Imagine a room of students who are working on a very tough math problem.  Some of them give up quickly and say it can’t be solved while others preserve and work at it until they final succeed.  What is different about these students?   Believe it or not, IQ is not a factor.  According to research, it is mindset.

In her groundbreaking book, Mindset, author Carol S. Dweck, Ph.D. explored the reasons why some people have greater success than others.  She determined that it came down to whether a person had a fixed or growth mindset.  As explained on her website:

“In a fixed mindset, people believe their basic qualities, like their intelligence or talent, are simply fixed traits. They spend their time documenting their intelligence or talent instead of developing them. They also believe that talent alone creates success—without effort. They’re wrong.

“In a growth mindset, people believe that their most basic abilities can be developed through dedication and hard work—brains and talent are just the starting point. This view creates a love of learning and a resilience that is essential for great accomplishment. Virtually all great people have had these qualities.”

Read more about this fascinating idea at mindsetonline.com