• Home
  • Start Here!
    • Subscribe
    • Topics
    • Top Tips!
  • About
    • Services
    • Contact Us!
    • Media
    • Disclaimer
  • Blog
    • Popular Posts
    • Recipe Index
  • Books
    • RD Book Coaching Services
  • Podcast
  • Privacy Policy
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • RSS Feed

Maryann Jacobsen

Independent Author & Family Nutrition Expert

  • Home
  • Start Here!
    • Subscribe
    • Topics
    • Top Tips!
  • About
    • Services
    • Contact Us!
    • Media
    • Disclaimer
  • Blog
    • Popular Posts
    • Recipe Index
  • Books
    • RD Book Coaching Services
  • Podcast
  • Privacy Policy

Book Review: Mindset

December 8, 2014

Tweet
Pin
Share
Yum
Email
Share

I stumbled on Mindset: The New Psychology of Success while looking up books on education. And I’m so glad I did. This book has changed the way I interact with my children and even how I view myself.

The message is very simple, but profound. Carol Dweck, psychology professor at Stanford University, details the difference between a growth mindset and a fixed mindset. Someone with a growth mindset believes abilities and intelligence can be learned and developed while someone with a fixed mindset believes such traits are innate.

She then goes on to explain how this belief plays out in someone’s life. For example, someone with a fixed mindset may be afraid to take on challenges because of their fear of making mistakes. You see, mistakes for someone with a fixed mindset are terrible because if they fail it translates to not being good enough (because you can’t change traits). So they tend to stay with what’s familiar and easy and are always trying to prove how smart they are.

But someone with a growth mindset loves challenges because they enjoy the process of learning. And when they make mistakes or don’t do well, they find out what went wrong or simply work harder to achieve their goals. They view mistakes as learning opportunities and a way to improve. To make her point she details well known CEO’s, teachers, coaches and athletes with the different mindsets. The graphic below summarizes the differences.

mindset

How does a mindset develop?

As I was finishing up Mindset, this article about raising helpless kids went viral. This article provides an example of how children can develop a fixed mindset:

We’ve told our kids that they are special – for no reason, even though they didn’t display excellent character or skill, and now they demand special treatment. The problem is that kids assumed they didn’t have to do anything special in order to be special.

Dweck dedicates a chapter to children, discussing how certain types of praise can result in a fixed mindset. When kids are praised for traits (you are so smart you got an A) or lack of traits (you aren’t good at math, you just don’t get this) they learn that they either have it or they don’t. But when children are praised for their effort (I see you put in a lot of work to raise your grade) or the lack of effort for not accomplishing something (if you want to do better in math, you need to work harder) they realize they are in charge of their intelligence.

The chapter also focuses on the mindset of teachers. There are inspiring examples of how growth-minded teachers help struggling children succeed. They send their students the message that they have the ability to become smarter which empowers them to work harder and improve their grades. Dweck even has a program for students and teachers you can find here.

Mindsets in action

Mindset forced me to look at how I view my own abilities. I tend to be a growth mindset person in my career but not always in other areas. I am guilty of saying “I’m just not a born organizer” or “I’m not good at art.” The truth is I may not have interests in those areas, but if I really wanted to put in the work, I could get better (and I do want to get better at organizing for parental sanity). I used to say this about cooking but now I’m learning and enjoying cooking.

I can’t help but apply mindsets to food and eating. I often make the case that labeling children “picky” negatively impacts how they view their own eating. I can now see how a child can develop a growth mindset around food or the belief that their likes and dislikes are fixed.  I’ve seen this with adults I’ve counseled who say “I just don’t like vegetables.” After digging I find they like tomatoes on a sandwich and have a favorite salad (with ranch so they think it doesn’t count). But somewhere they got the message they were just someone who doesn’t like vegetables, case closed.

We are a society that loves to focus on natural talents and abilities. This book points out that this mentality keeps us from learning and growing in life. I, for one, am a changed person for reading it.

Anyone else read this book?

