Growth Mindset: The project was meant to introduce the belief called the growth mindset. In summary the growth mindset is a belief that you can always learn something new. You are not predetermined in terms of your intelligence and with hard work you can achieve growth. I think this is a great way to start this course for me. I am very nervous to start my masters. I am not sure if it will be possible, but with hard work, I can absolutely do it. I am doing this for myself and for my family. I want to prove to myself that I can get a degree in the United States. Some obstacles that have always prevented me from trying is English. However, I want to prove to myself that it is possible and I want my kids to know that they can achieve their goals as well. The growth mindset lesson did a great job of encouraging me and I left the lesson and tried to incorporate the same mindset in my kids. It was a great topic at our dinner table as we all talked about the growth mindset. Below is the project. As I look back, my thoughts are in bold.
Planning with the Growth Mindset
Allison Parsons
Lamar University
The Benefits of Incorporating the Growth Mindset
What does the best athlete, the best artist, the best actor/actress, the best teacher, singer, the best whoever, have in common? I would venture to answer that they failed at some point in their life. They all had to push through barriers (I am thinking about the barriers I have overcome and the barriers that will come up in the future) to achieve their success. They had to realize they could do better and did not let failure define them. As motivational speaker and inspirational author Israelmore Ayivor said, “If you think it is possible, it will be possible. If you think it is impossible, the impossible will be possible. Whatever you think; whether possible or impossible will forever be possible to happen.” Dr. Carol Dweck hypothesizes there are two types of mindsets in people, the fixed and the growth mindsets. In essence, the fixed mindset believes either you have it or you don’t whereas the growth mindset believes one is capable of getting better through practice and effort. Those that incorporate the growth mindset into their lives can dissolve the ceiling of innate ability by understanding learning is gained through failure and challenges.
Incorporating the Four Steps into All Aspects of Life
If done correctly, one can adopt and adapt the growth mindset to all aspects of one’s life. Looking internally (Do I have a growth mindset or fix mindset most of the time?), this philosophy can garner success professionally as an entrepreneur (How can I grow my business?), personally as a parent (I am not a perfect parent, but when I feel I have failed as a parent how can I make it a positive change for my kids.) and educationally as a student (Internally this is the big one for me right now. I am nervous and definitely questioning myself as I start this process. Will I continue a growth mindset through this process?). According to mindset The New Psychology of Success by Dr. Carol Dweck, the four-step process to change your mindset are: Learn to hear your fixed mindset “voice,” recognize that you have a choice, talk back to it with a growth mindset voice, and lastly, take the growth mindset action. (I wonder what happens when we don’t realize we are listening to our fixed mindset voice?)
Incorporation the Four Steps into a Professional Life
As a liaison, my job is to assist university students transition from learning at a South Korean university to learning at a United States university. Even before students enter the U.S. to study, they face many challenges that need to be overcome. Some of these challenges of stopped some of these students from making the commitment to obtain their goals of studying in the United States. For example, I have had a number of students go through the entire application process lasting months to complete, then get approved to attend the university in the United States but fail the E-2 student visa interview assessing their English ability, which is the very last phase of coming to the United States. After this large setback I have had student give up on their dream and never attempt to study in the United States again. Had I known about the growth mindset previously, I could have encouraged that the student now has learned what type of questions were going to be asked and practice those type of answers. That failure could have turned into the realization of a dream had they not given up. One could argue their fixed mindset brought to light an inability to achieve their goals as opposed to having a growth mindset that would encourage a second attempt with more knowledge gained. (How can I help students move from their fixed mindset to a growth mindset?)
By hearing the inner-fixed mindset voice, either myself or my student could recognize the self-destructive inner voice and start the process of changing from failure to success. These students that have found themselves in this situation could continue to see that they have a choice. The inability to come over to the United States does not mean the end of the dream if cultivated correctly. As the liaison, I could have coached the student and both universities as to the next steps to get the student to realize their dreams and having both interested universities of achieving their professional goals. When a student does not go to the United States to study, the Korean university does not have a student representative at that particular U.S. university and the U.S. university is losing out on diversity on their campus and the financial interest. Recognizing the choice would be beneficial to all involved had I known more about this process. The choice of trying again the next semester is a real possibility. The major steps in the process were complete and with a bit of studying and practicing the student could have passed the interview. It could be argued, the student’s experience would be that much better after overcoming the challenges. In my organization, if we can look at a setback as a beacon for change and growth, the organization has a higher potential for financial success.
Incorporation the Four Steps into a Personal Life
Personally, as a parent it is imperative my children internalize this mindset because nothing in life comes easy and overcoming obstacles is imperative for their growth. For myself, adapting the growth mindset will help the self-doubt that creeps in at times. (As most parents, we want what is best for our kids. This idea could actually be life changing for them. I hope I can continue to support their growth mindset as the grow up and mature.) It is important through my schooling to set my goals in terms of what is learned and gained as opposed to what grade was achieved. The goal for endeavoring on my masters was not to obtain a 4.0, but instead was to challenge myself and learn more of my potential to obtain information. Looking internally, I feel learning another language, moving to a foreign country, and becoming successful is the foundation to my positive self-talk. I remember first moving to the United States and feeling very uncomfortable many times. I was unsure of my ability to communicate with strangers, with my husband and my children. I had an extreme amount of self-doubt, and it caused me to freeze many times. Now that I have worked hard on my English, it has brought me confidence and has been the spark to attempt to obtain my masters in a United States university. My hope is that my children see my determination and never feel like they are unable to reach their goals.
The one issue I have with Dr. Dweck’s writing is understanding the issues causing the inner saboteur. I feel it is important to investigate what is causing the self-doubt prior to attempting to change a mindset. For example, a person that has experienced a major trauma may need to work on their socio-emotional needs prior to working towards changing to a growth mindset. When someone has experienced multiple traumas, it is important to fix those issues prior to working towards self-actualization. As Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theorizes, the subject’s basic needs must be met prior to moving up the pyramid. With that being said, if someone has realized their basic needs, and is working towards self-actualization, the growth mindset has the potential to help expedite the process.