The world-famous psychologist Carol Dweck, who has been studying the problems of success and achievement for decades, discovered and scientifically proved the influence internal installations on personality. In this book, you will learn how the fixed mindset sets people up for failure, while the growth mindset opens the way to self-realization, building a successful career, and building happy relationships with others at any age. And also - how can you instill such an attitude in yourself and others.

The book will be of interest not only to parents, teachers and coaches, but also to anyone involved in managing people or aiming at personal growth.

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Flexible mind. A new look at the psychology of development of adults and children
Carol Dweck

The world-famous psychologist Carol Dweck, who has been studying the problems of success and achievement for decades, discovered and scientifically proved the influence of internal attitudes on personality. In this book, you will learn how the fixed mindset sets people up for failure, while the growth mindset opens the way to self-realization, building a successful career, and building happy relationships with others at any age. And also - how can you instill such an attitude in yourself and others.

The book will be of interest not only to parents, teachers and coaches, but also to anyone involved in managing people or aiming at personal growth.

Carol Dweck

Flexible mind. A new look at the psychology of development of adults and children

Published with permission from Random House

Copyright © 2006 by Carol S. Dweck, Ph.D.

© Translation into Russian, edition in Russian, design. LLC "Mann, Ivanov and Ferber", 2013

All rights reserved. No part of the electronic version of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means, including posting on the Internet and in corporate networks, for private and public use, without the written permission of the owner of the author...

Flexible mind. A new look at the psychology of development of adults and children Carol Dweck

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Title: Flexible mind. A new look at the psychology of development of adults and children

About the book “Flexible Consciousness. A New Perspective on Developmental Psychology in Adults and Children by Carol Dweck

The world-famous psychologist Carol Dweck, who has been studying the problems of success and achievement for decades, discovered and scientifically proved the influence of internal attitudes on personality. In this book, you will learn how the fixed mindset sets people up for failure, while the growth mindset opens the way to self-realization, building a successful career, and building happy relationships with others at any age. And also - how can you instill such an attitude in yourself and others.
The book will be of interest not only to parents, teachers and coaches, but also to anyone involved in managing people or aiming at personal growth.

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Quotes from the book “Flexible Consciousness. A New Perspective on Developmental Psychology in Adults and Children by Carol Dweck

It is clear that people with a growth mindset thrive when they develop themselves. When do people with a fixed mindset thrive? When they are safe, that is, when they have everything under control. When tasks become too difficult and these people no longer feel smart and talented, they lose interest in the matter.
When people believe that their fundamental qualities are cultivable, failure can also hurt them, but not kill them. And if change and growth are possible, then the path to success is always open.

It is not so important what abilities you are endowed with - after all, it is efforts that turn them into achievements.

For people with a fixed mindset, failure is a stigma forever.

The bottom line is that praising children's intelligence undermines their motivation and lowers their performance.

Character is what allows you to reach the top and stay there at the top.

Failure can be painful for people with a growth mindset, too. But it does not put an indelible mark on a person. Failure is a problem that you face, work on, and learn from.

Each person has his own role model, someone who showed him the right path at a turning point in his life.

Fixed-minded people (with a fixed mindset) believe that innate intelligence and talent are unchanging. They spend time proving to everyone that they are smart and talented instead of developing their talents. In addition, they believe that talent leads to success in and of itself. And they are wrong. People with a flexible mind (with a growth mindset) believe that all qualities can be developed by systematically working on oneself, and the initial level of intelligence and talent is just a starting point. This approach builds a love of constant learning and resilience to difficulties and failures. It is unlikely that there will be at least one outstanding person who would not possess these qualities. The transition to an agile mindset enhances motivation and productivity in business, education, and sports. It enriches personal relationships. When you read this book, you will know how it works.

Introduction

One fine day, the students sat me down at the table and literally ordered me to write this book. They wanted other people to be able to take advantage of our discoveries and make their lives better. I have been planning to take up a pen for a long time, but only now this work has become my priority.

My book continues the tradition in psychology, revealing the idea of ​​the impact of internal beliefs on a person. We may or may not be aware of our beliefs, but they have a huge impact on what we want and how successful we are at achieving it. Changing beliefs, even the simplest ones, can have far-reaching consequences.

In this book, you'll learn how one simple thought - your self-image - determines a large part of your actions. Strictly speaking, this representation is associated each your step. And the way you see and evaluate yourself, and the fact that it does not allow you to realize your full potential, is dictated by your inner attitude.

