Growth Mindset: Quotes

Chicago; Flickr

I absolutely love this Growth Mindset extra credit opportunity. I think quotes are such a great way to be able to think deep about something, and with your own perspective. That being said a quote that caught my attention was "Stop being afraid of what could go wrong and start being excited of what could go right." Personally, this is something I have to constantly remind myself of. Don't get me wrong, I am truly proud of my accomplishments, but I have the type of personality and mindset of always wanting to do more and better. It's a blessing and a curse. I always think of all the things that could go wrong when tackling something new instead of thinking about what I could do right. I tend to surprise myself when I tackle a task like an exam, and make an A. I guess you can say this is a confidence issue, but this past year I have truly learned to believe in myself and be confident in my own abilities because they've gotten me this far in my college career. This quote is going to be a reminder for me to take a step back, and think of how good I will feel when things go right. 

Another quote I was inspired by was "Practice failure. It sounds harsh, but it's really not. This means to fail, and fail some more until you've reached your ability to be comfortable in challenging environments and setbacks."Take a moment and think about this. How many times have you been devastated about getting a rejection letter, or even failing an exam? It hurts. It makes you feel stupid, not good enough, a failure, etc... However, this quote is a reminder to me and everyone else that these experiences are necessary to be able to push forward and most importantly, not stress! The concept of failing stresses me out, but when I'm comfortable with knowing my potential and still failing, but knowing I did my best, there is no stress - only the ability to move past it and try again. This quote inspires me to not be scared of failure, and "keep swimming" like Dory once said. 

I chose the Chicago skyline as my image because it represents all the possibilities to come when we are not afraid of failure.

Growth Mindset: Beyond School

 

Gifts

Picture by: Kelvin Kay

Source: Wikipedia 

I think the Growth Mindset idea can be applied to many things in life beyond school. That being said, I think I have the strongest growth mindset when it comes to my relationships in life. I'm a daughter, sister, friend, girlfriend, mentor, etc. I feel all the roles I play in my life are very important to me. Growth mindset in this area of my life is strong because I am constantly working on ways where I can improve to be a better daughter, girlfriend, sister, etc. Sometimes when I can't make it to a family dinner, or go home for the weekend, there is a part of me that makes me want to make up for not being present. Some specific ways that I try and be a better daughter is by going home more, helping my mom in the kitchen when I am there. I try and be a better sister by helping her with scholarships. I try and be a better girlfriend is by communicating more, and giving my attention to just my boyfriend when we talk. Another huge part of me is that I show love with gifts. I love writing letters, sending meaningful presents, and creating things that have meaning behind them. 

I think my strong growth mindset in this area of my life can be useful in school by thinking of different ways I can improve being a better student. I think I could make a list of easy, efficient ways to improve when I do my school work, and what the next is to accomplish my main goal. My main goals as a student include making good grades, connecting with my professors, and being a future dentist.

Growth Mindset

 

Source: Growth Mindset Memes

Carol Dweck's talk on Growth Mindset, and the concept of "not yet" was introduced to me last semester in Indian Epics. I was grateful to have learned about this at the beginning of the semester because I went into my semester with a positive outlook on learning, and truly learning - engaging in my courses. The end result was feeling accomplished no matter the grade because I knew I was getting better in difficult courses like Physics. I think the concept of "not yet" has taken so much pressure and stress off my shoulders. I realized I do not need to rush into trying to learn everything. I can learn on my own pace, and the results of that are better grades and achievements. For this semester, I plan to keep this concept in mind for my Organic Chemistry Lab. I am a little worried about this course in particular, but I have to remember it is about learning not worrying. From last semester, I feel I am a little higher on the growth mindset spectrum because I stress less, do more, and engage more in academia, fitness, and overall just having a positive outlook. I'm looking forward to see what Dweck's concept has in store for me this semester as I will be preparing for graduation.