Failure is a prominent idea in the book "Mindset". It is explained by both of the mindsets, Growth and Fixed, and how they would respond to failure. The different is immense. In the Growth mindset failure is a push to do better, a push to learn from your mistakes. With the Fixed mindset failure is a dead end. Once you fail in the Fixed mindset, then it shows that you are not naturally gifted.
For me it is difficult. I think of myself with a Growth mindset, but at the same time failure is difficult for me with some things. I am going to explain two different situations that I have been in, in one I show the Growth mindset and in the other a Fixed mindset. In high school I swam on my schools swim team. I was not very good but I always had a good time and pushed other people and myself. Also at practice I would always be trying to improve, so that I could drop time at the next meet. This shows how I would have a Growth mindset. On the other hand at school if I get a bad grade on an exam I studied very hard for it makes me upset. I want to do my best but I still failed. This shows a Fixed mindset.
So what am I, a Growth or a Fixed? I think it is possible to be a little of both. Now that I am aware of this I will be more conscious of learning from my failures and not letting them stop me. In the book "Mindset" on pages 42 and 43 it explains a Fixed mindset and how she moves from having a Fixed mindset to a Growth mindset. This is an inspiring story. It makes me think about how everyone should always be trying to better themselves. If people stopped thinking about how they are "naturally" better then everyone else so they do not need to try, then our world would have more success. Failure should be a push to learn and improve not to give up forever.
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