When my daughter entered 1st Grade at Hayes Elementary in Lakewood, I was impressed to see the strong focus on brain science and emphasis on developing a growth mindset. These young children were taught, not only HOW their brains worked, but most importantly, that they could change them! There is a tremendous amount of research out there that we can rewire our brains, and that our attitude is actually more important than our intelligence. A fixed mindset and a growth mindset are the two core mindsets that determine one’s attitude.
If you have a fixed mindset, you are likely to believe that you cannot grow intellectually and will remain limited by failure. Examples of this are: avoiding challenges, shying away from things you don’t know, unable to handle feedback, giving up easily, and feeling threatened by the success of others. This mindset might leave you feeling hopeless and overwhelmed.
People with a growth mindset believe that putting in effort will help them improve. They see challenges as opportunities, can take constructive criticism, focus on the process verses the end result, are inspired by the success of others, and think of learning as “brain training.”
You can take a closer look at what mindset you typically choose by asking yourself:
- Do I see the glass half empty … or half full?
- Do I focus on what I do have … or what I don’t have?
- Is my attention on what I have accomplished … or not accomplished?”
No matter what information you gather, the good news is that you can change your mind. A powerful way to do this is by creating POSITIVE AFFIRMATIONS.
Positive affirmations are belief systems rooted in the universal truth. They are positive statements that you repeat to yourself in order to increase self-esteem, promote positive thinking, and change negative self-talk. Affirmations are most effective when you come up with your own. This is because the healing power of affirmation comes not from saying the positive words aloud, but from internalizing them.
Some examples of turning a negative thought/fixed mindset into a positive affirmation/growth mindset are:
“I can do hard things, and learning new things helps me grow.”
Negative Thought | Positive Affirmation |
“This feels so hard.”
| “I can do hard things, and learning new things helps me grow.”
|
“When will this be over?”
| “I am patient and I trust that good things will come on their own time.”
|
“I never have enough time, and never feel like I do enough.”
| “Everything that needs to get done, will get done.”
|
“This pandemic is making me feel so anxious.”
| “I am freed from anxiety and worry with each deep breath.”
|
“I don’t deserve good things to happen to me.”
| “I am absolutely worthy of every good thing that happens to me.”
|
This is also an excellent practice to do with kids. When you hear them expressing themselves negatively, challenge them to change their negative statement into a positive affirmation. Remember it’s a practice. AWARENESS is the most important tool. Once you recognize a negative thought … know that you can change it. We ALL have the power to create the lives we want!
Be well,
Shannon Sabol