No book has so far talked about attitudes or shown how they can be used in life. Now you will suddenly understand the psychology of great people - great in science and art, in sports and in business - as well as those who only served great expectations. You will understand your colleagues, your boss, your friends, your children. You will understand how to release the potential - both yours and your child's.

At the end of each chapter, as well as in the last part of the book, you will find specific recommendations on how to apply what you have learned in practice: how to determine what attitude controls your life and understand how it works and how you can change it if you wish.

My work is devoted to the topic of personal growth. She helped me speed up my own development. Hope it helps you too.

Key ideas of the book:

We all have a fixed mindset or a growth mindset.
. Those who believe that their level of intelligence and personal qualities are unchanged have
a fixed mindset.
. Those who find it possible to change their personality have a growth mindset.
. People with a growth mindset believe that they will definitely have opportunities for
self-improvement.
. Attitudes form the worldview. But they can be changed.
. Students who are praised for their ability tend to acquire an attitude to
ness and refuse to decide challenging tasks. Students who are encouraged to
The effort you put in will show you the best results over time.
. Athletes with a growth mindset develop strength of character by constantly
forcing yourself to overcome difficulties.
. Managers with a fixed mindset who consider themselves geniuses can quickly
break up the company.
. Companies need to evaluate candidates for leadership positions not on the basis of
their “natural talents”, but from the abilities for personal growth, and necessarily
give them tasks to learn something new.
. The mentor should by all means show that he is interested in
The student developed and moved on.

I recently read a wonderful book by Stanford University psychology professor Carol Dweck. The original title of the book is “Mindset: The new psychology of success” (“Thinking (Attitudes): The New Psychology of Success”). The name was translated into Russian as "Flexible Consciousness". Let me just say that I really enjoyed this book. This article contains a review of the book and some of my explanations and additions to the main content of this work.

At the end of the post, I wrote a few of my thoughts that develop and clarify the ideas of the author. Therefore, I hope that this post will be of interest not only to those who are going to read the book, but also to those who have read it.

Main questions of the book

In her book, Carol Dweck answers the following questions:

• Are all people born with once and for all qualities determined by nature (intelligence, strength, Creative skills, character traits) or can these qualities be changed during life?
• Some people believe that talented individuals do not need to make any effort in order to engage in activities that lie in the field of their talent. For these people, everything supposedly comes easily and effortlessly. And if they have to make an effort, then they are not talented enough. Is it true?
• Many people believe that a person without talent is doomed to be a failure. And no matter how hard he tries, no matter what efforts he makes, he will forever remain in the shadow of talented lucky ones and will never become as successful as they are. Is this opinion correct?
• What kind of people actually do better in their careers? family relationships, in sports, in personal development: those who support the belief in the immutability of their own innate qualities (whether they are “natural geniuses” or people convinced of their own natural mediocrity) or those individuals who believe that personal qualities can be developed, no matter how Nature has not endowed these people with abilities?
• How does it affect human psychology faith in unchanging human qualities? What is the difference between a person with an attitude to the development of their qualities and people with an attitude that the qualities are given to them by nature in an unchanged form? How different installations can influence success, personal life, conceit, reaction to criticism, attitude towards other people?
• How to develop in yourself, in your children, colleagues, students those personal attitudes that correspond to the development of the personality and its innate talents?

The Fixed Mindset and the Growth Mindset

In answering these questions, the author introduces two central concepts: the fixed mindset and the growth mindset. People with a fixed mindset think to themselves, "I am who I am, I can't change, all my qualities are predetermined." People with a growth mindset believe, “Any quality can be developed. Man is not what he is, but what he has become!”

Often there is a mixed installation. Some people, for example, are sure that intelligence can be developed, but creativity cannot. Or vice versa.

In my article, I wrote that the most dangerous human delusion is the belief that personality is given to us from birth, and we cannot influence it in any way. I wrote that people with such a conviction do not use the possibility of self-development, because they simply do not believe in such an opportunity.

As a result, they remain at the level of their "natural development", while people with a growth mindset develop and become happier and more successful, because they know that personal qualities can be developed and character can be changed.

At the very basis of self-development, spiritual self-improvement is a belief in the development of one's own potential, in other words, a mindset for growth. Without a growth mindset, self-development is simply impossible.

