How To Develop A Growth Mindset In Teenagers?

By Marshashari

𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦’𝘴 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘵𝘦𝘦𝘯𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘳 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘤𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘣𝘰𝘥𝘪𝘦𝘴. 𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮, 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘧𝘭𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘩. 𝘈𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘥𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴, 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘢 𝘱𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘧 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦 𝘪𝘵 𝘶𝘱 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯, 𝘥𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘱, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘭𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘩. 𝘐𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘭𝘦 “𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘱 𝘢 𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘵𝘩 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘴𝘦𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘦𝘦𝘯𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘳𝘴?” 𝘐 𝘢𝘮 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘵𝘩 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘴𝘦𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘦𝘦𝘯𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘳𝘴.

Teenagers need to know that their brains can grow stronger with time and effort. It sounds simple, but the effects of believing this are deep. Some children will have been born thinking this, but others will probably be sure that they are as they are, and nothing will change.

There is no doubt that encouragement and praise are essential for children of all ages, helping lift them into great heights, although maybe not all praise is excellent praise. The research about this is vital, leaving little doubt that distinct kinds of an award, though given with the most loving intent, can potentially harm our children and teens.

What is a growth mindset?

Source: unsplash.com (Growth mindset vs Fixed mindset)

A growth mindset views intelligence and ability as qualities that may be developed over time.

This doesn’t indicate that people with a growth mindset assume that they may be the next Einstein–there are still variables in what we can all achieve. A growth mindset only means that people believe their intelligence and abilities can be improved through effort and actions.

A growth mindset also admits that reverses are an essential part of the learning process and enables people to ‘bounce back’ by increasing motivational work.

What is a fixed mindset?

In a fixed mindset, people believe attributes, such as talent and intellect, are fixed–that’s to say, they think they’re born with the level of intelligence and natural talents they will reach in maturity.

That is in part as a predetermined mindset does not see intelligence and ability as something you grow –it is something that you “are.”

Fixed mindsets may result in negative thinking. For example, a person with a fixed mindset may fail at a job and think it’s as if they aren’t smart enough to do it. A growth mindset individual might fail at the same task and believe it is because they need to invest more time practicing.

Understanding the Teenage Brain

During the teen years, your child’s mind goes through what author Dan Siegel calls “remodeling.” Sadly, this remodeling includes periods of intense emotional responses, risk-taking behavior, boundary-pushing, and a lack of persistent impulse control.

If they were younger, they soaked up facts and thought in concrete ways. They can be more creative with their problem-solving and think seriously about others and themselves.

Can You Change Your Teenager’s Mindset?

Recent advances in neuroscience have shown us that the brain is a lot more malleable than we knew, especially during the teenage years. With practice, neural networks grow new connections, strengthen existing ones, and construct insulating material that accelerate transmission of impulses. This implies it is very possible for you to change your teenager’s mindset.

Methods to develop a growth mindset in teenagers

Every human being desire to achieve success, wealth and great luck in life. But sadly, most individuals do not understand how to get it. Growth mindset is the key to success, wealth and everything you want in life. Thus, let’s show the steps that can allow you to acquire growth mindset. Listed below are Best Ways To Develop A Growing Mindset.

1. Be curious

You need to become curious, and if you think you are already, you need to be curious about everything. Because “curiosity is your best teacher” for many people. When you get interested in everything, you will discover answers that most teenagers struggle with.

It is a straight path that contributes to expansion and greatness in life. You may open up a new treasure of existence. Whenever you may find difficulty in existence, curiosity will take you from it.

Successful teenagers are curious, and they are ever searching for a new way to succeed more in their lifestyle.

Curiosity will direct you to a growth mindset since it will permit you to learn new things every day and develop more when compared to most people. If you would like to know the importance of learning, then here’s why you should learn new things every day.

2. Focus on the Effort, Not the Result

How to develop a growth mindset in teenagers

It is a concept that Stanford University scholar Carol Dweck developed in the 1970s. Dweck identified two essential mindsets. Individuals with a fixed mindset believe that their inherent capability is fixed and cannot be improved. Meanwhile, those with a growth mindset consider that hard work brings advancement. Hard work and achievement go hand in hand.

