“I don’t want to embarrass myself doing this”
“I’m too afraid to try this because what if I fail?”
“I will never be able to do this!”
These are actual conversations I’ve had with myself growing up. I would limit my own abilities and come up with excuses BEFORE I would even try something new – a way out. Justifications I would use to comfort myself when that constant companion of regret came around to ask how I was doing so far. I was afraid to try new things, to experiment, to explore. I missed opportunities because “what if I fail?”. I’ve taken the easy road numerous times because “I don’t want to embarrass myself doing this”. I’ve easily given up on things I was interested in because “I will never be able to do this”. Now, I still have these thoughts in my mind from time to time, but I’ve been able to overcome them and/or pushed them out entirely. What made the difference? Striving to have a Growth Mindset. I’d written about this a while back without actually realizing what I meant at first!
What is a Growth Mindset?
What are the consequences of thinking that your intelligence or personality is something you can develop, as opposed to something that is a fixed, deep-seated trait?
Carol Dweck, Psychologist.
Growth mindset describes a way of viewing challenges and setbacks. People who have a growth mindset believe that even if they struggle with certain skills, their abilities aren’t set in stone. They think that with work, their skills can improve over time.
People with the opposite belief — that abilities are what they are and won’t change — have a Fixed Mindset. They think their skills won’t improve no matter how hard they try.
Here is a summary of the characteristics of growth mindset:
- Accept flaws and mistakes as opportunities for improvement.
- Recognizes setbacks as part of the learning process.
- Sees intelligence as something that can be developed.
- Embraces challenges and even probable failures.
- Open to feedback.
Growth Mindset for Pasifika?
Trying to attain, and then maintain, a growth mindset is not as simple as flipping a switch. I found it almost impossible at times though it took me a while to understand why!
The hardest obstacle that I faced on my journey to developing a growth mindset was my pride. It is difficult to admit that you make mistakes or that you fall short! I grew up in a society where men were expected to be stoic, all-knowing figures that could do no wrong. You were born with god-given talents or you weren’t.
I didn’t want to admit that I had weaknesses. I wanted to live in denial because it meant I could still identify with my perception of what a “Pasifika man” was! Now while I hope that I’m the only person that thinks this way, I’m writing this in case there’s someone out there that thinks the same. I summarized my thoughts on this matter in an article called Pasifika and Self-imposed Limitations. Have a read.
We can break through these self-limitations with a growth mindset. We can try new experiences with a growth mindset. We can live our best lives through a growth mindset. We can build bigger tables with a growth mindset. We can break walls with a growth mindset.
That is what a growth mindset can do for our people.
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