Both personal and professional growth has always involved pushing through difficult times, exploring new opportunities, failing at times and learning from mistakes. According to Stanford Psychologist, Carol Dwech, this is known as having a "growth" mindset.
Here, we'll cover what a growth mindset is, what it means to have one and how you can switch from a fixed mindset to a growth. Read on for more.
What is Meant by a Fixed and Growth Mindset?
A "fixed" mindset reflects an individual whose character, intelligence and personality are static resulting in a lack of effort and a plateau in their career with no path to success.
Whereas, a "growth" mindset, on the other hand, portrays an individual who enjoys learning new skills, seeks out situations to explore, and views failure as an opportunity to grow and succeed.
Fixed vs. Growth Mindset in the Workplace
As you may have guessed, a fixed mindset is likely to leave you stuck in the workplace, whereas a growth mindset can help take you to new levels and achieve higher levels of success. Let's dive into it a little more...
Fixed Mindset
Also known as 'static intelligence', leads to a desire to be intelligent and therefore has the tendency to avoid challenges, give up at the first sign of a red flag, give little effort, ignore useful negative feedback and feel threatened by the succession of others leading to failure.
This fixed mindset will most likely result in an individual learning or achieving less than their potential.
Growth Mindset
Also known as 'open intelligence', a growth mindset leads to a desire to experiment and therefore has a tendency to embark on new challenges, tackle problems head on, view effort as a path to mastership, listen to criticism and find inspiration in the succession of others.
A growth mindset will allow an individual to achieve higher levels of success.
Do you think you have a fixed or a growth mindset? Share the graphic below with your network or tweet us by using #UnderstandingModernGov and follow us @UModernGov or find us on LinkedIn.
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