[glcb] A growth Mind Set

[Joey Couch]

A Growth Mindset

What we think about others and ourselves has the power to shape our
world. How often have we heard ourselves say things like “I’m not a
morning person” or “I’m not very smart” or “That’s just the way I am”?
If we believe our talents and personality will never change, then they
probably never will. If we believe our fate is set in stone, then it
probably is.

On the other hand, if we believe that desire, hard work, and
persistence are much more important than intelligence or natural
ability, then change and growth are possible.1

A high school valedictorian observed that her classmates always
thought she was so successful in school because she was naturally
gifted with talent and intellect. They thought that everything came
easily to her. But she will tell you that the only reason she excelled
academically was the simple fact that she studied more and worked
harder.

Anyone who plays a musical instrument or runs a marathon will tell you
the same thing. Their achievements come of sacrifice and serious
effort, not luck or good fortune. Of course, there are those who are
naturally gifted in one way or another. But we were not created with a
fixed set of abilities; rather, we were created with a deep-seated
ability and yearning to improve, to grow, to become more than what we
are.

While we don’t have much control over innate ability or natural
talent, we can usually control how much we try. We cannot do much
about how tall or short we are, but we can control how dedicated we
are and how intently we resist giving up. Such a mindset empowers us
to step outside our comfort zone and seek new opportunities for
progress and change—creating growth and development in place of
rationalization and regret. We will then find—to our joy, but not to
our surprise—that we can achieve remarkable things.


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1. See Carol Dweck, Mindset: The New Psychology (2006)


-- 
Joey Couch
phone 606-216-8033.
email ki4vjd at gmail.com
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