Examples Of A Growth Mindset

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Powerful Minds, Powerful Writing
How did I, a student who could barely receive a passing grade on any essay, become a student who believes that mastery in writing is achievable? The switch in beliefs roots back to my mindset. Specifically having a fixed mindset versus a growth mindset. A person with a fixed mindset believes that their talents and characteristics are carved in stone. There is no point in pushing yourself forward because what they have, is what they got. On the other hand, we have a person with a growth mindset. Those with a growth mindset believe that talents and characteristics are not something they were born with, but rather something that they can work towards. What they have is just a starting point. For several years I …show more content…

That year, coincidentally, was when I also decided to pursue a growth mindset. According to Dweck (2006), the author of Mindset, lying inside all of those with a growth mindset is a, “passion for stretching yourself and sticking to it, even when it’s not going well” (p. 9). Passion may sound nice, but it certainly does not guarantee success. English class, for better or for worst, was best summarized as a constant battle. A battle between me, my failure to produce decent content, and my grade. Every essay I wrote was deemed average or even below by my school’s standards; until the last, notorious essay of the year. Through endless hours of analysing the novel, asking for assistance from my teacher, and cut-throat revisions, I was able to achieve my highest grade in …show more content…

Rather it represented my efforts. Tackling an unideal situation head-on and using the distress it caused me as motivation are the trademarks of a growth mindset. People who have a growth mindset, in comparison to those with a fixed mindset, tend to have a better idea of who they are because they recognize their strengths and weaknesses (Dweck 11). Taking into account of their weaknesses is only part of the picture. Actively seeking to improve upon their faults, is what truly differentiates someone who believes that traits can be cultivated or are already carved in stone. Pushing past my failures produced success. That being said, how did I end freshman year fearlessly taking on new challenges to graduating high school as a content, unimproved writer? The answer lies in the perfect formula, mastered through trial and error, to arrange success. Now listen closely. The trick was to use the exact same writing style and essay structure that got me the grade I wanted freshman year, all throughout high school. As long as I got a decent grade, my writing skills would be good enough. Why would I seek improvement, when the end product would be praised? Unconsciously, I was getting into a habit of a fixed

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