That is why in one of my first articles I wrote that everyone can change themselves. In it, I remembered how discovering that I could make myself the person I always wanted to be changed my life!

All my ideas, one might say, grow out of a growth mindset, the desire for development and personal metamorphoses. Without this attitude, these ideas would make no sense.

“Why develop yourself, why, to become better and happier, if it is impossible to change a person?” Many people might think.

I consider such reasoning to be very dangerous, because it deprives people of their best opportunities. But after reading the book by Carol Dweck, I realized that the fixed mindset is much more dangerous than I thought before!

It turns out that the fixed mindset not only hinders your success and self-improvement, but also makes you less self-confident, more conceited, forms an inability to adequately evaluate yourself and perceive other people's criticism. The fixed mindset ruins your relationships, your career, and your happiness.

People with a fixed mindset tend to:

• Poor control of emotions
• Afraid of failure
• Sabotage long-term goals by trying to satisfy immediate desires
• Cannot adequately assess their own strengths and weaknesses
• Failing in business
• envy
• They do not know how to adequately perceive criticism in their address
• Not developing
• Prone to depression and chronic dissatisfaction
• Depend on success
• Many are justified
• They blame other people for their failures. Can't take responsibility
• Afraid of change
• Can't deal with problems love relationships. Relationships often don't work out
• Can't forgive
• suffer from shyness
• Find joy in humiliating other people
• Broadcast their installation to their children, subordinates, students

These qualities can be caused by a fixed mindset. True, this does not mean that any person with this attitude will have such qualities. It also does not mean that only the fixed mindset gives rise to these shortcomings. Don't assume that people with a growth mindset are completely free from these shortcomings. But there is a strong connection between them and the fixed mindset.

If you read the book, you will understand that human belief in the immutability of the individual, in innate talent, can give rise to a lot of unpleasant consequences.

The fixed mindset is the rotten foundation of the human personality that makes you unstable and shaky, weak and dependent. And the growth mindset is the strong backbone of your building, making it strong and allowing it to grow skyward!

Curse of geniuses

Someone, after reading this list, will think that these troubles are only the lot of people who are mediocre by nature, while these problems do not threaten geniuses, great talents, even if they do not believe that personality can be changed.

The author of the book gives many convincing examples of how success and belief in one's own genius ruined great athletes, politicians and businessmen, even if these people really had outstanding abilities!

High conceit, rejection of criticism, fear of failure, unwillingness to develop and make efforts are associated with a fixed mindset. And it was these qualities that pulled really talented and capable people into the abyss of failure. The realization of their natural genius turned their heads and made them forget that in life, in order to achieve something, it is not enough just to be a genius or talent, but you need to work hard. Inflated arrogance, a sense of one's own uniqueness, a sense of superiority have become the curse of many gifted people!

In contrast, Carol Dweck talks about people who never showed great talent as children, but became prominent people. And these are not just some mediocre people who, with sweat and blood, managed to achieve some semblance of success, which is available only to true geniuses and talents. It's really famous artists(Polok), athletes (Muhamed Ali, Michael Jordan - the most famous basketball player in the world!) and businessmen.

Who would have thought that Michael Jordan was not a golden child, who was already throwing a “three-pointer” into the basket from a crib. He did not show outstanding achievements in childhood. And, as he himself admits, his entire brilliant career is the result of hard work on himself and a long series of failures.

The text is replete with examples from the life of different famous people. The downside is that the book was most likely originally written for American readers. Therefore, these examples often feature national heroes of the American football or baseball league, American businessmen, that is, people whom the European or Russian reader has never heard of.

But because of this, as I believe, these examples do not become less significant.

The author proves that intelligence, character and even creativity can be developed! And many people who are considered "geniuses" actually had to work hard to become what they became.

Why, then, can the attitude to the fixed be reflected in such a fatal way on the life and character of a person? Why does she break careers and destroy destinies? I wrote questions and facts, but did not provide answers or explanations.

You will find all the explanations in this book, and I highly recommend that you read it.

If it were my will, I would forcibly give it to school and college teachers, coaches and parents so that these people would stop instilling in the younger generation a destructive belief in the immutability of personal qualities.

I believe in exceptional social role of this book, it can be very useful, both for the individual and for society as a whole.

Advantages of the book

The book is easy and quick to read despite being quite long. The language, the structure of the text, the use of examples - everything is done in a very high level. When I read, I tried to learn the brilliant logic of the development of the author's thought in order to improve my writing skills.

