Assignment 21: Reading Reflection No. 2

Mindset: The New Psychology of Success by Carol Dweck

1)    What was the general theme or argument of the book?

The theme of the book is that there are two different types of mindsets: a fixed mindset and a growth mindset. A fixed mindset sees effort and failure as negative, while the growth mindset sees effort as an admirable trait and failure as a learning opportunity.

2)    How did the book, in your opinion, connect with and enhance what you are learning in ENT 3003?

I felt like it connected with what I am learning in class relating to receiving feedback. You can either receive feedback with a positive attitude and see how it will help you grow and improve, or you can receive it with a negative attitude and feel upset that what you did was perhaps not good enough. I also feel like the concept of the book enhanced what I am learning in class because as we have seen, entrepreneurship is not for the weak. Entrepreneurs are resilient and perseverant, and in order to have these traits it is much better to have a growth mindset.  

3)    If you had to design an exercise for this class, based on the book you read, what would that exercise involve?

I think I would design an exercise similar to one that the author did, in which students will recognize what kind of mindset they have by agreeing and/or disagreeing with a series of statements. Depending on their results, students can then come up with a series of situations in which they will write how they would handle the situation depending on their mindset and how they would then change or modify their mindset in order to make the best out of the situation.

4)    What was your biggest surprise or 'aha' moment when reading the book? In other words, what did you learn that differed most from your expectations?

When I first read the title of the book, I thought I would be learning about novel concepts and ideas. Although in a way I did, the more I read the more I realized that what the author talked about had to do with everyday life and everyday choices. I was expecting to learn complex ways to rewire myself, but I was pleased to see how it is so much simpler than I thought. I realized that although I whole-heartedly believed and agreed with having a growth mindset that too often my actions and feelings did not align with my thoughts. Recognizing that difference was my ‘aha’ moment and has made me want to reevaluate how I want to start confronting situations.