Growth Mindset and Fixed Mindset

Growth mindset and fixed mindset are two mindset’s we can have. Growth mindset is an idea that intelligence can be changed through effort and learning. While a fixed mindset is that your abilities and intelligence are set from birth and should come naturally. Stereotype threat is a fear or doing that oneself will be viewed negatively confirming the negative stereotype than they would otherwise causing them to under perform. I will discuss growth mindset, fixed mindset and stereotype threat and provide it with my own educational journey.

Growth mindset is a belief that your intellect and your ability to perceive can be advanced by effort and learning. When faced with challenges people with a growth mindset overcome it with perseverance. Setbacks are seen as an opportunity to work harder the next time. They are able to welcome criticism and learn from their mistakes. They have in their mind to always improve and do not shy from motivation even when witnessing other people’s successes.

A growth mindset is well needed in life because when something becomes challenging for you. You are able to preserve and push yourself and more determined to learn new things.

In some aspects of my life, I lean more to having a growth mindset. Such as school and work, I have shown growth mindset by using effort as a key to success and learning how to overcome objectives. My experience throughout college while having a growth mindset, I believed if I failed or did not get a subject.

It reflects my learning style. I viewed it as an opportunity to explore a new resolution that will help me better understand. I had always encouraged myself to keep trying. During work, when I encounter an uncomfortable or new situation for myself. I invite feedback and cooperation from others and adapt to new challenges. The opposite of a growth mindset is a fixed mindset. A fixed mindset is a belief that your intelligence and abilities are unchanging with only a certain amount from birth. Those who have a fixed mindset facing challenges feel the need to avoid them and often give up when it gets difficult. Setbacks make them feel discouraged and at times they will put the blame on other people. The idea of effort with those who have a fixed mindset is not needed and only need it when you are not good at something. Feedback is viewed as personal attack and will then get defensive. They rather look smart then put in actual work and learning.

Even though I believe I have a more growth mindset now as an adult. During my childhood I had areas where I had a fixed mindset. I would adapt a fixed mindset around my math studies. I would start to feel overwhelmed and frustrated. The thought of giving up was in my mind constantly. I would hear myself say ‘I can’t do this’ and ‘I’m not good at this’. It did not help my self esteem by projecting that onto myself or my state of mind with those kinds of thoughts. It made it worse. I used to hear a statement coming from my parents a lot that stated ‘ It’s going to be okay. Math is not your strong suit.’ After hearing that it made me not want to try in my studies anymore. I began to believe that maybe math is not for me. I had this idea that my mindset was set in stone and could not be changed.

Even if at the moment you have a fixed mindset, there are solutions that will help you develop a growth mindset. For my example it will be how I could have helped change my fixed mindset in math at the time to more of a growth mindset. One solution is choosing a new strategy to achieve better in math that I believe will change. Changing how I feel about the topic of math even though I know it is challenging for me. I needed to learn to acknowledge my inner dialogue from having a fixed mindset. To a mindset of it’s exciting to take challenges that will make me grow. I can understand and choose that even if I fail that it does not reflect me as a person and mistakes help me improve. It could only affect my approach and effort and what I put my focus to. Instead of looking for an easy way out or route I can choose a more challenging problem that will help in enhancing my abilities. Also instead of pushing things off. I need to put my focus to my math so that my focus is onto a subject that I truly do want to succeed. The only way is to actually practice.

Another solution for a fixed mindset to a growth mindset is effort praise rather than intelligence praise. Effort praise is words of encouragement to help a person’s confidence be brought up. Intelligence praise is a message that is implying that their success is due to effort and hard work. An example of effort praise that could be helpful is ‘You worked really hard at these questions’. A quote like that can push me at the assignment and next time try even harder. Sometimes the way feedback can be interpreted good or bad but when you hear it as ‘ Can you think of an additional approach to this problem?’. It’s still praising but always trying to point you in the direction of your goal. An example of how an intelligence praise that can go wrong would be stated ‘Good job! You are smart at this.’ Instead of trying to comfort a student because that can be discouraging for them you should talk about their effort. Another example of intelligence praise can be ‘ Don’t worry. You tried your best’.

Stereotype threat is an idea that during a situation it can generate a fear that one’s behavior might be viewed or confirmed by a negative stereotype proceeding to undermining their work or performances. Stereotype threat can affect someone’s need of belongingness and even how one performs on a standardized test. Almost anyone can experience stereotype threat. I have also experienced stereotype threats. One experience happend at my place of work. The workplace is surrounded by negative stereotypes against women. I am a female who works at a male dominated workplace whose objective is to sell and make a quota. I’m aware of the stereotype that women perform below compared to men at certain tasks.

The fact that this is known to myself causes me to overthink about my actions and daily tasks that i’m assigned to. Especially when I’m trying to make a sale by myself or surrounded by men. When men are around and I don’t make the sale. My thoughts about myself are negative. I assume that If they were in my position, they probably would have gotten the sale. I’m constantly on edge. At times I will not get the sale at all causing me to perform below my potential. A solution to this stereotype threat can be to have a positive attitude and remember that the negative stereotype around women has nothing to do with my actual abilities. Perhaps focusing on my achievements and increasing my confidence will help me perform better than when I self doubt myself. Another solution is that workplaces can create strategies that can display its engagement with diversity and inclusion.Also educating workers on how stereotypes can affect behavior and actions.

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