Mindset is one of those rare audio books that can help you make positive changes in your life and at the same time see the world in a new way. A leading expert in motivation and personality psychology, Carol Dweck has discovered in more than 20 years of research that our mindset is not a minor personality quirk: it creates our whole mental world. It explains how we become optimistic or pessimistic. It shapes our goals, our attitude toward work and relationships, and how we raise our kids, ultimately predicting whether or not we will fulfill our potential. Dweck has found that everyone has one of two basic mindsets.If you have the fixed mindset, you believe that your talents and abilities are set in stone – either you have them or you don’t. You must prove yourself over and over, trying to look smart and talented at all costs. This is the path of stagnation. If you have a growth mindset, however, you know that talents can be developed and that great abilities are built over time. This is the path of opportunity – and success.
Dweck demonstrates that mindset unfolds in childhood and adulthood and drives every aspect of our lives, from work to sports, from relationships to parenting. She reveals how creative geniuses in all fields – music, literature, science, sports, business – apply the growth mindset to achieve results. Perhaps even more important, she shows us how we can change our mindset at any stage of life to achieve true success and fulfillment. She looks across a broad range of applications and helps parents, teachers, coaches, and executives see how they can promote the growth mindset. Highly engaging and very practical, Mindset breaks new ground as it leads you to change how you feel about yourself and your future.
Disappointing read I learned of Dr. Dweck in a profile in Stanford Magazine, where she is a professor. Her research and resulting conclusions are fascinating and resonated deeply in our family. But the book is disappointing. As pointed out by C. Daley and J. Williams, the anecdotal material is extremely repetitive and not at all helpful. Notwithstanding its general reader focus, the ideas for how to move beyond a fixed mindset were limited. The Stanford Magazine article, which is excellent, is available…
Anyone can benefit from this book Unless you are a hermit, you can definitely benefit from this book. For those interested in improving their lives,their parenting skills, their leadership skills, their teaching skills and their relationship skills, this is a must read.Â
A good idea, not such a good read. I’ll begin with a summary which allows you, dear reader, to decide if you should read any more of this review:Â