Also, I must say, an excellent translation, which conveyed the magnificent language of this book.

My wife, for example, found the book to be long and felt that there were too many examples in it and all of them over and over again only repeated the main ideas of Carol Dweck.

Secondly, I see nothing wrong with illustrating once again the ideas that underlie the book, ideas that are undeniably important and significant. Still, this is not a textbook on mathematics and the book does not tell about abstract truths, which are enough to hear about once to remember them.

The book talks about things that underlie the foundation of personality. And in order for a person to move from a destructive fixed mindset to a beneficial growth mindset, it is not enough to tell him once that the growth mindset is cool and useful.

As she says

“It is not easy to say goodbye to something that for many years you considered your “I”, which served as a source of self-respect for you. It is especially difficult to replace it with an attitude that encourages you to open your arms to face what you have always perceived as a threat: with difficulties, struggle, criticism and defeat.

In other words, the fixed mindset is not always easy to get rid of. I'm not saying that the growth mindset needs to be instilled with monotonous repetitions. The author simply approaches the description of the role of our attitudes from different aspects of life: from the side of relationships, from the side of career, from the side of raising children, from the side of playing sports, from the side of friendship. And in each of these descriptions, he gives his own examples.

This helps the reader to draw parallels of the examples in the book with their own lives and to become more aware of the destructive role of the fixed mindset, and with this understanding move towards changing their mindsets. Final chapter The book is called "how to change your mindset". But, in my opinion, the very reading of the book is already a change in attitude!

I had stopped believing in innate qualities and immutability of character even before I read this book. But, despite this, it was still very interesting for me to read it, I learned a lot of new things. Moreover, it will be interesting and useful for people who believe that it is impossible to change themselves and reap all the bitter fruits of this belief.

In order not to be limited only by the review of the book, as I promised at the beginning, I would like to supplement and develop some of the author's thoughts and tell a little about examples from my own life.

Additions to the book

Depression

In one of the chapters, the author writes about the connection between the fixed mindset and . When research was done on the behavior of students with depression, they found that students with a fixed mindset had more severe forms of depression than students with a growth mindset. Why?

The students in the first set (the fixed mindset) gave up when depression hit them. They stopped going to lectures and studying and instead stayed at home, where they indulged in thoughts of their worthlessness. And students from the second set (growth mindset) went to classes, worked hard, despite depression, so they had less time for whining and self-pity (yes, the example of these people is especially for you, my dear readers, who say that during depression, it’s impossible to do something by any means). Naturally, such actions alleviated the symptoms of depression.

I would like to make some more connection between the fixed mindset and depression. Many people who suffer from depression often attribute the onset of the disease to their own personality (“I have always been overly emotional, worried a lot and often obsessed with myself”). There is nothing wrong with that, I myself believe that depression is not just a curse that can hit anyone, but the resultant effect of the properties of your personality.

But the danger is that many of these people are convinced that they cannot do anything about themselves and cure their depression. “I am such a person, I am naturally restless and shy, I have a penchant for suffering, I am a melancholic. This is who I am, and therefore depression will always accompany me.”

It is in a person that the fixed mindset speaks. People who believe that character can be changed try and often succeed. good results and get rid of depression (as happened to me). But people who do not believe in the possibility of change do nothing, shrug their shoulders and only know what to whine about how unhappy they are.

The role of attitudes in culture

We say with aspiration and admiration: “he is a genius”, “this is talent”, “a man from God”, when we listen to some piece of music, watch someone play within the framework of sports competitions, read literature.

And when we say that, we don’t even want to think about how much effort this person put into his business, how many failures he suffered before becoming what he has become now.

And this happens because we want to see in those whom we adore, special people, celestials, and not ordinary men or women who earned their glory only with sweat and blood. “They are not like us, so we admire them.”

I absolutely agree that in the world of people everything is happening. I would just like to extend this idea a little to other fragments of our culture.

The fixed mindset is deeply ingrained in public thinking. I am convinced that belief in horoscopes, zodiac signs, is a symptom of a fixed mindset. Not far from this belief, the belief in temperaments, psychotypes, more adapted to scientific terminology, has gone.

When we say: “I am a Scorpio”, “I am a melancholic”, we thereby proclaim the presence of some unchanging qualities given to us from birth or by the will of nature or by the will of the stars.
That's why I count horoscopes and all sorts psychological tests designed to reveal your personality type by harmful distributors of the fixed mindset.

