Ready, Set, Grow

A growth mindset encourages resilience, happiness and success

- Malia Jacobson

Let’s face it: Raising kids is hard work. What if there was a simple way to make parenting easier, your kids happier and your household more harmonious? Turns out, there is. When children develop traits like resilience and adaptability, they’re more peaceful, more open to new ideas and less likely to meltdown when they don’t get their way, says doctors Daniel J. Siegel and Tina Payne Bryson, authors of the New York Times best-seller “The Yes Brain: How to Cultivate Courage, Curiosity, and Resilience in Your Child.” Here’s how to make it happen, age-by-age.

EARLY YEARS

Shift the Focus

The term growth mindset was coined by Stanford University psychologist Carol Dweck and refers to the understanding that abilities and intelligence can be developed through effort. Building a growth mindset — as opposed to a fixed mindset, or the belief that ability is predetermined and can’t be changed through hard work — is linked to better grades, more resilience and higher levels of achievement.