There is More to Mindset Than Just the Growth and Fixed Mindset
The growth and fixed mindset almost exclusively dominate all discussions on the topic of mindset. In her preeminent book Mindset: The New Psychology of Success, Carol S. Dweck, Ph.D. focuses exclusively on the growth mindset vs. the fixed mindset.
Dweck’s book is by far the most popular book on the topic of mindset. If you type “mindset book” in Google search, the entire first page of results is nearly 100% about Dweck’s book. This is partly because the book is that good. I reference Dweck’s book all the time, and she deserves all the credit for popularizing the growth and fixed mindset framework. Unfortunately, the result of her success has the majority of people thinking the growth and fixed mindset are the only mindsets that matter.
Intuitively, anyone who enjoys studying how people think knows other mindsets exist. However, there isn’t a huge body of research or a famous book covering these other mindset types. As a result, people either forget or overlook that there are other mindset types they must manage. These other mindsets include:
- process vs. outcome mindset
- shortcut vs. patience mindset
- threat vs. challenge mindset
- short term vs. long term mindset
- why vs. what mindset
- task vs. ego mindset
- cause vs. effect mindset
- more of less vs. less of more mindset
- building strengths vs. fixing weaknesses mindset
- impulsive vs. strategic mindset
Yes, it’s true that the growth and fixed mindsets have the most research and fanfare behind them. But if you want to change your mindset in a way that affects how you lead your life; you would be remiss to forget all these other mindset types that impact your behavior.