Mindset: The New Psychology of Success

Dweck, Carol. Mindset: The New Psychology of Success. 2006. 278p. ISBN 978-0-345-47232-8. Available at 153.8 DWE on the library shelves

There is a wealth of self-improvement books available in any good library, but this is one of the few that present a simple yet very effective way to alter one’s life for the better. Mindset is how one perceives the world and shapes thoughts to interact with it. Mindset is a spectrum that stretches from a fixed mindset where one believes abilities never change and cannot be improved on, and a growth mindset where one believes abilities can be improved and developed, and what matters is not one’s talent and abilities but how they are used to flourish as a person.

The dichotomy between fixed and growth is not necessarily an either or proposition, but rather a continuum. All of us at times can be fixed minded or growth minded. What Dweck advocates is an awareness and an understanding of what it means to have a growth mindset. She also provides concrete steps that anyone can take to infuse growth mindset thinking into their everyday interactions. Everyone benefits when there is more growth mindset being used!