Trying to Prove You Are Smart Can Make You Dumb

My guess is that you have never heard of Carol Dweck.  Do not feel bad, until 18 months ago, neither had I.  She has conducted some pretty ground breaking research on a concept of mindset.  I have read some of her research on the topic and her book Mindset is near the top of my reading list.  Dr. Dweck's research findings are very important and can be applied to raising children, teaching students, and supervising employees.  Since all three of these areas are central to my life, I think Carol Dweck is kind of a big deal.

In a recent interview here Dr. Dweck discussed the difference between a fixed and growth mindset (you could replace the word students with children or employees if you wanted).

"In a fixed mindset students believe their basic abilities, their intelligence, their talents, are just fixed traits. They have a certain amount and that’s that, and then their goal becomes to look smart all the time and never look dumb."

“In a growth mindset students understand that their talents and abilities can be developed through effort, good teaching, and persistence. They don’t necessarily think everyone’s the same or anyone can be Einstein, but they believe everyone can get smarter if they work at it.”

Dr. Dweck says that what causes a fixed mindset is the constant reinforcement and praise of someones abilities and intelligence.  This causes people to think that it is most important to look smart and they avoid challenges for fear of looking dumb or stupid.  So, what should parents, teachers, and supervisors do?

“Students praised for the process they engaged in – their effort, their strategies, their focus, their perseverance – these kids take on hard tasks and stick with them, even if they make lots of mistakes. They learn more in the long run.”

As a supervisor, I now consider mindset a key issue to consider in the hiring process.  Individuals with a fixed mindset (about 40% of people) tend to focus their time trying to show off what they know or proving how good they are.  There is little focus on development or growth.  When hiring staff members I believe a growth mindset (also found in about 40% of people) is probably the number one attribute I am looking for.  As long as someone has a strong capacity for development and learning, I believe they can put in the effort to develop into a successful professional.  My hope for new employees is that their first day of work is their worst performing day of work and that almost every day after that they are developing into a better professional.  I also see it as one of my core responsibilities to help make sure that growth and development happens.

The chart below gives you a decent sense of the difference between these two mindsets.  Sorry in advance for the small type.