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Do you care? You should. It’s a key to success in life.

Professor Carol Dweck of Stanford University has been studying mindsets for many years and they are her terms.

What is a fixed mindset?

Someone with a fixed mindset believes that we are either talented, skilled, intelligent or not. Anyone who is not a winner today is a loser (forever). If that’s your view of ability, you may think there’s no point in practising because that would suggest that you don’t have what it takes.

People with fixed mindsets avoid serious challenges and they are less resilient because any setback is a threat to their identity as a winner.

What is a growth mindset?

People with a growth mindset see life as series of learning opportunities. They thrive on challenges and setbacks. They want to know where they went wrong so that they can learn from the experience.

Researchers report that elite athletes are so into growth mindsets that they don't want to hear praise - only where they went wrong, so that they can do better next time.

Growth mindsetters are the ones who take copious notes in our workshops and ask most of the questions. They don't worry whether anyone might think it's a silly question because they are not out to prove anything, only to learn as much as they can.

If you don't have a growth mindset now, you can develop it. So can your team. And your children.