One of the most important concepts I’ve learned throughout this week is the difference between the “fixed” mindset and the “growth” mindset. In a fixed mindset, individuals believe they are either born with talent or they’re not. They’re either naturally good at something, or they’re not. They view intelligence as a fixed trait. Individuals with a growth mindset believe talent comes through effort. They believe anyone can be good at anything, that their abilities can be developed through dedication, perseverance, and the right strategy.
This sounds simple, but it’s surprisingly deep. The fixed mindset is the most common and the most harmful, so it’s worth understanding and considering how it’s affecting you.
For example:
In a fixed mindset, you believe “She’s a natural born singer” or “I’m just no good at dancing.”
In a growth mindset, you believe “Anyone can be good at anything. Skills come only from practice.”
And what is the most important for me, the growth mindset believes trouble is just important feedback in the learning process. But it’s not devasting, it’s not smth that define you for the whole life.
In a fixed mindset, it’s all about the outcome. If you fail, you think all effort was wasted.
In a growth mindset, it’s all about the process, so the outcome hardly matters.
Can you see how this subtle difference in mindset can change everything? Yeees, because the mindset itself is not fixed. You can change your mindset just by thinking it through. But the key to changing your mindset lies first and foremost in self-awareness. To change your mindset, you have to be able to identify the situations that trigger a fixed mindset and observe when you’re falling into it.
Step 1: Learn to hear your fixed mindset “voice.”
Step 2: Recognize that you have a choice.
Step 3: Talk back to it with a growth mindset voice.
Step 4: Take the growth mindset action.
This might include taking on a new challenge, learning from setbacks, persisting without exception, adjusting your actions based on feedback, and so on.But try to observe the growth of your mind, even more – create your own rules on the way to succeed.
The project “YOU are the EU” is funded by the Agency for Mobility and EU programmes withing the program European Solidarity Corps.
