This week, try to become aware of the internal commentary that shows up when you are faced with difficulty, whether you have made a mistake, hit an emergency, or received some form of external criticism. Briefly describe the challenging situation and the thoughts that are triggered by this situation in the registration form displayed in figure 1 on page 4. Use the first column to register the situation and the second column to describe the thoughts. 

Your mind might be saying things like “I can’t do this,” “I’m not good enough,” “I’m not smart enough,” and “I failed last time so I will probably fail again.” These types of thoughts come from a fixed mindset. 

With awareness comes the power to choose. If you notice fixed mindset commentary, you have the power to choose whether to continue with this mindset or to shift to a growth-oriented one. Mentally shift your perception of your ability and the difficulty in question to reflect a growth mindset. That is, respond to your fixed mindset commentary with growth mindset commentary. For example, “I am having difficulty with this task, but I can learn to master it with time and effort,” “Most successful people have experienced failures along the way” and “The harder I try, the more likely I will be to succeed.” In the fourth column of the registration form attached, list one or more thoughts that would characterize a growth mindset. 

For instance, a growth mindset leads to actions like approaching challenges and obstacles with enthusiasm and curiosity, interpreting failures as learning opportunities, learning from setbacks and trying again, and receiving criticism with an open mind. List one or more actions that reflect a growth mindset in the last column of the registration form attached. See if you can take these actions. Just as with learning to ride a bike, the more we practice acting in line with a growth mindset, the more natural it becomes.