mindset - by Dr Carol S. Dweck

What a fascinating book. While I was familiar with the terms "fixed" and "growth" mindsets, I didn't know exactly what they meant or how they related to me. I now have a much better understanding and believe it can help me in all aspects of my life.

From "fixed" to "growth"

We are all a combination of both mindsets, but the fixed mindset is the one that causes most of our problems. If I hit a bad golf shot, this is the internal voice telling me I'm rubbish and should give up, or that I'm an idiot for even hitting that shot. It's the side of my personality that is prone to react badly to any perceived criticism and can take it as a significant personal slight, blowing it out of all proportion. The side that can have an argument in an empty room. Not only can it foster a sense of entitlement, but it can also diminish your sense of self-worth as you try to constantly "prove yourself". Looking back at my career through the lens of this book, I think that a growth mindset drove me forward through the early years before a more fixed mindset then set in. Common to many industries, I think parts of the fund management industry promoted a fixed mindset. The "star" fund manager culture, the constant comparisons driven by relative performance or the inability of some professionals to admit they made a mistake for fear of judgment and repercussion or looking indecisive in front of peers. I can see several aspects of myself in Dr Dweck's description of the fixed persona.

One of the things Dweck asks you to do is give your fixed persona a name. I've called mine Nick, after Nick Faldo, as the golf course is one of the main places he shows up, and Sir Nick is never slow to tell you how much better he is/was!

Since I retired, I've adopted much more of a growth mindset and effectively dedicated myself to renewed lifelong learning. I'm doing things now that I always wanted to do when I was working, but either didn't feel I had the time, or was too concerned about how others would react. Reading this book is a good example, as I'd have been unlikely to read it when working. Some of the other books I've reviewed through this blog would equally fall into that camp. Putting myself "out there" with my blog is something I would never have done with a "fixed" mindset. I was far too concerned about negative feedback. Now I've even published my attempts at poetry!

None of us knows how long we have on this earth. I want to see what I can achieve now that I'm unshackled from the demands of work and the fixed mindset I felt it encouraged. How good a golfer can I become? Will I ever write the book I've wanted to write since I was a teenager? Can I learn Italian? Can I learn to play the guitar? Can I take my family on the same journey and help them reach their goals and potential? I like the phrase quoted in the book: "becoming is better than being". What we can become is unlimited in its potential if we are prepared to put in the work, effort and dedication. I don't want to look back and say "Coulda, woulda, shoulda". Right now, while I'm fit and healthy, golf is the initial goal, while the other things can come later.

Full of research and examples

The book is content-rich, with many relatable, real-life examples of the different mindsets. I was fascinated to read about John McEnroe and how his fixed mindset meant he blamed everything and everyone other than himself when he didn't win. Or the rejected inner city kids who went from being unable to read, to reciting Shakespeare and discussing Tolstoy because their teacher imbued them with a growth mindset. How supposedly "gifted" people can fall into the fixed mindset trap and ultimately fail, while others gain success through hard work. It takes effort to ignite ability and turn it into accomplishment.

Dweck covers the different mindsets and how they impact you, before putting them into contexts of Sports, Business, Relationships and Teaching environments (parents, teachers and coaches). She then looks at the challenge of how to change your mindset. Dweck has written this book from her own research and experience through teaching the growth mindset. It's well laid out and follows logically from chapter to chapter.

Should you read it?

I found "mindset" to be an interesting and compelling read and thoroughly recommend it. The book has given me a better understanding of my own mindset(s) in a way that other recent reading has not. When it comes to establishing a growth mindset, I found some commonality with Atomic Habits, which I also read recently, but have not yet reviewed.

Here's to living with a growth mindset.

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