What’s Your Mindset? | Fixed and Growth Mindset Examples

The Key to Unlocking New Opportunities, Long-term Success, and Living Up to Your Greatest Potential

Have you ever faced a challenge in your life that you just couldn’t seem to overcome? Maybe you’re even facing a challenging circumstance, situation or condition at this very moment.

Napoleon Hill once said, “Every adversity, every failure, every heartache carries with it the seed of an equal or greater benefit.”

In every challenging situation you or I will ever face there is opportunity, even if we can’t see it right away.

The secret to seeing the benefit within every struggle lies in your mindset.

You see, as humans, our minds constantly monitor the events we experience and interpret their meaning.

Our mindset is what dictates how we perceive these situations and how we react or respond to them.

We can better understand our mindset through the concepts of “growth mindset” and “fixed mindset.”

These ideas are based on the research of renowned Stanford University psychologist Carol Dweck, who has spent decades researching achievement and success.

Fixed Mindset vs. Growth Mindset

According to Dweck, people with a fixed mindset tend to believe their basic qualities, like intelligence or talent, are simply innate gifts. These people assume that some receive those gifts while others do not, and they live their lives accordingly.

People with a growth mindset, on the other hand, believe that they can learn and improve through dedication and hard work.

This worldview helps them develop the foundation for a love of learning and a resilience that is essential for great accomplishment.

In fact, research has shown that those with a growth mindset achieve more than those with a fixed mindset.

Why is Mindset So Important?

Every one of us has what we perceive to be “problems” in our lives. Problems are just a natural part of the human experience.

Most of us have learned to focus on our problems. In an effort to find solutions, we were taught to assess and understand what isn’t working in our lives.

When we do this, however, we can actually become trapped on the same “frequency” as that problem.

Just as you would tune a radio to the right station, you can tune your thoughts and intentions to the frequency that’s in harmony with what it is that you want or desire.

The longer we think about a problem, the harder it is to “tune” our mindset to a frequency of growth.

In order to actually solve a problem, it’s important to adopt a growth mindset – that is, to think past the problem and tune to the frequency of solutions, greater opportunities, and growth.

This is where the answers are.

Albert Einstein once said, “The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the level of thinking that created them.”

Einstein reminds us that if a clear and easy solution to whatever problem you face is not apparent, you need to change the frequency of your thinking.

Doing this opens up the door to finding new, more empowering solutions to the challenges you face.

How Mindset Affects Behavior

For decades, I’ve been studying the art and science of success and transformation through a multitude of leadership philosophies.

Through these experiences, I’ve become deeply familiar with the effect that our thoughts and words have on our lives.

The words we use on a regular basis – whether positive or negative – create the framework through which the energy of life moves through us.

The language we use to describe events in our lives, the experiences we’re having, our conditions, and our circumstances eventually becomes accepted by our subconscious mind as the truth.

The beliefs you hold may be holding you back.

For example, if you consistently say, “I’m not a good writer,” it doesn’t matter if you actually have the potential to be a great writer – you’re subconsciously telling yourself that you aren’t. You might even assume that those who are successful at writing have a gift or natural talent that you don’t.

This has a HUGE effect on your mindset, your behavior, and your results.

Instead, you could try saying, “Writing has been challenging for me in the past, but I’m getting better and better every day.”

The fact is, your words have the power to shape your thoughts, which then shape your mindset, and which ultimately shape your reality.

Your words can lead you to adopt a fixed mindset, generating more struggle and lack. Or they can help to develop your growth mindset, creating greater, freer, fuller results and bringing you more abundance.

3 Fixed v. Growth Mindset Examples

In my experience, the only way to reach success – to become your best self and accomplish your dreams – is to embrace a growth mindset.

By embracing a growth mindset, you’re able to more easily take consistent, sustainable action. Over time, that action will inevitably lead to the results that you’d love.

Those with a growth mindset tend to see challenges as a natural part of the learning process.

They work harder and smarter, helping them to learn and achieve more than those with a fixed mindset.

Here’s a few fixed vs growth mindset examples of these different mindsets in action:

Example 1: Running late to work

Fixed mindset: Running late to work might ruin their whole day. They may feel angry with themselves or look for someone or something else to blame. They might tell themselves that being late is just a part of their personality.

Growth mindset: Someone with a growth mindset is more likely to think about the root cause of why they’re running late. They may consider strategies to help them avoid it next time. They know being late is only one part of their day, not something to stop them from achieving the rest of their goals.

The person with a growth mindset will think about ways to fix the problem because they believe it’s possible to develop new skills.

Example 2: Praising your child

Let’s say a child received an “A” on his math test.

Fixed mindset: From a fixed mindset, one may decide to praise their child by saying, “You’re so smart. You’re so good at math.”

