by Janet M.
Shlaes
“Doing means
learning. Learning means mistakes.” ~
Jeffrey Pfeffer
Mistakes
have frequently been presented as something to fear and avoid and perfection as
the ideal goal to pursue. Unfortunately, the perfection objective is an elusive
and dangerous one. According to Stanford researcher, Carol Dweck, the perfection oriented aspiration
ultimately serves to impede growth and stifle intellectual capacity. The
results of her research identify two fundamental types of mindsets – fixed and
growth. The fixed mindset views intelligence as embodying a set upward limit,
while a growth mindset is one that views ability occurring in a growth continuum.
In the evolutionary range of the growth mindset, mistakes are the guideposts that can improve
performance over time. Rather than intentionally avoiding mistakes and limiting
our potential, a growth mindset results in our identifying and learning through
mistakes. Her brief Ted Talk (Carol Dweck: The Power of
Believing You Can Improve) provides the essence of her
research, as well as the intellectual gains achieved via embracing the
inevitable mistakes that guide our learning and expansion.
I
invite you to view her Ted Talk and reflect on where in your unique world you
can embrace mistakes as your guide to ongoing growth and improvement.
Janet
For addition insights
and observations, check out the following posts:
Optimal Performance Fundamentals
No comments:
Post a Comment