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CHAPTER ONE
CHANGE YOUR MINDSET

KEY ISSUE: HOW TO DEVELOP GROWTH MINDSET

"Once your mindset changes, everything on the outside will change along with it"---Steve Maraboli

Cambridge advanced learners dictionary (Third edition) defines mindset as a person’s way of thinking and opinion, mindset is therefore a mental attitude that will determine how you interpret and respond to a situation. Mindsets are powerful beliefs in your mind, and you can change them because you always have a choice. The brain is like a muscle that gets stronger and works better the more it is exercised. Usually people believe the brain is stationary which makes them believe further that talent and giftedness are unchanging personal traits that will eventually lead to success. The truth is, every person’s brain has a genius-like ability, your weapon to becoming successful lies in your ability to develop this genius-like character in you. Every time you work hard, stretch yourself and learn something new your brain forms new connections and over time you actually become smarter. According to the research by Dr. Carol Dweck, a professor of psychology at Stanford University. People have two types of mindset, a fixed mindset where people believe their abilities are fixed, that they have a certain amount of intelligence or talent and that’s that, affirming that they can learn new things but can’t change their ability. On the other hand is the growth mindset where people believe that their abilities are things they can cultivate and develop throughout their lives, they believe that through effort and learning they can become smarter and more talented, they acknowledge that some peoples are naturally brilliant but they focus on the idea that everyone can get better with time.

"It is easier for one to take risks and to chase his dreams with a mindset that has nothing to lose. In this lies the immense passion, the great advantage of avoiding a materialistic, pleasure filled-way of life"---Criss Jami

We shall take a look at both mindsets, those with fixed mindsets believe they are what they are, and still possess a desire for positive self-image and of course want to perform well and look smart, while those with growth mindset believe that intelligence and abilities can be developed since they believe the brain is like a muscle which can be trained therefore they acquire the desire to improve. Also people with fixed mindset avoid challenges, they think it’s hard and success is not assured, so rather than risk failing negatively and tarnishing their self-image they choose to avoid challenges and stick to what they can do well. A challenge to a growth minded person is welcomed with open arms because they know they will come out stronger on the other side. Obstacles scare away a fixed minded human and he gives up without a fight, while people with growth mindset are not discouraged by obstacles because they see failure as an opportunity to learn, and so whatever happens they win. Fixed mindset people see making effort as fruitless or worse, they avoid making it recapping that their effort will not take them an inch away from where they are, while the growth minded fellow sees effort as something necessary to grow and master useful skills. The way this two categories of people deal with negative forces varies with respect to their cognitive abilities for example, in dealing with criticism, a fixed minded person ignores negative feedbacks by refusing to see his flaws and also take them as insult and further isolating himself from external influences that can help him generate some positive change. Criticism to a person with the growth mindset is seen as an opportunity to know ones weakness and Achilles heel so he can go ahead in growing better.

"A tornado of thought is unleashed after each new insight. This in turn results in an earthquake of assumptions. These are natural disasters that re-shape the spirit."---Vera Nazarian

It is therefore safe to say that those with fixed mindset may attain a level of success in their life even though they don’t reach their full potentials and Growth mindset people will always reach a higher level of achievement which also gives them a sense of free will. It is good news to learn that it is possible to change your worldview from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset. The aim of this book is virtually how youths with fixed mindset will learn how to change develop a growth mindset while applying their new acquired cognitive functions into some very important aspects which will fuel and transform this great country of ours. Before we begin to learn how to change our mindset into a positive and progressive one I will like to know to what extent do you strongly agree or agree or strongly disagree or disagree with these statements:

1. No matter what kind of person you are, you can always change substantially.

2. Trying new things is stressful for me and I avoid it.

3. You can always change the basic thing about the kind of person you are.

4. I appreciate when people, parents, coaches, teachers give me feedback about my performance.

5. I often get angry when I get negative feedback about my performance.

6. You can learn new things, but you can’t really change how intelligent you are.

7. You can do things differently, but the important parts of who you can’t really be changed.

8. Human beings are basically good, but sometimes make terrible decisions.

9. An important reason why I do my school work is that I like to learn new things.

10. Truly smart people do not need to try hard.

"Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed no hope at all"--Dale Carnegie

The answers and opinion you give to these statements will basically give you an insight to the type of mindset you have, although some people have a balanced type of mindset where they both exhibit a fixed and growth mindset in different aspect of their life. After sincerely giving your opinion to the statements, you can check the answers description or type of statement to which your opinion is attached.

1. Personality/character mindset - growth

2. Ability mindset – fixed

3 Personality/character mindset – growth

4. Ability mindset –growth

5. Ability mindset – fixed

6. Ability mindset – fixed

7. Personality/character mindset – fixed

8. Personality/character mindset –growth

9. Ability mindset – growth

10. Ability mindset – fixed

"Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning stays young"---Henry Ford

STEPS TO DEVELOPING A GROWTH MINDSET

You can develop your mindset irrespective of who you are and what you do to suit whatever aspect of life you wish to develop, we will take the area of education since the majority of youths in the country are still in the process of pursuing their various academic goals, it will give them a clear picture of who they are in terms of academic orientation, and how they can boost their cognitive system in developing a more advanced and lucrative method of thinking and self-belief. They are basically three simple ways to develop growth mindset:-

=> STEP #1: Learn, Learn, and Learn

(*)Fixed Mindset: They always want to look intelligent at all costs. The main thing they want to do in school is to show others how good and brilliant they are.

(*)Growth Mindset: Those with growth mindset believe that it’s better to learn and understand than to get top grades in school. This type of mindset will give way to students getting quality education even in areas that are not a specialty to them, and furthermore become naturally vast in in the real life application of education.


