"Growth Mindset", a term you will hear ever more frequently.
Ever wondered what you can achieve by just having a growth mindset? Not to worry, I will break all that in a moment, but first off, let's understand what a growth mindset really is.
A famous person once said, "Life will throw challenges at you, there is no such thing as a problem-free life so no matter your background, situation, education or whatever, you have to already decide, right now, in your mind, that you are going to win!"
What is a Growth Mindset?
A growth mindset is a state of mind that believes intelligence and talent are not fixed but can be developed through effort. It is the belief that your skills and abilities can be improved with time, effort, and practice.
The growth mindset is a fundamental difference between those who are successful in life and those who are not. It is what separates the people who become great from the people who remain mediocre.
Importance of Embracing a Growth Mindset
Let's assume you just started out your career as a developer, or perhaps, you a transitioning from an entirely different field into a new career path. I must say, things may not be as easy as you would have imagined. Sometimes, up to 70-80% of the entire work on a project may fail in this stage. Your driving force when things get tougher will be your passion and mindset, it is important to realize that programming is a process, every day you solve new problems and that all of them are great learning opportunities.
What is a Fixed Mindset?
On the other way round, people with a fixed mindset always think they can’t get better at things, even if they practice. Having a fixed mindset means believing you were born one way and cannot change. A fixed mindset makes you want to quit or give up at the first failure because you decide you are just not good at it.
Is it possible to Learn the Growth Mindset?
Sure, It is dependent on how you view yourself. People with a fixed mindset always believe in the things they can and cannot do. Switching from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset is something really personal and does not happen in the twinkle of an eye. There is a process to transitioning and it requires some conscious effort.
Fostering your own Growth Mindset
I will be sharing 5 important strategies for fostering your growth mindset.
- Embrace Challenges
See challenges as exciting and fun. Take it as a phase of advancement. Understand that failing is part of learning and with constant practice, challenges will become a lot easier. Learn to replace the word “fail” in your mind with the acronym “First Attempt in Learning”. Repeating this acronym to yourself can help you develop a strong constructive mindset around failure.
- Use the YET Technique
The word "YET" is the key foundation of the growth mindset. It is the one word you need to remember from this article and include it in your daily vocabulary when you experience failures or challenges. A failure is simply something you have not "yet" mastered so this means that your brain is capable of overcoming this failure with practice and time. Reframing the words you say to your brain by including the word "yet" will encourage it to be more open to growing and accepting new information.
- Celebrate Small Wins
Have you ever thought back to the last time you did something new or something you knew you were not good at (YET)?
If you haven't, take some time to reflect on your programming journey a few months ago and where you are now.
You are amazed at how far you have come, yes? That's it! Celebrate every small win. Having a journal will be rather helpful in documenting your challenges and how you overcame them.
- Accept Feedback
To improve, you need to listen to constructive criticism and feedback. Having a code reviewer review your project or getting a piece of advice from a mentor on certain steps to take in becoming a better developer is very valuable. It is important to implement feedback from them as quickly as you get it. This will not only improve your code and boost your confidence in building projects but will improve your overall growth as a developer.
- Positive Association
While growing up, my mom would often always speak about how your association can either build or break you. It is essential to have friends with the same mindset as you. Make sure you surround yourself with people that love to learn, take up challenges, and most importantly have a growth mindset. So my second tip for you would be to find that growth environment for yourself, get together with other people who are looking to develop themselves, and help each other learn faster.
Conclusion
A growth mindset is a state of mind that believes intelligence and talent are not fixed but can be developed through effort. It is the belief that your skills and abilities can be improved with time, effort, and practice.
Switching from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset is something really personal and does not happen overnight. The process of transitioning requires passion and conscious effort.
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