Paul Tough, writer of The Way Children Succeed: Grit, Curiosity and the Hidden Power of Character, see this dynamic play out among today’s children. “Children who get commended for only being smart or gifted develop a fixed mindset. And they get fearful of failure and quit working so hard,” Difficult states. “While children who get commended for their attempt tend to develop a growth mindset that pushes them to work harder and see failure as a temporary setback rather than a sign that something is wrong.”

No surprise, then, that helping our teenagers develop a growth mindset builds courage for parents and starts with focusing on our teenager’s effort.

By way of instance, if your teenager comes home having an A, do your best not to make the quality the centerpiece of your conversation. “An A, wow, you’re smart!” Instead, praise the effort that resulted in the grade. You could say it is fun to find an A. You have to feel good about that. “Let them know you’re proud of just how hard they worked.”

3. Look at failure as a learning opportunity

Occasionally we all face setbacks and failure in life, but how we choose to respond to your failure determines the level of success we’re going to attain. The most significant gap between successful and unsuccessful people is that the way that they respond to failure.

Unsuccessful people choose to stop after several drawbacks and failures. Just because of having a fixed mindset, they think they aren’t capable of doing it. However, successful men and women learn from failure and migraines. Because they believe they need to learn another way of doing this.

Successful teenagers develop a growth mindset, and they think failure is part of success and expansion; otherwise, they won’t have the ability to learn “what does work and what does not work.”

As Henry Ford said, “Failure is simply the opportunity to start again, this time more intelligently.”

4. Set Goal! Goals are Good

When it comes to goal-setting, a few teens are dreamers, they have goals for themselves long into the future. Some may still be on the fence about what to do next, while others might struggle to think about goals in a concrete way.

It’s simple to transfer your own hopes and fantasies onto your child. Rather than pressing children to fit your mold, come alongside as support.

5. Keep Trying

Silver knows firsthand that a growth mindset can work miracles, while a fixed mindset, regardless of how brilliant your teenager is, may do just the opposite. “Two of my sons were labeled as talented. But I saw them stumble more later in life than the two who had to fight for everything that they got,” she notes. That’s because her gifted sons had not learned what her academic children had learned early on. The children who needed to work harder heard “not to give up. They’d learned to keep at it”.

6. Believe in yourself

Confidence comes when you believe in yourself, even when others are doubting you. Believing in yourself can take you to the extraordinary level.

A bird sitting on a branch never believes that it will keep her safe. She believes in her own wings. In other words, she believe in herself that no matter what happens with the branch, she will be able to fly on another one.

When you don’t believe in yourself, what makes you think that other people will believe in you? So, the best thing you can do for yourself is “believe in yourself even when others are doubting”.

7. Be specific with praise

An interesting study was done in colleges that look at the impact of feedback from teachers, and I believe that you, as parents, can learn a great deal from this. For example, studies on compliments have shown that telling children they are smart promotes a fixed mindset, whereas praising hard work and effort cultivates a growth mindset. This means rewarding effort and actions, not traits. I think this is highly much something to keep in mind.

8. Examine your beliefs

The majority of us grew up with conventional notions about fixed intelligence and abilities. We may have heard our very own relatives say (as I did) things such as, “nobody in our household has some math ability, but we are good talkers.” We need to examine and change our own beliefs.

9. Encourage them to keep the big picture in mind

It’s where they end up that matters. The stumbles on the way are just part of the learning and the way there. Learning takes time, and the path will not be straight — it will be twisted and exciting and filled with great opportunities, just as it was intended to be.

10. Mentors Can Help Teens Develop A Growth Mindset

Mentoring can help develop a commitment to learning in a teenager. Think back to your teenage years and recall precisely what it was like when you were in school. Did you fight with certain subjects? Did you have parents or teachers tell you, you weren’t brilliant? It’s important to educate adolescents that the brain is flexible and elastic; consequently, with effort and determination, anything is possible.

CONCLUSION

I hope that this has given you a clear, concise understanding of the growth mindset and how to help your teenager and yourself go from one to the other. The most important measures are to see failure as a learning opportunity and to be willing and committed to changing your beliefs about what your teenager can do and achieve. Teenagers cannot stay wrapped up in the idea that they were born with all of their talents and abilities and have no room to grow.