Mindset, The New Psychology of Success, written by Carol S. Dweck, Ph.D., takes the notions of one’s mindset and twists it into the driving force behind success. As the book describes, this is success in regards to parenting, business, school, sports and relationships—romantic, personal and professional. Through years of research, Dweck has broken down and studied the phases and power of one’s mindset, and the outcomes of each one’s success. Her results, in conjunction with her own personal experience and interviews with well-known professionals, are both motivational and influential, and can change any day’s work into a great one by simply changing your mindset.
Dweck drives one idea harder than any other: failure doesn’t have to be the end. No matter your mindset, there is always room for improvement. Your abilities, intelligence and knowledge do not have a limit, but are always expandable. She writes, the best of us “look failures in the face, even their own, while maintaining faith that they would succeed in the end” (Dweck, Pg. 110).
Notable quotes:
- Parenting/Teaching:
“a fixed-mindset … asking them to fit the mold of the brilliant, talented, child or be deemed unworthy. […]
“growth-minded ideals … giving them something they can strive for. … giving their children growing room.” (Pg. 192 & 193)
- Business/Leading/Following:
“I hate using the first person. Nearly everything I’ve done in my life has been accomplished with other people.” – Jack Welch, GE
- School/Sports:
“After every game or practice, if you walk off the field knowing that you gave everything you hand, you will always be a winner.” -Mia Hamm, USA Soccer
- Relationships (Romantic, Personal & Professional):
“A no-effort relationship is a doomed realtionship. … It takes work to communicate accurately and it takes work to expose and resolve conflicting hopes and beliefs. … ‘they worked happily ever after.'” (Pg. 152)
Dweck, C. S. P. D. (2006). Mindset. New York: Random House, Inc.
Thanks for your great presentation, Em! I’m really interested to read this, particularly the parts on parenting and relationships as I prepare to get married and start my own family.
I think these are both not only interesting and relevant topics, but rarely discussed in the context of leadership. Stephen Denning, the author of my book, The Secret Language of Leadership, briefly discusses how his leadership/communication style can apply to parents. However, he does not delve into his methods in the way I assume this book does. Definitely going to have to take a look at it!
Emily, I really enjoyed hearing more about your book and the different mindset styles outline. I love how Dweck compared the different mindsets in different parts of life. It gives a real life example on how to apply each mindset.
My favorite part of your presentation is the quote from Mia Hamm. I’ve always had coaches who cared about winning, but they also cared about effort. One of my cross country coaches once told me that “if you run your hardest and your best, then you have nothing to be disappointed about. Sometimes, other people’s best on that day is faster than yours.”
I think that applies here because it was about effort, and the placing would take care of itself. It’s very rare to win without giving it your best effort.
I’m sure it mentioned it in the book, but effort, in sports and in life, is the one thing that each person solely controls. I control how much effort I put into things. Thanks for sharing this book with us