Growth vs. Fixed Mindset: Part 1

Anna Enright, DNP, PCNS-BC

I immigrated to the US from a small Italian town, at the age of eleven.  Two days after my arrival I found myself in a classroom where everyone spoke English except for me! I have vivid memories of feeling not good enough, not smart enough, and of not fitting in!  Although these moments were painful, I have come to appreciate that perhaps they were also instrumental in helping me grow.  Even though I felt like a fish out of water, I showed up everyday.  I pushed my limits and learned.  Now, when I’m challenged by a climb, a long run or a public speaking event and I feel inadequate, but push through, I’ve succeeded, regardless of the outcome.  I’ve shown up!  I’ve learned something from the experience which will inform me next time. When we  operate at the razor's edge of our ability and maintain the belief we can grow, magic happens.  

Not so long ago, scientists thought human brains stopped developing in childhood.  We now know that our brains have the capacity to change and grow well into our 90’s. The ability of the brain to reorganize itself is called neuroplasticity. By challenging ourselves with new experiences, we form and strengthen neural connections and have the capacity to ‘rewire’ the brain.  Our brains are built to grow and learn throughout our entire lives!

Many of us, however, fall into the belief that some people are better, stronger, or smarter just because they were born more talented. The work of Dr. Carol Dweck (2008), a psychologist from Stanford University, tells us otherwise. In her research, Dr. Dweck discovered that our mindset matters a lot! She defines two types of mindsets: Growth and Fixed.  She found having one or the other has a huge impact on our effort and motivation to improve and ultimately our success.  The good news is, that even if we tend to have a fixed way of looking at our abilities, we can develop a growth mindset by recognizing and challenging our fixed beliefs.  Let’s look at the differences between a fixed and growth mindset and some ways to grow. 
 

Fixed Mindset: This mindset is distinguished by a belief that talent is something we are born with, and therefore fixed. In a fixed mindset, we usually avoid challenges, give up easily and are threatened or intimidated by other people’s success.  When someone with a fixed mindset fails at a task, they tend to think it’s because they are not talented enough.  This can lead to avoiding challenges therefore avoiding the risk of failure.  Since learning new skills tends to be difficult before it is easy, not even trying, prevents us from getting better at things.  

A fixed mindset tends to:

• Give up easily

• Believe putting in effort is not worth the time

• Strive to remain in their comfort zone

• Ignore feedback from others

• Feel threatened by the success of others

• Hide flaws so as not to be judged by others

• View feedback as personal criticism

(Dweck, 2008)

Growth Mindset: A growth mindset views intelligence and talent as qualities that can be developed over time.  When one with a growth mindset fails at a task, they believe it's because they need to spend more time practicing. Someone with a growth mindset believes their intelligence and talent will improve with effort and practice.  They recognize that setbacks and failures are temporary and part of the learning process.   This allows them to bounce back more quickly and put in more effort.  Adopting a growth mindset is essential for performance, motivation and resilience.  

With a growth mindset one is more likely to:

• Believe talent/intelligence can be improved.

• Put in more effort to learn.

• Believe effort leads to improvement.

• See failures as temporary setbacks.

• View feedback as a source of information and an opportunity to learn.

• Embrace challenges.

• Be inspired by other’s success.

(Dweck, 2008)

In Part 2 we will discuss skills to recognize and shift from a fixed to a growth mindset.  Can you identify when your mindset is more fixed?  Does stress impact whether you show up with a more fixed vs. growth mindset?  Does your mindset impact how you show up in challenging situations?

Dweck, C. (2008). Mindset: The Psychology of Success.  Random House Digital, Inc.