Growth Mindset: 25 Simple Ways To Develop A Growth Mindset

I read the article 25 Simple Ways To Develop A Growth Mindset

I wanted to read this article because while I find the growth mindset to be really fascinating, sometimes it can get overwhelming to think about implementing it formally into the educational system. We are years away from that, but I don't think that means that we can't encourage the children we interact with with a growth mindset in small ways.

Some of the suggestions were things I already knew, such as replacing failing with learning and learning to look forward to and tackling challenges.

Some of the suggestions really surprised me though. For instance, one of the suggestions is to stop looking for approval. While I don't know how we could implement this in children, I think this would have far-reaching benefits not only on intelligence but also on self-esteem and the person as a whole.

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Growth Mindset: Eight Ways of Looking at Intelligence

This week I read an interesting article called Eight Ways of Looking at Intelligence (Link). This article focused not only on looking at intelligence not only as something that is fluid, not fixed (i.e. growth mindset) but looking at objects and situations that can affect our intelligence in specific ways. One thing that was confirmed by this article was that situations affect our intelligence. A high-stress or low-motivation situation is not going to nurture intelligence in the same way that a low-stress, nurturing environment will. One thing that I thought was really interesting was the article touched on how when we use tools, our brain can actually prune neurons to visualize the tool as an extension of our body. But tools can be good or bad, and can take our attention away from what we need to focus on. This article struck me as a practical application of the growth mindset.

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Growth Mindset: Bad Resolutions

I read Don’t Waste Your Time With Bad Resolutions. This Is How to Do Them Right. (Link). I actually thought this was a fantastic article. I have read numerous articles on how to set resolutions that are constructive and I did not know if this article would have any new information for me but it did. One thing it said that I have heard before is to set specific, measurable goals. This makes sense because just saying "I'm going to lose weight" is a lot less achievable and motivating than "I am going to lose five pounds in the next month". But one thing that it said that really surprised me is that too much positive thinking can stifle your progress and motivation. We hear all the time how healthy and great unconditional positive thinking is, but this article states that optimistic visualization of the future can make us not do anything to change it now. The article says to be positive, but realistic and I thought this was really good advice because I find myself doing this.

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Growth Mindset: Multiple Intelligences

I definitely think everyone has multiple intelligences, and while some people are considered traditionally intelligent that does not mean there are not ways you can still grow your intelligence. I have killed myself academically for five years, but would really love to grow my intrapersonal and natural intelligences. I need to take time to reflect with myself and be around living things, I think that is one of the most important things I can do for my happiness. It is so important to lead a very well-rounded life, and not get bogged down with what society says is number-one important.

Connecting with nature. Photo by Steve Henry/USFWS.

Reading Notes: Egypt, Part B

-Who is this priest? Is he important? It seems kind of brazen for him to just approach the son of the Pharoah but maybe priests hold a higher position in than I think they do
-How old is Nefer-ka-ptah in this story? The way he is acting seems pretty young, just taking the word of a priest and running off
-How does Ahura know that this journey will cause so much sorrow for her husband? Maybe she has had a vision or someone has come to warn her about this journey and what it will bring to her family.
-It shows a lot of respect that Nefer-ka-ptah is willing to share the magic of the world with Ahura. However, I wonder if she would have still suffered the same fate if she had not read from the book and been able to combat its magic. This is really a sad story, and I am sad that the child had to die.
-The fact that Nefer-ka-ptah was able to thwart Thoth even in death and how Thoth interacted with Ra reminded me of the Greek gods and goddesses. They are not all powerful, and humans are in some instances able to trick them and get their own way. Also how Thoth had to beg Ra to extract revenge on the humans as if they were equals.
-I wonder if all of this came about because Nefer-ka-ptah forgot to worship the gods in the first place. It seems pretty harsh for Ra to just make them all drown themselves at such a young age, but maybe that is the price you pay for forgetting to worship the gods and putting reading above worship.
-Would the priest have been blamed for any of this, or did Nefer-ka-ptah get what he deserved by searching for such a fantastic power?

Thoth-Ibus by Anonymous

Story source: Egyptian Myth and Legend by Donald Mackenzie (1907).

Growth Mindset

I have heard of the growth mindset before in some of the psychology classes that I have taken. I grew up with a fixed mindset. Fortunately, I have always done really well at school, and believed I had been “fixed” with an above-average intelligence. However, I experienced a lot of what that video talked about when I got to college. I never had to try in high school, I made excellent grades and received tons of awards without ever straining. When I got to college, that was not the case, and I had no idea how to study or handle the stress of classes that were challenging. I failed, and my grades dropped drastically. I almost ruined my chances of getting into medical school, and it’s because I had no idea how to deal with the challenges associated with failing in academics. I have adapted a growth mindset as my college career has gone on, and felt my intelligence has grown not only in the “hard” academics but in other areas of my life, such as emotionally, physically, musically, etc. It is exciting to me that there is not a ceiling to my intelligence, that even though I was blessed with a natural ability to excel at school I can still push myself to be even better and even more intelligent and aware.

This is me clinging to my dreams of being a doctor while failing physics freshman year.

Source: cheezburger