A growth mindset is the belief that one’s abilities and intelligence can be developed through hard work, good strategies, and input from others. It is the opposite of a fixed mindset, which is the belief that one’s abilities and intelligence are innate and cannot be changed.
As a parent you have a responsibility to promote a growth mindset in your children because it can have a powerful impact on their beliefs and achievements. Here are some reasons why:
- Promotes effort over innate ability: Praising children for working hard promotes a growth mindset, which sends a message that the child’s effort is what led them to success. In contrast, praising kids for being smart promotes a fixed mindset, which sends a message that their accomplishments are trait-based and tied to something innate.
- Encourages learning from mistakes: When parents talk positively about making mistakes, kids start to think of mistakes as a natural part of the learning process. This can help children develop resilience and a willingness to take risks.
- Increases motivation and achievement: When children learn that their brains physically change with effort, it leads to increased motivation and achievement. They understand that they have control over growing their brains through the actions they take, which is empowering.
- Leads to greater persistence: Children tend to be more persistent when their parents have a growth mindset. They understand that challenges and failure framed as learning opportunities can help them become smarter, and that struggling and working on a challenge or setback is good for the brain’s neurological growth.
- Improves learning outcomes: Research shows that a growth mindset furnishes many lifelong advantages, such as improving learning outcomes and offsetting stress.
To promote a growth mindset, parents can give process praise, talk about the brain, accept mistakes as learning opportunities, and understand the role of emotions in learning.
Here are some specific ways parents can instil a growth mindset:
- Recognise your own mindset: Be mindful of your own thinking and of the messages you send with your words and actions.
- Praise the process: Praising kids for working hard suggests that effort is what leads to success, while focusing on the process helps them see how their effort leads to success.
- Model learning from failure: When parents talk positively about making mistakes, kids start to think of mistakes as a natural part of the learning process.
- Encourage risk, failure, and learning from mistakes: Failure teaches resiliency, so it’s important to encourage children to take risks and learn from their mistakes.
- Talk to youth about famous people’s failures: Sharing stories of famous people who failed before succeeding can help children understand that failure is a natural part of the learning process.
- Encourage and model positive self-talk: Saying statements like “Mistakes help me learn better” and “I can always improve, so I’ll keep trying” can help children develop a growth mindset.
Overall, promoting a growth mindset can help children develop resilience, persistence, and a willingness to take risks, which can lead to greater achievement and success in life.