(*)A person with a fixed mindset predicts his/her failure to recover from an initial poor grade. Since their mindset is fixed on never been able to develop or change, they therefore make no effort in studying during the next academic calendar, giving way to a more massive failure than previous times.

(*)A Person with a growth mindset predicts successful recovery from poor grades and performance; he/she puts in more effort during the next academic calendar and gets a more pleasant result than previous time. His/her natural instincts also helps him/her in making business decisions, personal resolutions etc.

"The real fault is to have faults and not amend them"---Confucius

=> STEP #2: Realize hard work is the key

*Fixed Mindset: These people believe that learning should come naturally, that they will do their best and won’t suffer themselves as they’ll call it , some may even call it “stressing” themselves, they say to their selves “When I have to work really hard in a subject, I don’t feel very smart”.

*Growth Mindset: They put a lot of effort into learning and work hard knowing that it is the key, they say to theirs elves “The harder I have to work at something, the more effort I put into something; the better I’ll be at it”. Th at way they always get better and more fulfilled.


=> STEP #3: Face setbacks

*Fixed Mindset: They always hide their mistakes and conceal their deficiencies, retreat, blame others, and even act superior; they say to themselves, “I’d spend less time on this subject from now on”, “I would try not to take this subject ever again”,

“I would try to cheat on the next test”. They remain stuck in the same problem they try to avoid, and even get into more serious trouble than they had anticipated.

*Growth Mindset: They capitalize on their mistakes and confront their deficiencies, they would say to their selves, “I would work harder in class from now on” “and I will spend more time studying for test/examination” and with this self-affirmation and believe they attain great height, achieve their goals and are more fulfilled.

"The first principle is that you must not fool yourself, and you are the easiest person to fool"---Richard P. Feynman

TIPS TO REMEMBER WHEN DEVELOPING A GROWTH MINDSET

Focus on effort, struggle, persistence despite setbacks Choose difficult tasks

Focus on Strategies

Reflect on different strategies that work and don’t work Focus on Learning and improving

Seek challenges

Work hard

INTRODUCTION

Youths are special group of people with strong will and passion for achieving a dream or set of goals. From different generations, youths have shown certain characteristics that distinguishes them. These characteristics are the propelling factors for national development, they are zealousness, curiosity, hard work, radicalism, impatient for change, ambition etc. There is an estimated 1.2 Billion young people between the ages of 15-40 in the world, and the vast majority of them live in developing countries. Nigeria has a youthful population of more than 90 Million which is also about 70% of the overall population. However, more than 45% of youths are unemployed. Although youths are both policy and political priority in this country, they still have the ultimate responsibility for their lives and how they live it. In order to curb out moral decadence, crime, violence and corruption from the minds of our future leaders, this book was born. If the general improvement in the lives of individuals, groups, and environments is a key factor in national development, it is necessary therefore to redirect the mindset of youths.

This book is aimed at re-channeling thoughts and opinions of contemporary youths in the right path, by equipping them with strategies and techniques to assist them achieve landmark developments. It is also a source of motivation and inspiration for success. Researchers have documented the “hundredth monkey syndrome”. They ha ve shown that once a certain number of a species has been taught something new, suddenly all or most of that species can do the same purely by “inspiration” and without being shown. Ho w does this happen? Simple. A few members of a species learn something new until the critical mass point is reached where the sum total of their knowledge is powerful enough for the rest of the species to access the information. As a result they “know” how to do something without being shown. They become a collective mind. If youths are shown how detrimental some mindsets are, and how they can possibly overturn this moral disorder. With youth themselves as models, other youths will eventually access this high state of consciousness and together they will push for national development. The book hopes to revolutionize completely the mindset of all Nigerian youths to understand the truth and apply it in every aspect of personal and national development.

I have to admit that in the cause writing this book, i became aware of my shortcomings and with amount of knowledge i encountered, I’ve started working towards recreating them. I would proudly say that I’m the first beneficiary and living testimony to the power of this great masterpiece. The mindset of youths has to be nurtured and they have to be given the liberty to express themselves. I have taken it as a challenge to arouse the interest of my peers towards thinking for a progressive society. There is a world within us, made up of thoughts, feelings, power, light, life and beauty. This world is invisible but its forces are mighty. Our thoughts have unimaginable powers to turn us from timid fellows into courageous masters. Any youth who is privileged to come across this book, understands and applies every doctrine is automatically a gem whose preciousness has nothing in comparison. The ability of a person can only be determined by that person. This book basically shows you the way to use your ability; however everyone has the final authority to decide which way to take.

Don’t just read a book and understand. Books like this can change your life, when you decide to apply what you read. You may also have good intention but if you don’t know how to apply good reading method, everything you learned will vanish. These are few points i want to suggest when reading. First, make sure you underline key portions of this book, and re-read them over and over again. And secondly, make sure you apply what you learn as soon as possible. So that you may understand and remember. It is said that when you hear something you may forget, when you see something you may remember, but when you do something you will surely understand. The reader’s mind is like a garden. It may not be time to plant the truth in your mind. Perhaps you need some weeding or ground preparation, before the garden of your mind is ready. Perhaps the weather is too stormy to plant the truth. Pray to the Lord of the Harvest. The blessings that flow from planting the information of this book in your mind will require the presence of living waters of love. If you do not have love in your heart, this book is not for you. The information contained in this book is the biggest eye opener of our generation. It will challenge you, shock you, and hopefully motivate you to redouble your efforts to humble yourself and seek strength from God Almighty.

I will be posting excerpts from my book, Mindset And The Modern Youths. I hope you like it. I will be glad to receive constructive criticism. Please i will not tolerate Bigotry and Insults. thanks for your understanding.

ISBN: 9781311299741

Copyright © 2013 by Ahmed .I. Negedu
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the author.

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Email: ahmedin01@gmail.com