Cultivating a Growth Mindset

Posted on by

Do you ever find yourself feeling like you’re not a math/science person? Or maybe that your left-brained dominate? Or that you’re just more naturally gifted at some subjects versus others? These thoughts stem from what is known as a fixed mindset as opposed to a growth mindset. Remember that none of us are born good at anything. Every skill you have now is something that you have been practicing and learning for an extended period of time. This means that in order to get good at new things, you just have to keep practicing. The idea of practicing in order to learn new skills is known as the growth mindset. So, maybe you aren’t good at physics yet, but with enough practice you will continue to get better at physics.

Below you will find an infographic and several videos on cultivating a growth mindset.

Fixed mindset (intelligence is static) leads to a desire to look smart and therefore a tendency to avoid challenges, give up easily, see effort as fruitless, ignore useful negative feedback, and feel threatened by the success of others. As a result, those with fixed mindsets may plateau early and achieve less than their full potential. Growth mindset (intelligence can be developed) leads to a desire to learn and therefore a tendency to embrace challenges, persist in the face of setbacks, see effort as the path to mastery, learn from criticism, and find lessons and inspiration in the success of others. As a result, those with a growth mindset reach ever-higher levels of achievement.

Videos on cultivating a growth mindset:

  • Short explanation of fixed versus growth mindset (2:10 minutes)
  • Short video with advice on cultivating a growth mindset (3:12 minutes)
  • Short animated motivational video on growth mindset (2:28 minutes)