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Looking for the best books to read on developing a growth mindset? Today’s review features some of the best growth mindset books, each one containing valuable information on developing and adopting the type of mindset that leads to success in your professional and personal life.
Our awareness of how mindset influences how far we can go in life is made possible through a study done by Stanford professor and psychologist Carol S. Dweck and her team.
Their study revealed that people who believe that the talents they currently have can be improved on (growth mindset) tend to achieve more in life compared to those who believe that what talent they have is fixed and innate (fixed mindset).
This result became the foundation for the growth and fixed mindset framework.
It should be pretty clear which mindset is ideal for improving our lives.
The following are some of the best books for understanding more about the concept of a growth mindset and how to apply it in different aspects of your life for maximum benefit.
1. Mindset by Carol S. Dweck
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Takeaways:
- Mindset explores the concept of fixed versus growth mindsets, highlighting the impact of one's beliefs on achievement, resilience, and personal development.
- Carol S. Dweck's book emphasizes the power of a growth mindset in fostering a love for learning, embracing challenges, and persisting in the face of setbacks.
- The book delves into the implications of mindset on relationships, leadership, and parenting, offering insights on how a growth mindset can lead to greater fulfillment and success in various aspects of life.
- Mindset provides practical strategies for cultivating a growth mindset, offering guidance on how to reframe challenges, learn from criticism, and develop a resilient and adaptive outlook.
- Dweck's work inspires individuals to embrace the potential for growth and change, encouraging them to adopt a mindset of possibility, continuous improvement, and a belief in the power of effort and learning.
If you’re looking for a book that introduces the concept of mindset in relation to success, start with the one that started it all. Mindset: The New Psychology of Success is the embodiment of Carol Dweck and her team’s research.
It details how the way we think about what we can and cannot do influences success in all areas of our lives, such as in:
The book shows us how to harness this mindset to reach our full potential in any field.
In this edition of the book, Dweck adds several new insights about the growth mindset, including a concept she calls “false growth mindset,” in which people claim they have a growth mindset but actually do not understand what it’s all about.
The book is a wonderful guide on how to achieve positive transformation in your life.
2. The Growth Mindset by Joshua Moore and Helen Glasgow
Takeaways:
- The book emphasizes the importance of having a growth mindset, which involves believing in the ability to develop skills and intelligence through dedication and hard work.
- It provides practical strategies for cultivating a growth mindset in both professional and personal aspects of life, encouraging readers to embrace challenges and learn from failures.
- The authors highlight the impact of mindset on achieving success, and how shifting from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset can lead to greater resilience and achievement.
- The book offers insights into how individuals can overcome self-limiting beliefs and develop a more positive and proactive approach to learning and personal development.
- It emphasizes the role of continuous learning, feedback, and perseverance in fostering a growth mindset, ultimately leading to greater fulfillment and success in various areas of life.
For practical and actionable information on how to develop a growth mindset in one's professional and personal life, The Growth Mindset: A Guide to Professional and Personal Growth is a must-read.
Written in an entertaining style, this book encourages readers to commit to their personal development. It offers several action plans for how to develop a growth mindset to reach maximum potential in different areas of your professional and personal life.
Along with several self-evaluation checks, each chapter discusses ideas and explores ways to achieve success in these areas.
Whether it’s dealing with bosses, working on overcoming discontent in an area of your life, or just wanting to be a better version of yourself, this book has the information you need.
3. The Growth Mindset Workbook for Teens by Jessica L. Schleider, Michael C. Mullarkey, and Mallory L. Dobias
Takeaways:
- The book empowers teens to embrace challenges and develop resilience by fostering a growth mindset, encouraging them to view setbacks as opportunities for growth.
- It provides practical exercises and strategies for managing difficult emotions, helping teens navigate the ups and downs of adolescence with a positive and proactive mindset.
- The authors emphasize the importance of self-reflection and self-awareness in cultivating a growth mindset, guiding teens to recognize their strengths and areas for development.
- The book offers tools for setting and achieving meaningful goals, empowering teens to take ownership of their personal growth and reach their full potential.