Growth mindset: From the perspective of a growth mindset, one could say, “Wow, you studied really hard for that test. Good job!”

Example 3: Presented a new project or task

Fixed mindset: With a fixed mindset, someone may convince themselves that there’s no point in putting all that much effort into something that just isn’t one of their strengths. They are prone to avoiding challenges and prefer to stay in the comfort zone of the skills they already have.

Growth mindset: With a growth mindset, they will see this new challenge as an opportunity to grow. Someone with this mindset may think, “I can figure this out. What do I need to do to get my skills at the right level? Are there resources that might help?”

Adopting a growth mindset can lead you to new skills, new knowledge, and new areas of expertise. Adopting a fixed mindset will leave you where you started – with little skill in the task at hand and little confidence in your abilities.

3 Signs a Fixed Mindset Might Be Holding You Back

If the fixed mindset examples above sounded more like you than you’d care to admit, know this:

The only thing standing between you and the results you would truly love is your mindset. And you have the power to change your mindset and create the success you desire!

Success doesn’t just magically occur for select, charmed individuals. Everyone has the ability to succeed with a growth mindset.

Here are 3 common signs that a fixed mindset might be holding you back…

1. You mourn your failures, but forget to celebrate your victories

So many of us see failure as a negative.

We spend a great deal of energy hiding what we perceive as “failures” from those around us.

When we do experience failure, we get stuck in the discouragement, regret, and anger that can come with it.

But, when we strive to be perfect, we miss the learning and growth opportunities often found in failure.

And, this mindset can prevent us from celebrating our wins.

To help you adopt a growth mindset, commit to celebrating every success, no matter how small. Doing so not only helps you shift into a growth mindset, but it also tells your subconscious mind to keep striving for your goal.

2. You constantly focus on what’s wrong

Einstein knew that problem solving relied on a shift in thinking.

Dive deeper into the thoughts that have been occupying your mind regarding the challenge you are currently facing.

As you begin to contemplate these thoughts, you may notice patterns or recurring themes that emerge. If you have a fixed mindset, you may find that you have been focused on the potential obstacles or negative outcomes associated with the challenge.

For example, you may be thinking to yourself:

• What did I do to deserve this?”
• “This isn’t fair”
• “How long is this going to last?”

The key to a growth mindset is learning to see the possible good in the challenge you’re facing. Stay open and curious- This is how opportunities present themselves to you!

Ask yourself:

“What possible gift could there be for me inside of this challenge?”

By choosing to focus on the opportunities and potential for growth that the situation presents, you’ll be well on your way to transforming your challenge into an opportunity for greater growth!

3. You think about what you “have” to do instead of what you “get” to do

As mentioned earlier, the words you choose are important in shaping your reality.

Your words reinforce either an expansive or contractive perspective.

They subtly echo the story you tell yourself every single day. After a while, that story becomes what you tend to believe.

Many times it’s the simple words you don’t even realize you’re saying that have the most significant impact.

One of those words or phrases is “have to.”

For example, “I have to go to work today.”

But what if you replaced “have to” with “get to?”

Consider this for a moment…

“Have to” implies obligation or requirement.

In most cases it feels constrictive.

“Get to” implies a sense of gratitude and appreciation.

It’s expansive.

It’s a simple shift of perspective, but it can mean a lot over time! You can subtly train your brain to respond from a place of gratitude versus an obligation.

Life is a gift – a gift that is much more enjoyable when we choose to see it that way.

So, go ahead… make the choice to replace “have to” with “get to” and see how your perspective begins to change!

7 Growth Mindset Quotes to Motivate and Inspire You

Successful people know how to get motivated.

How do they do it?

You guessed it: mindset.

To be successful, you must have a growth mindset – a mindset that sees challenges as opportunities for growth and expansion.

Here are 7 powerful growth mindset quotes to empower you to master your mindset and growth:

1. “You may have to fight a battle more than once to win it.” – Margaret Thatcher
2. “Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new.” – Albert Einstein
3. “It’s kind of fun to do the impossible.” – Walt Disney
4. “Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed no hope at all.” – Dale Carnegie
5. “The only limits you have are the limits you believe.” – Wayne Dyer
6. “A disciplined mind leads to happiness, and an undisciplined mind leads to suffering.” – The Dalai Lama
7. “Success is the ability to go from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm.” – Winston Churchill

Success Can Becomes More Visible and Available

While it may not be completely natural at first, anyone can adopt a growth mindset and create a more meaningful and fulfilling life.

Would you love to master your mindset, break free from overthinking, overwhelm, and self-doubt to move more powerfully forward and quickly make your dreams come true? 

Click here for immediate access to an insightful, short video training from Mary Morrissey…

And you’ll also learn the secret mindset shift that will help you dramatically improve your results!