Growth Mindset

Ever since I was young I was constantly praised for how smart I was in school. I loved being known as the smart girl. School came easy for me because my parents valued it highly. They were always pushing me to stay ahead. So, I always had personal tutors growing up. 

I enjoyed Carol Dweck's TED Talk and outlook on growth mindsets instead of fixed mindsets. I could relate to it a lot since I was always praised for how smart I was. After an exam, my mom would ask how it went and I would say, "It was easy" and that resulted in a lot of praise from her. Looking back I realize how much those praises limited me. 

Everything came easy for me until middle school and high school when classes got harder. I struggled and noticed that I wasn't the smartest person in class anymore. This caused me to feel unmotivated. I always thought that I was naturally smart. I thought that being smart meant that you didn't have to try or put any effort in school to get straight A's. 

This caused me to slack off and resulted in some B's. I was still relatively a good student. I never got worse than a B. However, I lacked the confidence I used to have in school. When people would do better than me I would just explain to myself that they were naturally smart. I noticed that a lot of my friends and people I was around thought the same way too. 

It wasn't until college when I finally realized there is no such thing as naturally smart. I started applying myself and putting more effort in. I noticed my grades improving. I also noticed how much more passionate I was about education once I started trying. Before, school was easy and I liked it because I was praised for having it easy. Now, school is tougher and I have to put more hours in to make good grades. But now, I learn more and even feel more accomplished when I get straight A's. 

Image Information 

Mindset (pixabay)