- It highlights the impact of mindset on academic and personal success, inspiring teens to adopt a growth mindset to overcome obstacles and thrive in various aspects of their lives.
To equip our children with the most important tool for success in all stages of their lives, it is crucial to introduce them to the growth mindset concept. For this purpose, there are children’s books on growth mindset to help younger kids grasp this idea early on.
Teens can benefit more from The Growth Mindset Workbook for Teens: Say Yes to Challenges, Deal with Difficult Emotions, and Reach Your Full Potential, which explores the concept of a growth mindset and provides activities to help teenagers embrace experiences (often difficult ones) that will help them develop their maximum potential.
In addition to serving as a guide for coping and dealing with challenging life experiences, this book is a wonderful resource for teenagers on the topics of self-care and self-love.
4. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey
Takeaways:
- The book emphasizes the importance of proactivity, encouraging readers to take control of their actions and responses to achieve personal and professional effectiveness.
- It introduces the concept of “beginning with the end in mind,” stressing the significance of setting clear goals and envisioning the desired outcomes to guide one's actions and decisions.
- The author advocates for prioritizing important tasks over urgent ones, promoting a focus on long-term, value-driven goals rather than being solely reactive to immediate demands.
- The book underscores the value of empathetic communication and understanding others before seeking to be understood, fostering meaningful and collaborative relationships.
- Covey introduces the idea of continuous self-improvement through “sharpening the saw,” encouraging readers to invest in their physical, mental, and emotional well-being to sustain long-term effectiveness.
This classic, groundbreaking book was written with the intention of helping people achieve a paradigm shift in their views on how to become not only successful, but also effective in their personal and professional lives.
It does so by introducing seven habits that Stephen R. Covey identifies as the keystones for this shift.
In The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Covey emphasizes the importance of life-long learning and encourage readers to proactively work on becoming better versions of themselves. Sounds familiar? These two actions are the hallmarks of a growth mindset.
If you are looking for a guide to improve your leadership skills, gain better self-awareness, build stronger relationships, and live a richer and more meaningful life, this book is the answer.
5. How to Fail by Elizabeth Day
Takeaways:
- The book explores the concept of failure as a valuable learning experience, challenging the societal stigma attached to it and emphasizing the potential for growth and resilience it offers.
- Elizabeth Day shares personal anecdotes and insights, offering a candid and relatable perspective on the universal experience of failure and the lessons that can be derived from it.
- It encourages readers to reframe their relationship with failure, viewing it as a stepping stone to self-discovery, empathy, and personal development rather than a source of shame or inadequacy.
- The author delves into the importance of self-compassion and acceptance, highlighting the role of failure in shaping one's identity and fostering a deeper sense of empathy and understanding.
- The book ultimately advocates for embracing failure as an integral part of the human experience, empowering readers to harness its transformative potential and cultivate a more resilient and compassionate mindset.
One of the identifying characteristics of someone who has a growth mindset is their ability to view failure not as a negative thing, but as an opportunity for improvement.
Elizabeth Day hosts a podcast that was the source of this book’s title. In the How to Fail: Everything I've Learned From Things Going Wrong, Day shares valuable lessons she has learned from things that have gone wrong in her life. This helps readers understand that failure, when welcomed, can make us stronger and braver.
This book will change how you view failure, and perhaps even teach you how to welcome it in your life as a precursor to success.
6. Help Me, I'm Stuck by Vaughn Carter
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Takeaways:
- The book offers practical lessons to help shift mindset from self-sabotage to self-improvement, providing actionable strategies for overcoming mental barriers and achieving personal growth.
- Vaughn Carter emphasizes the importance of self-awareness and introspection, guiding readers to identify and address self-sabotaging behaviors and thought patterns.
- It provides insights into building resilience and developing a positive mindset, empowering readers to navigate challenges and setbacks with a proactive and solution-oriented approach.
- The author highlights the impact of mindset on behavior and outcomes, offering tools to reframe negative self-talk and cultivate a more empowering and constructive inner dialogue.
- The book encourages readers to embrace a growth-oriented mindset, fostering a sense of agency and accountability in pursuing self-improvement and realizing their full potential.
