Growth Mindset: Memes

For this challenge, I chose this meme from our instructor's Growth Mindset Memes Blog.

First of all, I was a big fan of all the cat memes. If you haven't checked them out yet, you should!

I particularly likes this meme because of the quote and its relation to my experience with growth mindset. Typically, the hardest part of a challenging task is just getting started. Whether that is starting a new job, applying for a new position, or talking to someone for the first time...trying something new is hard!

One of the leaders I look up to the most always tells me "you have to start getting comfortable being uncomfortable". This is absolutely right. Putting yourself out there is never easy. But, accepting the uncertainty and "just going for it" is the best thing you can do.

Whenever I think about the growth mindset, I remember the importance of trying new things. Like this meme says, there are endless opportunities waiting for you, but you'll never know if you don't start climbing!

Week 8 Growth Mindset

As we approach the middle of the semester, it was great to go back and reflect upon my growth mindset blog post. At the time, I predicted classes that were going to discourage me. Update: I was correct. I'm at the point in the semester where the stress is high and the motivation is getting lower. Reminding myself of the growth mindset was just what I needed.

Being that this is my senior year, I am surrounded by stressors. I'm trying to do well in my classes while also trying to figure out what I want to do with the rest of my life. For a control freak like me, this has been an overwhelming process.

During this time, I have found myself comparing myself to others. I feel like everyone else has it all figured out and I don't. This is one of my biggest weaknesses. I need to remember the growth mindset and that I should be focusing on my own progress. It's important to remember that everyone's journey is different and I shouldn't be comparing myself to others.

However, during college I have also strengthened my growth mindset in many ways. Coming from a small town of roughly 550 people, traveling to The University of Oklahoma was a huge leap out of my comfort zone. Since then, I think that I have continued to take risks and do things that push me out of my normal comfort zone where I have plenty of control.

I have also learned to deal with change. This used to be one of my biggest weaknesses and it is still something that I struggle with, but I have definitely improved. I have had a variety of curveballs thrown at me since the beginning of my college journey. I have learned to accept the things I cannot change and focus on the things I can, such as my attitude.

This class has helped me by simply reminding me of the growth mindset! It has also helped me step (once again) out of my comfort zone and into a world of brand new stories and creative writing. This is unlike anything I have ever done, but I have had a great time with it. I have used this class to escape my comfort zone and reality and jump into a world where I am free to be as creative as I want. I believe that this is really helping me to grow, not only as a writer but in my every-day life.

(I try to remind myself of this every day! Source: flickr)

Growth Mindset

I really love the idea of a growth mindset. I have heard a little bit about the idea in other leadership classes that I have been a part of, but I really enjoyed learning more through these videos.

I think that as children, we are always pushed to learn and to grow. However, when we pass middle school, I think that that mindset changes. Instead of feeling like we are flourishing, we feel that we are being forced to meet a certain standard. We must pass, or else we fail. There is that constant fear of not being good enough. There are so many numbers that define us: grades, ACT/SAT scores, etc. I also believe that how people are raised determines how they deal with this pressure, especially after high school graduation. I think that those with a growth mindset are most likely to go to college and most likely to flourish there.

However, I also think that a growth mindset can be encouraged at any age. I don't think that it's too late to work on our growth mindsets! In fact, I think that it is increasingly important to encourage a growth mindset in college. College is hard and it is easy to get discouraged. Promoting a growth mindset will help students achieve the goal of college which is ultimately to further our education and become more competent adults.

I think that simply learning about the growth mindset is a great place to start. I'm very excited to work more with the concept in this class! I have some other classes that will really test me this semester, specifically in economics. Economics requires a much different way of thinking (reminder: I'm a HR major) and I do not doubt that I will become discouraged over the course of the semester. Hopefully, keeping the growth mindset in mind will help me through it!

(Having a growth mindset creates stronger minds! Source: Pixabay)