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What is a growth mindset?

A growth mindset is the belief that a person’s capacities and talents can be improved over time. A growth mindset is the belief that a person’s capacities and talents can be improved over time. The term growth mindset was first coined by American psychologist, Dr. Carol Dweck, in her 2006 book, Mindset:  The New Psychology of Success.  According to Dr. Dweck’s research, individuals with a growth mindset were more successful than those with a fixed mindset.   A fixed mindset is the belief that intelligence, talents, and other abilities are innate and fixed.  However, a growth mindset is a belief that abilities can be developed through practice and effort.  With a growth mindset, failure is viewed as an opportunity to learn and grow, and challenges are welcomed and sought out as a chance to learn and grow.  Practice and effort are the path to mastery and a key component of success.  In growth mindset, motivation focuses on learning, development, and continuous improvement.  A person with a growth mindset responds to setbacks and challenges with perseverance, resilience, and seeks to understand the reasons for failure and try new strategies and adapt to changes to succeed.

How is a growth mindset beneficial?

A growth mindset is beneficial because it primes a person to be successful and more satisfied with life.  The benefits of a growth mindset include:

  • Improving your self-esteem and self-belief.
  • Learning new skills and things you do not know.
  • Embracing challenges and feedback.
  • Seeing new opportunities and possibilities.
  • Being more optimistic, courageous, and happy.

Take this quiz at to determine if you have a growth mindset or not: https://blog.mindsetworks.com/what-s-my-mindset

How do you develop a growth mindset?

To develop a growth mindset, you can:

  • Identify your own mindset and recognize that you have a choice.
  • Listen to the mindset voice inside of you and talk back with a growth mindset voice.
  • View challenges as opportunities and embrace imperfection.
  • Learn something new and make mistakes.
  • Seek feedback and learn from others’ success.
  • learning and turn negative thoughts into positive ones.
  • Harness the power of possibilities and practice.
  • Be kind to yourself and stop seeking approval of others.