Growth mindset is the ability to see opportunity in struggle, to learn from experiences, to adapt to changing circumstances. Less emphasis is placed on outcomes, more emphasis on process. Growth mindset assumes the principle of impermanence, that much like life itself, experiences do not occur in perpetuity, but last for only a limited period of time.
In a relationship context, for example, this means growing with your partner, working together to understand challenges, and working toward solutions. In a learning context, this means replacing “I can’t, and I never will” with “I can, if I put in the effort”. In the case of K-12 education, researchers1 have found that by reframing a failing grade to “not yet” (as opposed to an “F”), students are nudged into a growth mindset, and tend to achieve better academic outcomes.
Fixed mindset, on the other hand, is accepting the way that things are as though they are constant, as if things cannot and will not change. It’s failing to see ourselves or others as ever-evolving organisms, with the ability and natural tendency to learn and develop over time.
In a relationship context this means labeling any sign of misunderstanding or disagreement, barring any toxic or abusive behavior, as an indicator that the relationship is doomed and cannot be mended. Believing that what you see is all there is. Believing that behavior is a constant, and that what one is experiencing today will always be. In the education context, as discussed above, it means accepting an outcome, perhaps a failing grade, as a reflection of one’s character, or innate ability (or inability), perceived as a constant that can never change. Paradoxically, kids who are labeled as “brilliant” by their teachers or parents may develop a fixed mindset in the other direction, perpetually expecting an immeasurable outcome, increasing their aversion to failure, or to making mistakes, and thus stunting their motivation.2
While a fixed mindset can feel comforting in the short term, a growth mindset allows for a deeper understanding of what we are capable of accomplishing, and how we might get there. Growth mindset allows us the opportunity to work with variables which we can control, such as the time dedicated to learning, growth and development. This is true whether we are working toward personal growth, relationship growth, growth in our career, academics, and so on.
1 See Developing a Growth Mindset with Carol Dweck on YouTube here.
2 See Mindset, Changing The Way You think To Fulfil Your Potential by Dr Carol Dweck (2017) here.
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