Having a negative personality can be detrimental to your success and overall life satisfaction. Help Me, I'm Stuck: Six Proven Lessons to Shift Your Mindset From Self-Sabotage to Self-Improvement can help transform the tendency to dwell on negativity into the ability to embrace positivity instead.
In this book, Vaugh Carter discusses six methods to help get yourself out of a self-limiting mindset:
When applied in your daily routine, these actions keep you moving forward, promote more positivity, and enrich your life.
7. The Art of Possibility by Rosamund Stone Zander and Benjamin Zander
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Takeaways:
- The book presents a transformative approach to professional and personal life, offering a framework for embracing a mindset of possibility and abundance.
- It emphasizes the power of reframing perspectives and assumptions, encouraging readers to shift from a mindset of limitation to one that sees opportunities and potential in every situation.
- The authors advocate for fostering a sense of interconnectedness and collaboration, promoting a mindset that transcends individual achievement and embraces collective growth and creativity.
- The book introduces the concept of “giving an A” as a practice of granting others and oneself the highest possible expectation, fostering an environment of trust, support, and excellence.
- It offers practical tools and practices for cultivating creativity, resilience, and innovation, empowering readers to approach challenges with a sense of openness and possibility.
If you’re looking for a guide that weaves creativity into your experience of developing a growth mindset, The Art of Possibility: Transforming Professional and Personal Life is worth your attention.
This book tells us that the way we look at things shapes the kind of life we have. With a little creativity, we can transform the way we look at obstacles by turning them into inspiring possibilities.
Authors Rosamund and Benjamin Zander share their perspectives and creative “tools” that lead to possibilities in every moment of life. In their book, they state that everything in life is invented. Thus, you might as well invent a viewpoint that’s beneficial to you.
8. Limitless by Jim Kwik
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Takeaways:
- The book offers strategies to optimize brain function and enhance learning capabilities, empowering readers to unlock their full potential and achieve greater success.
- Jim Kwik provides practical techniques for improving memory, focus, and cognitive performance, enabling readers to learn new skills and information more effectively.
- It emphasizes the importance of mindset and belief in one's ability to learn, encouraging readers to adopt a growth-oriented approach to personal development and skill acquisition.
- The author delves into the impact of lifestyle factors such as nutrition, exercise, and stress management on cognitive function, offering holistic insights for maximizing brain health and performance.
- The book provides actionable steps for overcoming mental barriers and self-limiting beliefs, guiding readers to cultivate a mindset of limitless potential and continuous growth.
If you’re looking for practical, science-based steps for positive self-transformation, Jim Kwik delivers through his book Limitless: Upgrade Your Brain, Learn Anything Faster, and Unlock Your Exceptional Life.
Kwik shares techniques for unlocking your own “superpowers” to improve your life. He has a three-step approach:
This book empowers readers to discover their abilities and create positive change in their lives.
9. The Art of Learning by Josh Waitzkin
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Takeaways:
- The book chronicles Josh Waitzkin's journey to optimal performance, offering insights into the mindset and strategies that have led to his success in chess and martial arts.
- Waitzkin emphasizes the importance of resilience and adaptability, sharing lessons on how to navigate setbacks and challenges to achieve mastery in various disciplines.
- It delves into the concept of “beginner's mind,” encouraging readers to approach learning with curiosity, open-mindedness, and a willingness to continuously evolve and improve.
- The author explores the intersection of mental and physical performance, providing a holistic perspective on achieving excellence through a balance of mental clarity, emotional intelligence, and physical well-being.
- The book offers practical techniques for cultivating focus, creativity, and a deep sense of presence, empowering readers to harness the power of mindfulness and deliberate practice in their pursuit of mastery.
The willingness to learn something new is one of the hallmarks of having a growth mindset. If you are looking for a principled approach to learning, The Art of Learning: An Inner Journey to Optimal Performance is for you.
Josh Waitzkin was nine years old when he won the National Chess Championship. He then went on to dominate for a decade. He then trained in the martial art Tai Chi Chuan, where he earned the distinction of being world champion. His book is your guide to maximize learning to achieve success and excellence.
