Mindset Works’ Blog

We are so pleased to announce that the Mindset Works^Ⓡ LeaderKit™ is now available for purchase!

Emerging growth mindset research is generating new insights about human relationships.   To what extent do we believe that human characteristics, other than abilities –such as being kind, joyful, smart, courageous or cooperative– are fixed versus changeable? Can each of those qualities be developed, or are they innate? Our answers deeply affect our perceptions and behaviors, which in turn affect the quality of our relationships and our collaboration with others.

A Principal Learns With Staff and Brings Growth Mindset Practices to Students

One of the greatest challenges any educational leader can model for her staff is her own vulnerabilities – that is publicly sharing what one doesn't know. This willingness to not only share in the struggle and confusion that comes with learning, but to actually foist it into the spotlight at a staff meeting takes a great deal of courage.

Karen Barker took such a tenuous leadership proposition and turned it into an opportunity to lead - in her first year as principal no less.

Barker is the leader of three schools within the Dickinson Elementary School building in Lake Washington School District just north of Seattle, Washington. In addition to the elementary school there is a pre-school and a community school. At the time of her appointment four years ago, Barker was the fourth leader in three years when she moved from the teaching ranks into the principal's office. She found a fractured school culture.

"I was eager to build a really healthy school," she said. "And success is rooted in the teachers. They're the ones who are behind initiatives and who run with them. Change cannot be driven by the principal only."

We lead because we have a passion for our work. But leading in a complex system can get confusing, overwhelming, and discouraging sometimes. Rather than resort to seductively easy ways to manage there are times we can choose to truly lead, capture people's hearts, and reignite passion!

An interview with Carol Dweck Ph.D., professor at Stanford University and author of Mindset: The New Psychology of Success

In this piece, excerpted from the Harvard Business Review (HBR) podcast, The Right Mindset for Success, Sarah Green interviews Carol Dweck about the leadership qualities that lead to successful efforts.

Listen to this podcast.