About genius

The author casually touches on one important idea on which I want to dwell. The idea slips through the book that geniuses are formed not only by phenomenal innate abilities, but also by their obsession with some idea!

People believe that if they are deprived of natural abilities, for example, in mathematics, in playing chess, then they can not even try to achieve something in this area.

However, it's not just about ability.

Bobby Fischer is one of the most famous chess players in the world, a former world champion. He was a very eccentric, sickly man, so he must have been a classic genius for many people, a man who they thought had a chess computer in his head from birth.

But you know what Bobby Fischer was doing when ordinary people went to school and sat in class? Played chess, practiced! And what did he do when these people grew up and hugged girls in the back rows of cinemas? He played chess, he was not interested in girls!

He was obsessed with it, he made his choice, chess, not study, chess, not girls! He trained and worked on his game all day, and this allowed him to become a world champion! What would happen to Bobby Fischer if he thought "I'm a genius, I don't need to train to win." I think he would then not have gone further than some small city competitions.

Genius, as we see, is determined not only by great luck receive some special brain as a gift from nature. Genius is formed by hard work and obsession. The ability to sacrifice many opportunities and desires for one goal. And even many geniuses have to work hard to become someone ...

Therefore, do not give up your ideas and dreams just because you think that nature has not endowed you with outstanding abilities. It is hard work that allows people to achieve their dreams, and not at all innate qualities. And qualities develop in the course of this work.

If you develop all your abilities, do not give up on what you have achieved, then in the future you will be able to develop such skills in yourself that you did not even know about! And then, perhaps, people with a fixed mindset will say about you: “what a talent”, “this person must be gifted by nature”! And they will not even guess that there was no innate gift, but there was work and development!

Installation development

The last chapter of the book is titled "Develop Your Attitude." Head gives good advice how you can develop a growth mindset in your children, students, and friends.

In my opinion, in a good way to develop a growth mindset in people is to tell them about the role of work, effort, analysis of mistakes in the success of any undertaking on someone else’s example or on your own.

In mine, I talked about how, after reading the book, I used the technique from it on my neighbors who prevented me from sleeping. Here I will continue that tradition and share how I tried to teach a co-worker the growth mindset.

My colleague is currently looking for a job, but he is not doing very well with this. It seems to me that this is because he is lazy and believes that work should find a person by itself.

A few days ago, he began to say that "there is no job to be found." I asked, "Is it really that hard to find a job?" My colleague, a qualified young specialist, is looking for a job in Moscow, and therefore his words puzzled me. It seemed to me that there should be no problems in finding a job for him.

He answered my question: “Maybe you can find it easily. You are agile and able to talk with your tongue. But I can't find it, because I'm not that kind of person."

Here is the fixed mindset in action! His words can be translated as: “There is a problem, but in principle it is unsolvable, because I am such a person! Nothing dedends on me". The fixed mindset deprives people of a sense of responsibility and the ability to somehow influence the situation. "I'm that kind of person, what can I do?"

(Note 01/23/2014: That is why, in my opinion, the fixed mindset is so attractive and so difficult to get rid of. It seems to me that often many people believe in the impossibility of changing, not because this opinion was imposed on them, but because they want to believe in it. Recognition that all qualities can be changed turns into responsibility for everything that happens to a person. Since you can change everything, it means that you are responsible for everything, it means that only you are to blame for the fact that your life turned out this way, and not otherwise. You had the opportunity to change yourself and your life, but you did not use it. And the fixed mindset helps to remove this responsibility from yourself. “I am such a person, I was born that way, I was just unlucky, I guilty. I'm lazy, stupid, untalented, what can I do? Therefore, I would like to add to the author that in developing a growth mindset, one must also develop a sense of personal responsibility in a person. These two things go hand in hand")

First, I explained to a colleague that his problem was not related to the fact that he was such a person, but to the fact that he might be doing something wrong. Naturally, I didn't talk about the fixed mindset and the growth mindset, even though I had finished reading a book on mindset the day before. Instead of resorting to theory, I told a colleague that before I get a real job, I have a year (!!!) while working at another job.

I attended 50 interviews and at first got nothing but rejections. Rejection after rejection. But as I gradually gained experience, my job interview performances got better and better. At the same time, I did not wait for a job to find me by itself. I sent dozens of resumes a day to different companies. I didn't just post my resume and wait for a response.

