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The idea of growth and fixed mindsets was first introduced by American psychologist Carol Dweck, a leading expert in human motivation.

Approximately three decades ago, Dweck wanted to know why some children sought out challenges while others avoided failure at all costs. She began studying the traits of each group, describing her work as follows:

“My workbridges developmental psychology, social psychology, and personality psychology, and examines the self-conceptions (or mindset) people use to structure the self and guide their behaviour. My research looks at the origins of these mindsets, their role in motivation and self-regulation, and their impact on achievement and interpersonal processes.”

This work was later synthesized into a 2007 book entitled Mindset: The New Psychology of Success.

In the book, the reader is encouraged to consider how their conscious and unconscious thoughts affect what they want and whether they will succeed in attaining it.

Dweck suggested that altering even the simplest of these thoughts or beliefs could profoundly impact nearly every aspect of life.

One of the most fundamental of these beliefs pertains to how the individual views and inhabits what they consider to be their personality.

A fixed mindset assumes our personality is fixed, while a growth mindset considers personality to be fluid, dynamic, and evolving.

These beliefs are developed very early and have significant implications for personal and professional success.

Characteristics of growth and fixed mindsets

The main difference between each mindset is the belief in the permanence of intelligence and one’s own ability.

A growth mindset considers these factors to be changeable in either direction.

In other words, there is potential for improvement and regression – with the latter used as a means of improvement through learning from mistakes.

A fixed mindset considers there to be little room for neither improvement or regression.

With that said, here are a few qualities that differentiate the two mindsets.

An individual with a growth mindset:

• Perseveres after experiencing failure or rejection.
• Finds inspiration in the success of others.
• Considers criticism a valuable tool for personal development.
• Has an interest and willingness to learn.
• Persists in overcoming obstacles.

On the other hand, an individual with a fixed mindset:

• Wants to prove their intelligence or talent with no desire to improve it.
• Avoids challenging circumstances for fear of failure.
• Treats criticism as a personal attack and in so doing, ignores valuable feedback.
• Feels threatened by the success of others.
• Gives up easily in situations requiring hard work, stamina, persistence, or dedication.

Growth Mindset: My Personal Experience

As a digital entrepreneur who has built an online media business, I can share my experience.

When I started blogging a few years back, I had a very low tolerance for failure, as I identified with it.

However, over time, as I experimented more and more, I learned to make failure part of the process.

In other words, today, I have a workflow where I need to experiment, execute and iterate very quickly to stay on top of my game.

This has led me to various mistakes and many failures over the years.

While failing is not pleasing at all. Over time, I learned that this is part of the growth process.

And the most interesting part?

Some of the mistakes I've made led me to challenge many of the assumptions I had.

In short, thanks to a fast process of iterations, I often ended up making - what I thought - were mistakes that instead turned into successful - and counter-intuitive - tactics!

That is the most incredible part of the growth process.

As you learn to structure it in a way that you know that failure will happen. As you make many - hopefully minor - mistakes along the way.

A small percentage of these mistakes will turn into incredible and valuable lessons you could have not learned otherwise.

Take, for example, the process of what I like to define as SEO Hacking, which I used years back to grow my blog.

Fixed Mindset: How Did I Overcome it?

Back in the 2010s, as I finished my studies as a lawyer, I undertook my MBA as I wanted to shift path.

At the time, I mainly had a fixed mindset, I was in my early 20s and would take most of the failure as something personal.

It took me years to reshape my thinking.

And this process started when I was in San Diego, California, working as an analyst in 2013, and I started to learn about neuroplasticity.

At the time, I learned that our brain, based on the context and how much we're motivated to accomplish something, can be re-wired.

Thus, I managed to build a growth mindset that, these days, helps me build processes in whatever business endeavors I get into.

Today I understand that to grow, you need to build playbooks, workflows, and processes and keep developing your way and style of doing things.

For that, look at my idea generation guide.

To recap!

• An individual with a growth mindset believes their intelligence and talents can be developed over time. Conversely, an individual with a fixed mindset believes their intelligence and talents are fixed traits that cannot be developed. The two mindsets were developed by American psychologist Carol Dweck while studying human motivation.
• Both mindsets are comprised of conscious and subconscious thought patterns established at a very young age. In adult life, they have profound implications for personal and professional success.
• Individuals with a growth mindset devote more time and effort to achieving difficult goals and by extension, are less concerned with the opinions or abilities of others. Individuals with a fixed mindset are sensitive to criticism and may be preoccupied with proving their talents to others.

Ciao!

With ♥️ Gennaro, FourWeekMBA

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