Your mindset can help support a healthy career journey or it can be used to sabotage your efforts for success. Dr. Carol Dweck, a world-renowned Stanford University psychologist, conducted a research study with junior high students and presented them with puzzles to solve, ranging from easy to hard. She observed different attitudes in the students. Some gave up more easily and did not believe in themselves. Others continued to work hard despite mistakes and did not give up. She discovered that some people view their intelligence and abilities as something that is fixed where others viewed intelligence and abilities as something that can be developed. In Dr. Carol Dweck's book, Mindset: The New Psychology of Success, she states:
"In one world - the world of fixed traits - success is about proving you're smart or talented. Validating yourself. In the other world - the world of changing qualities - it is about stretching yourself to learn something new. Developing yourself. Losing a tournament. Getting fired. Getting rejected. It means you are not smart or talented. In the other world, failure is about not growing. Not reaching for things you value. It means you are not fulfilling your potential . . . In one world, effort is a bad thing. It's, like failure, means you are not smart or talented. If you were, you would not need effort. In the other world, effort is what makes you smart or talented.” (Dweck 15-16)
The illustration on the following page demonstrates the two mindsets. The fixed mindset views intelligence as static. The growth mindset views intelligence as something that can be developed. Review the illustration and ask yourself: "Which mindset do I generally practice in my everyday life?"
Figure 1.1 – Two Mindsets. (Image by Ian Joslin is licensed under CC BY 4.0)
Carol Dweck is a professor at Stanford and the author of Mindset, a classic work on motivation and “growth mindset.” Her work is influential among educators and increasingly among business leaders as well. She researches “growth mindset” — the idea that we can grow our brain’s capacity to learn and to solve problems. In this talk, she describes two ways to think about a problem that’s slightly too hard for you to solve. Are you not smart enough to solve it … or have you just not solved it yet?
Your mindset can play an important role in your career and life planning process. As you prepare to answer the question, “Who Am I?” in Unit 2, we ask you to keep a growth mindset and practice the power of “yet” by Dr. Carol Dweck.
, What is Grit? According to the Merriaam-Webster Dictionary, Grit is: firmness of mind or spirit; unyielding courage in the face of hardship or danger.
Passion and Perseverance or “Grit” by Angela Duckworth
Leaving a high-flying job in consulting, Angela Lee Duckworth took a job teaching math to seventh graders in a New York public school. She quickly realized that IQ wasn’t the only thing separating the successful students from those who struggled. Here, she explains her theory of “grit” as a predictor of success.
After watching the videos, reflect on how you can apply a “growth mindset” and “grit” to your career and life-planning journey!
Affirmations
Positive self-talk improves self-image and allows for empowerment toward deliberate change. Affirmations are positive statements that describe a desired outcome and are often repeated until you start to believe them. Affirmations are directly related to mindset. As discussed earlier, your thoughts and ideas in your mind influence your belief about yourself and your abilities. This influence directly impacts your attitudes, behaviors and ultimately your performance. Be good to yourself and use affirmations to help build your confidence and belief in yourself.
Affirmations can be used to help raise self-confidence, control negative feelings and acquire new desired behaviors. They are particularly useful to help overcome negative thinking and self-sabotaging behaviors. Affirmations are intended to create new possibilities.
For example, let’s say I struggle with organization and often miss deadlines and this negatively impacts my performance at school and work.
My new desired behavior is to be organized and keep up with deadlines. To develop an affirmation for this desired new behavior there are a few things to keep in mind. When creating effective affirmations, it is necessary to:
Phrase the affirmation in the present tense. For example:
I am organized and manage my time well.
vs.
I will be organized and manage my time well.
Phrase the affirmation in the positive rather than the negative
I am productive and motivated.
vs.
I am not lazy and unmotivated.
Make sure the affirmation is believable and meaningful.
Share your affirmations with others.
Visualize success.
Recite your affirmations daily.
Repeat your affirmations when you start to engage in negative thoughts or behavior.
Here are some examples of positive affirmations:
I practice a growth mindset.
I am successful.
I embrace challenges and view them as learning opportunities.
I am strong and in control of my thoughts and behaviors.
I am a valuable team player with a strong work ethic.
I value hard work and put forth 100 % effort in all I do.
I use my time wisely and complete assignments on time.
I am mindful of how I spend my time and with whom.
I practice a healthy lifestyle by eating well, exercising and forgiving myself when I make mistakes.
ACTIVITY
Using positive self-talk and repeating positive messages to yourself will help reinforce a positive self-image and will contribute to your career success! Take a moment and practice this.
Develop six affirmations related to being successful in your career and life planning. Be sure to state your affirmations in the present and use positive phrases. Make your affirmations personal and meaningful to you.
Read your affirmations daily and modify them as needed. Practice them especially when you feel overwhelmed or discouraged. When you repeat your affirmations over and over, you will start to believe them and this will change your expectations, attitudes, behaviors, and ultimately your performance.
Building Self-Confidence
Self-confidence plays an important role in many aspects of our lives. It is a key factor that contributes to success in school, work, home, and in personal relationships with family and friends.
Many factors influence self-confidence. Some factors include environment, childhood upbringing, culture and experiences, and interactions with others. These factors can help build confidence and strengthen our belief in ourselves and our abilities. Or they can minimize confidence and cause us to question ourselves and our abilities.
Eleanor Roosevelt once said, “No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.” This is a powerful statement because it emphasizes the control you have within yourself. Building self-confidence takes time and patience and is definitely worth the effort.
One way to help build self-confidence is to focus on past success. Look at an achievement you are proud of. For example, earning an “A” on your English 101 research paper. Earning that “A” grade involved:
A desire to do well - internal motivation
Commitment - making the assignment a priority and taking time to work on it
Research Skills -using resources to collect the information needed to write the paper
Time-management - taking time to write and revise the paper
Another important factor that can help build your self-confidence is to think about your strengths. Your strengths are generally things that come naturally to you and you do well. For example, some strengths may include:
Communicating well with others
Staying calm during a crisis
Problem solving
Seeing the silver lining in the midst of chaos
Recognize and reward yourself for the achievements you have accomplished thus far. Give yourself credit for overcoming setbacks and using those situations as opportunities to learn and grow. When things get difficult, it is common to question your abilities. It is times like these when it is necessary to look back at your accomplishments and recognize that you have been successful before and can do it again. Learn from past challenges and how you have conquered them. Focus on the skills you have and the strengths you have developed through previous challenges. Learn from your past successes to help build your future successes.
As you build your self-confidence you will start to feel more in control of your future!
Diablo Valley College Student Resources
As you prepare for career success it is also important to take time to acquaint yourself with the
services on campus to help you be a successful student. There are many resources on campus
to help you pursue your academic and career goals at Diablo Valley College. Familiarize
yourself with the student support services and identify those you can benefit from. Click here
for a comprehensive list of Resources & Support Services. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. DVC offers many services to help support you on your journey. All you need to do is know what is available to you and how you can benefit from each service.
Diablo Valley College Student Resources