I consulted with familiar HRs on issues. I constantly reworked and improved it. I changed my tactics of behavior at the interview and watched the reaction to my answers.

And my ability to speak at an interview is not a consequence of my talent, but a consequence of experience and work! If not for the experience, if not for my efforts, I would have worked at some dull job.

I tried to prove that my skills did not appear just like that, that at first I also did not succeed in finding a job, and if my colleague continues to passively wait for the job to come to him, then he will not find anything worthwhile.

To be honest, it did not seem to me that my words had an effect, but if in this case didn't work doesn't mean it doesn't work at all.

Still, if you want to eliminate the fixed mindset in your children or students, tell them more often how hard you managed to develop what they consider your talent.

faith in people

The growth mindset, in my opinion, gives a person faith in people. If a person himself believes that all his successes and achievements were the result of invested efforts, and not that he was born somehow special, then he knows that other people are capable of many successes and changes if they try.

A person with a growth mindset doesn't say, "You're hopeless," "You're stupid," "You're not going to work." He judges people by what they have achieved through their work, and not by who they are from birth. For him, people are not divided into mediocrity and genius, mediocrity and talent. He sees in every person the potential and the ability to develop this potential.

The experience of my own transformations gave me such faith in people. Since I was able to change beyond recognition, correct what I always considered an innate defect, why can't other people be able to?

Only when I believed in myself was I able to believe in other people.

I used to judge people by how special they are. I thought that some people are special and others are mediocre, and there is no way to change this pre-established order. Now I believe that every person is the focus of opportunities, and his development does not depend on blind natural or divine arbitrariness, which gives people their abilities and shortcomings, but on the person himself!

From the growth mindset comes freedom and certainty, while the fixed mindset lies in the bonds of submission, dependency, and chance!

16.05.2017

Flexible mind. A new look at the psychology of development of adults and children

The book flexible consciousness reveals the idea of ​​the impact of internal beliefs on a person. The Flexible Mind book reveals how one simple thought—the idea of ​​yourself—determines a large part of your actions.

Download a book

Carol Dweck — About the Author

Carol Dweck is an American psychologist. She graduated from Barnard College in 1967 with a Ph.D. Dweck is widely recognized as one of the leading researchers in the fields of personality psychology, social psychology, and developmental psychology. She is long years She was Ransford Professor of Psychology at Columbia University. Today, Dweck is the Lewis and Virginia Eaton Foundation Professor of Psychology at Stanford University and a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Flexible Mind - Book Review

Chapter 1. What are the settings

The belief that your qualities are carved in granite - fixed mindset- makes you need to assert yourself again and again. If you are given certain moral qualities, a certain individuality, a certain, strictly fixed amount of intelligence, then there is only one thing left: to prove that the amount of all this goodness is quite large. It is impossible to demonstrate or even feel the lack of such fundamental qualities.
The second attitude is based on the belief that your qualities, even the most basic ones, are quite amenable to cultivation if you put effort into it. And although people can differ literally in all "articles" - in their original talents and abilities, in interests, in temperament - thanks to the efforts and acquired knowledge, everyone is able to change and develop. it growth mindset.

Defining your own installation

Read each statement and decide if you agree with it in in general terms or disagree.
1. Your mental capacity- this is your fundamental quality, and you are not allowed to change anything significantly.
2. You can learn new knowledge, but you are not able to change your level of intelligence.
3. No matter what level of intelligence you have, you can always increase it significantly.
4. You can always get a lot smarter.

“Yes” to questions 1 and 2 will be answered by people with a fixed mindset. Yes to questions 3 and 4 reflect a growth mindset

Chapter 2. Installation: inside view

People with a growth mindset aren't just looking for opportunities to challenge themselves. Trials are fertile ground for them. And the greater the test, the more actively they develop. People with a growth mindset thrive when they develop themselves.

All people are born with a love of learning, but a fixed mindset can stifle that love in the cradle. Think back to a time when you were addicted to something - solving crossword puzzles, playing a sport, or learning a new dance. And then this occupation turned into a burden, and the hobby disappeared. Maybe you started to feel hungry, tired, or dizzy, or bored. The next time something like this happens, don't be fooled. It is the fixed mindset that speaks in you. Move on to a growth mindset. Imagine how new connections form in your brain as you face a challenge and learn new things. Do not stop.
There is always a great temptation to create for yourself a world in which you are perfection itself. (Oh, what a sweet feeling! I remember it from the time high school.) We can start choosing partners, choosing friends, and hiring people who will make us feel infallible. But think: don't you want to grow? The next time you are tempted to surround yourself with adepts, go to church. Better yet, look for constructive criticism.