Related Posts

  • Intuitive Eating review
    Book Review: Intuitive Eating

    I finally adopted a healthy relationship with food in my twenties. It happened during a…

  • Feeding Baby review
    Feeding Baby: Book Review and Giveaway

    It seems a lifetime ago that I was standing in the grocery store, panicked, talking…

  • Book Review: Women Food and God

    Today on her show Oprah will announce that she will never diet again. Many of…

  • Suffering Succotash review
    Book Review: Suffering Succotash

    If you haven't noticed, I'm a little obsessed with picky eating. So when I heard…

Tweet
Pin
Share
Yum
Email
Share

Categories: Book & Product Reviews, Feeding School-Age Kids 4 Comments

« Why We Need Radical Honesty About Family Meals (Yes, From You Too)
Why Exercise is Important to Me »

Comments

  1. Allison says

    December 8, 2014 at 8:15 pm

    I have not read the book but I have learned of Dweck’s research through several parenting blogs. It has changed the way I speak to and offer praise to my kids. For example, I always focus on their effort, “I like how you painted the picture with so many different colors!” Instead of you are such a good painter, the picture is so pretty”. Or “way to keep at it” when they are working on a new puzzle and sticking with it even when it is getting frustrating. I had never thought to apply the mindset research to eating and feeding. Thank you for that! With one very cautious eater, I Can see how having confidence and being supportive during meals will help him learn that his preferences will change as he grows.

    Reply
    • Maryann Tomovich Jacobsen, MS, RD says

      December 9, 2014 at 9:34 am

      Yes, I knew about the praise too but the book really shows why it so important. I can’t help but think about feeding/eating when I read anything ; )

      Reply
  2. Jennifer says

    December 8, 2014 at 9:01 pm

    I’m actually in the middle of reading the book, and I’ve learned alot about how to approach setbacks–as opportunities, not brick walls. I love how you relate it to learning to enjoy new foods. Dweck’s philosophy is helping me to not give up, but to realize that everyone can grow from where they are at the present.

    Reply
    • Maryann Tomovich Jacobsen, MS, RD says

      December 9, 2014 at 9:38 am

      That’s great Jennifer. It has helped me look more honestly at why I don’t do certain things – basically my belief that I just don’t have what it takes. With organizing I can now see that I have too much stuff so that’s why it’s hard to organize. I’ve been giving away what we don’t use (before X-mas hits) and have developed a plan. It really has changed how I look at everything I do (or don’t do) !

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Hi, I’m Maryann…

Hi, I’m a registered dietitian who focuses on developmental stages. Here, you won’t get one-size-fits-all advice. Instead, you’ll get information based on your (and your family’s) age and stage. Make your choice between family and midlife-focused newsletters below and subscribe. Find out more!

Recent Posts

  • Yes, Every Midlife Women Should Take a Multivitamin (And Here’s Why)
  • 10 Signs Intermittent Fasting Doesn’t Live Up to the Hype
  • What do the Latest Vitamin D Studies Really Tell Us?
  • 3 Breathing Exercises That Will Change Your Life with Nick Heath [Podcast]
  • 6 Dietary Supplements Most Teenagers Need

Random Posts

  • 30 Meal Challenge (Meals 15-17): Shrimp Two Ways and Salmon Cakes30 Meal Challenge (Meals 15-17): Shrimp Two Ways and Salmon Cakes
  • What EVERY Midlife Woman Needs to Know About Vaginal Health with Shirley Weir [Podcast]What EVERY Midlife Woman Needs to Know About Vaginal Health with Shirley Weir [Podcast]

Categories

Get the books!

The Alliance of Independent Authors - Author Member

Join the Newsletter

Sign up for Maryann’s E-mail Newsletter and get her ebook The Landmines of a Healthy Relationship with Food for FREE. Subscribe now!

Thank you!

You have successfully joined our subscriber list. You're not done. Check your email to confirm your address. After you do that, you'll receive a link for the free e-book.

.

Copyright © 2023 — Maryann Jacobsen • All rights reserved • Powered by Femme Flora. Designed & Developed by BinaryTurf Privacy Policy

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish.OK Privacy Policy
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT