestion is to focus on becoming an autodidact (or “self-taught” person). Make it a point to spend at least 10 minutes a day on self-education, where you try to master one new thing.
Focus on the process instead of the end result: People who have a growth mindset are often very in tune with their intelligence and willingness to learn.They understand that any growth is going to be a process and make their own process goals to help them reach the end of the process. They've learned to embrace the suck, do the work, and move on to the next part of the process.It is important to enjoy the learning process so you are able to get the most out of it and be open to the process continuing beyond the expected time frame. One of the most important things about the process of learning is the unexpected lessons that you may pick up along the way.
Cultivate a sense of purpose: People with a growth mindset are able to look at long-term goals and have a larger sense of purpose for their lives. Keep the end goal in mind and always look at the big picture. Ask yourself on a regular basis what the purpose is of the work that you are doing. Are you doing it because you enjoy it, or is it part of a bigger goal? Always work with a purpose so you have the motivation to keep working.
Reward effort and actions, not traits: Let other people know when they are doing something creative or especially smart rather than just telling them that they are smart in general. This helps people strive to continue to do smart things rather than make them feel like they have already accomplished the end goal of being smart.
Learn to give and receive constructive criticism: Think of criticism as a way to learn. If you have an area of weakness and someone is able to point that out to you, think of it as a gift that makes you aware of your faults so you can focus on them to improve. It is important to not take constructive criticism personally. Often, people are trying to help, and are therefore doing you a favor rather than trying to cut you down. If you want to enhance your growth mindset, learn to listen carefully to others, and receive constructive criticism. Think of criticism as a way to learn.
Need for improvement does not mean failure: Just because you need to improve in one area does not mean you have failed. It means that you are on the right track, you're just not quite there yet. To get inspiration, here are nine successful people who initially failed in life.
Reflect on your learning every day: Make sure to absorb everything you learn throughout the day, whether this means writing down the main points at the end of the day or doing a little bit more research on a topic that held your interest the most that day.Don't let your lessons from the day just float away. Write it down in a bullet journal, a regular journal, or make some other form of a permanent record. At a minimum sit with the idea of what you learned for a while and allow all the lessons to sink in.
Learn from the mistakes of others: You don't always want to compare yourself to other people, but it is important to see that other people have the same weaknesses as you. When you see someone make a mistake and recognize how it should have been done correctly, keep that in mind for the future when you are in their situation. You can even put yourself in their shoes for the moment and pretend that it was you making the mistake, and try to learn from it first hand.
Think of learning as “brain training”: The more you learn, the more you are training your brain to act a certain way and make various connections. You want to train your brain as best you can, which equates to continuing to learn throughout life. Your brain will have to be trained and retrained as the world evolves and things change, so it is vital to be open to the idea of manipulating your brain to keep up with current trends.
Cultivate grit: You want to have a passion for what you are doing so you can have the perseverance to see it through. Having a deep interest in your work is one of the most important things to keep you motivated each day and to keep you wanting to be successful in your field. In order to accomplish your long-term goals, you have to have the grit to keep you motivated and on track.
Never stop learning. Set a new goal for every one you accomplished:You will never be completely finished learning. Just because you have finished one class or one project does not mean that you should abandon the subject. Growth-minded people are able to continue to create new goals so they stay motivated and interested in the subjects that they choose to study. Learning is never finished, as there is always another goal to reach or more research to be done. Growth-minded people are able to continue to create new goals so they stay motivated and interested in the subjects that they choose to study.
Remember that it takes time to learn: Nothing worth doing comes quickly and easily. You have to be realistic about the time it will take for you to learn the information that you are interested in to the point of your satisfaction. It may take several different methods of learning or several times of applying a new technique until it really sticks and you are able to master it. Additionally, because things are constantly changing, this means that the learning process may never truly be over.
The following video will help to understand more the key differences between a fixed mindset and a growth mindset in order to learn how to target growth efficiently.