Does your past life something that you think has stigmatized you? Like a failed exam? Some kind of betrayal? Getting fired from work? Or maybe your feelings were rejected? Focus on this event. Feel in yourself all the emotions that it then aroused in you. Now look at this event from a growth mindset perspective.

Take an honest look at your role in it and realize that it cannot be a measure of your intelligence or your personality. And just ask yourself: What lesson have I learned (or can I learn) from this experience? How can I use it as a base for growth? And may this thought always accompany you.

How do you act when you feel down? Are you starting to work more actively on problems or are you letting everything take its course? The next time you feel overwhelmed, adopt a growth mindset—think about learning, about challenging, about overcoming obstacles. Look at effort as a positive, constructive force, not a bore. Try it.

Is there something you've always wanted to do but are afraid you can't do it? Include this in your plans for the near future.

Chapter 3

The author devotes this chapter to the question of what achievements actually consist of. The question is why some people achieve less than what was expected of them, while others, on the contrary, exceed expectations.

Fixed mindset limits the scope of achievements. It fills people's heads with conflicting thoughts, creates aversion to effort, and prevents them from learning more productive methods of acquiring knowledge. Moreover: it turns other people into our judges, not allies. And it doesn't matter who we are talking about - about Darwin or about an ordinary student: significant achievements always require full concentration, selfless efforts and flexible strategies and tactics. And still need allies in study. All this gives people a growth mindset. It contributes to the development of their talents and brings real results.

Growth mindset allows people - even those who are labeled negatively - to use and develop their brains to their full potential. Their heads are not filled with limiting thoughts, self-doubt, and the belief that other people can tell them where they belong.

Chapter 4

Think of a sport you'd like to play but always thought you couldn't do. How can you know this in advance without investing maximum effort in the matter? Some of the best athletes in the world weren't all that good at their discipline at first. If you dream of playing a sport, try to invest in it and see the result.

Sometimes exceptional talent is a curse. Naturally gifted athletes can remain forever in the grip of the fixed mindset and never learn to overcome adversity. Maybe in some sport, everything was easy for you at first, until you reached the ceiling? Try to adopt the growth mindset and try it again.

Character is an important quality in the world of sports, and it comes from a growth mindset. Think of those times when, during a difficult match, you had to squeeze the last of your strength out of yourself, and you didn’t even suspect that you had it. Think about the champions with the growth mindset mentioned in this chapter and how they dealt with challenges in similar situations. What can you do the next time you find yourself in a difficult situation to activate your growth mindset?

Athletes with a growth mindset see success in acquiring new knowledge and skills and in improving, not just in winning. The more firmly you adhere to this point of view, the more satisfaction you will receive from the sport - both you and those who are in the same bundle with you!

Chapter 5

What type of installation is typical for your company? Do you think that people around you only evaluate you or help you develop? You may be able to turn your job into a growth mindset if you start with yourself. Maybe instead of making excuses for mistakes, you could start looking for ways to overcome them? Perhaps you could benefit more from feedback on your work? Maybe you could find more sources of new experience and knowledge for yourself?
How do you treat colleagues? Perhaps you yourself are a boss with a fixed mindset, focused on your power more than the welfare of your subordinates? Maybe you yourself used to confirm your status by humiliating others? Have you ever clamped down on smart employees because you saw them as a threat?

Think about how you could help your employees develop and improve as they work. Maybe arrange an internship? Seminar? Training? And also think about how to start treating your subordinates as workmates, to see them as a team. Make a list of possible tactics and strategies of action and try them out. Do this even if you already consider yourself a leader with a growth mindset. Well-designed support and developmental evaluation are never redundant.

If you run a company, look at it through the lens of a setup. Maybe she needs her Lou Gerstner?

Think seriously about how you can eradicate elitism and create a culture of self-criticism, free communication, and teamwork. Read Lou Gerstner's excellent book Who Said Elephants Can't Dance? to learn how.

