The Growth Mindset Advantage: Thriving in Life
Date: 12th of Febuary, 2025
Introduction
Why does mindset matter? Mindset impacts all aspects of life and defines how you deal with challenges and growth by affecting your resilience and long-term success.
What is a growth mindset? According to Carol Dweck’s theory in her book Mindset: The New Psychology of Success, “The passion for stretching yourself and sticking to it, even (or especially) when it’s not going well, is the hallmark of the growth mindset. This is the mindset that allows people to thrive during some of the most challenging times in their lives.”
Growth Mindset vs. Fixed Mindset
Mindsets are important to us, and I’m happy to tell you they can usually change. Whether for the better or the worse depends mainly on the path you choose and the choices you make. The main differences between a fixed and a growth mindset entail the following:
A Growth Mindset…
- does not fear failure, on the contrary, persists and sees an opportunity for growth.
- views hard work and effort as a path to better and mastery.
- learns from criticism to improve and knows criticism from insult or personal projection.
- when depressed, they might not even show it because of constant action and effort in trying to get out of the slump and not giving up.
- believes in oneself, knowing one is not superior to others nor jealous of others but rather inspired by their success.
A Fixed Mindset…
- fears failure, so doesn’t try in the first place.
- when feeling depressed, stays inactive, and mental state affects one’s life in the long term.
- think that you either have talent or you don’t, meaning hard work is looked down upon as to say, “This person is struggling” instead of saying, “this person is working hard to achieve something, and that is admirable.”
- Observe others’ success as a threat and build insecurity of one’s self due to the inability to be in that position at the moment.
- sees criticism and insult as an attack due to insecurity and avoids feedback due to lack of self-trust and belief.
Can You Have a Bit of Both?
You may have noticed that you possess some traits of one mindset and some of the other. The human brain is highly complex, and no brain is identical to the other. This means that you can be a 50/50 mix or leaning towards one of them more than the other. Hopefully, the growth mindset! But remember, mindsets can be changed, so don’t feel discouraged.
How to Change Your Mindset
Well, first, you need to figure out how you think. What kind of mindset do you have? Learn more about the way you think and feel and why. Thankfully, our brain is neuroplastic, meaning we can continue to change and re-teach ourselves as we grow up.
Changing your mindset is not magic that will change your life overnight. However, it can change your life in the long term because rewiring your brain to think about positive thoughts and focus on your goals can shift your focus and efforts in the direction you want.
Challenge yourself with new ideas, perspectives, and experiences. Learn about the things you like and want to achieve by reading books articles, or watching valuable videos. Set your priorities for the coming period and focus on one thing at a time. Write down your goals, thoughts, and feelings, including your positive affirmations, to reach a point where you can say, “I believe I can do this,” “I can overcome this,” or “If I am grateful, God increases me in favor, because Gratitude equals an abundance mindset.”
Focusing on one thing is often achieved not by trying to focus on one thing but by cutting out any distractions that limit your ability to reach that thing.
Real change only happens with self-awareness, effort, and consistency. It is not something that happens overnight, as I said, but you can do anything that you put your mind to. Feel free to check out this ultimate guide on how to achieve a growth mindset or start that journey within 30 days: The Ultimate 30-day Guide to a Growth Mindset.
And remember, a growth mindset is like a muscle: the more you train it, the stronger it gets.
If you have any tips, advice, or personal experiences to share, feel free to share them with others in the comments down below to help, thank you!