Do you have a work environment that encourages groupthink? If so, the whole decision-making process is in great danger. Create an environment to encourage alternative opinions and constructive criticism. Appoint special people who will play the role of "devil's advocate" and take a position opposite to yours, so that you can see the flaws in your ideas. Have people openly discuss various aspects of specific issues.

Start an anonymous suggestion box and make it a mandatory part of your decision-making process. Remember, people are perfectly capable of thinking independently and acting as a team at the same time. Help them realize both of these abilities

Chapter 6 Relationships: Attitude and Love (or Hate)

What do you feel when you are rejected - humiliation, resentment, desire for revenge? Or, despite the pain, do you hope to forgive the person, learn from what happened, and move on? Think of the most painful of these cases. Take stock of how you felt, and then try to look at the situation from a growth mindset perspective. What did that incident teach you? Did he help you better understand what you want from life, and what you don’t need for nothing? Maybe he taught you something positive that came in handy in subsequent relationships? Are you able to forgive that person and wish him happiness? Are you able to let go of resentment?

Imagine the perfect love connection. This means that between you there must be full compatibility in everything, right? No disagreements, no compromises, no efforts and sacrifices? Yes? Then please think again. In any relationship, there is friction. Try to look at them in terms of a growth mindset: problems can be a means of achieving better understanding and greater intimacy. Let your partner voice their grievances. Listen carefully and discuss patiently and kindly. You will be surprised how much closer to each other you will become after this.

Perhaps you, like me, often succumb to the urge to shift the blame onto someone else. The desire to hang everything on a partner does not contribute to strengthening relationships. Create your own Maurice and let him take the rap for everything. But it will still be better if you try to get rid of the need to look for someone to blame. Stop thinking about mistakes and mistakes all the time, step over them. Remember how I tried to learn this myself.

You're shy? Then you really need a growth mindset. Even if she doesn't get rid of your shyness, she won't let her warp your social contacts. The next time you find yourself on the threshold of a new social situation, consider that communication skills can be improved and that social interaction exists so that you learn and enjoy, and not be judged and judged. And keep practicing it.

Chapter 7. Parents, teachers and coaches: how are attitudes formed?

Every word and action of the parent sends a signal to the child. Tomorrow, listen carefully to what you will say to your children and catch the messages in your words. What information do they carry? That the qualities of the child are unchanged and you evaluate them? Or that he developing personality and you are interested in its development?

How do you use praise? Remember that by praising a child's intelligence or talent, you are imposing a fixed mindset on him. Don't do it, no matter how great the temptation. Praise weakens and undermines a child's self-esteem and motivation. Instead, try to focus on the process of his actions - on the tactics that the child uses to achieve some goals, on his efforts or on his choices. Practice and you will get used to your interaction with your child to praise him for the process of moving towards success.

Watch your child and listen to what he says when he does something wrong. Remember: constructive criticism is the type of feedback that will help the child understand how to correct the consequences of what they have done. It's not about labeling or just finding an apology. At the end of each day, write down the constructive criticism (and praise for the process) that you have given your child.

Parents often set goals for their children to achieve. Don't forget that innate talent cannot be the goal. But the development of skills and the acquisition of knowledge - can. Treat the goals that you set for your child with special attention.

If you are a teacher, remember that lowering standards does not raise student self-esteem. Just as raising standards does not raise it, if at the same time we do not give students a methodology for achieving a level corresponding to these standards. The growth mindset gives you the ability to set high standards while helping students achieve them. Try to serve educational material so that it contributes to the development of students, and at the same time provide them with information about how the process of progress is going. I think you will like the result.

What do you think about your students who learn material more slowly than others? That they can never learn well? And what do they think of themselves? That they are stupid and will remain so? Try to figure out what exactly they do not understand and what methods of assimilating new knowledge they do not have. Remember: all great teachers believe that talent and intelligence can be developed, and they themselves are passionate about the learning process.
Are you a trainer with a fixed mindset? Do you think first of all about your records and reputation and do not tolerate mistakes? And try to motivate your players with your harsh sentence? Maybe that's why your athletes can't open up to their full potential?
Try switching to a growth mindset. Instead of requiring them to play flawlessly, ask them for their full dedication and maximum effort. Instead of judging them, give them the respect and guidance they need to develop.

As parents, teachers and coaches, we have an important mission: to develop the potential of people. Let's apply the lessons of the growth mindset - and everything else we can - to fulfill this mission.

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