The narrative style of the book gives you the feeling that you’re reading an action-packed thriller. Nevertheless, the well-written lessons about optimal performance are clearly emphasized in every section.
In addition to appreciating the perks of victory, readers learn the importance of embracing defeat and using it to propel you forward to victory in the next round.
10. You Are a Badass by Jen Sincero
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Takeaways:
- The book encourages readers to embrace their potential for greatness, offering practical advice and exercises to overcome self-doubt and live a fulfilling life.
- Jen Sincero emphasizes the importance of cultivating self-love and confidence, guiding readers to recognize and harness their innate strengths and abilities.
- It delves into the impact of mindset on personal growth and success, providing strategies to shift from limiting beliefs to a mindset of abundance and empowerment.
- The author advocates for taking bold action and embracing risk, empowering readers to step out of their comfort zones and pursue their goals with courage and determination.
- The book combines humor and relatable anecdotes with motivational insights, creating a compelling and engaging narrative that inspires readers to tap into their inner badassery and create an extraordinary life.
There are a handful of books written about the growth mindset that can also be described as “entertaining.” You Are a Badass: How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living an Awesome Life is one of the best among them.
This irreverent, humorous, life-changing book is your guide to flipping your mindset, creating the life you’ve always wanted, and achieving personal greatness while you’re at it.
Within the pages of the book by Jen Sincero are funny stories that inspire you to pursue your own greatness. She generously sprinkles wise counsel into every chapter, encouraging you to develop self-awareness, which will be your greatest tool for:
11. Grit by Angela Duckworth
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Takeaways:
- The book explores the significance of grit, defined as a combination of passion and perseverance, in achieving long-term success and fulfillment in various pursuits.
- Angela Duckworth emphasizes the role of effort and resilience in surpassing talent, highlighting the impact of sustained commitment and determination in reaching one's goals.
- It delves into the concept of deliberate practice and the importance of maintaining focus and consistency in the pursuit of mastery, offering insights into the development of grit through dedicated, purposeful effort.
- The author provides practical strategies for cultivating grit in individuals, guiding readers to harness their passions and sustain motivation in the face of challenges and setbacks.
- The book draws on research and real-life examples to underscore the transformative power of grit, inspiring readers to adopt a mindset of perseverance and dedication in their personal and professional endeavors.
Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance is the growth mindset in action. It is having the tenacity and persistence to go after something you are passionate about. In this book, Angela Duckworth shows that grit, rather than talent or genius, drives success.
This is an eye-opening book, and an empowering one, as well, because it affirms those people who show up. These are the people who are willing to work hard to achieve what they want, even when they’ve met obstacles along the way or been told no by a doubter.
12. Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman
Takeaways:
- Thinking, Fast and Slow explores the dual systems of thinking, distinguishing between the intuitive, fast-thinking System 1 and the deliberate, slow-thinking System 2, shedding light on their respective influences on decision-making.
- Daniel Kahneman delves into cognitive biases and heuristics that affect human judgment, offering insights into the systematic errors and shortcuts that can lead to flawed decision-making.
- It emphasizes the role of intuition and reasoning in shaping our perceptions and choices, providing a comprehensive understanding of the cognitive processes that underlie human behavior.
- The author introduces the concept of prospect theory, which examines how individuals evaluate potential gains and losses, offering a framework for understanding decision-making under risk and uncertainty.
- The book draws on extensive research in psychology and behavioral economics to illuminate the complexities of human cognition, providing valuable perspectives on the factors that influence our thought processes and behaviors.
13. Drive by Daniel H. Pink
Takeaways:
- Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us challenges traditional notions of motivation, highlighting the significance of intrinsic factors such as autonomy, mastery, and purpose in driving human behavior and performance.
- Daniel H. Pink emphasizes the role of autonomy in fostering motivation, advocating for a sense of self-direction and empowerment in achieving personal and professional goals.
- It delves into the concept of mastery as a source of motivation, underscoring the importance of continuous learning and growth in cultivating a sense of purpose and fulfillment.
- The author explores the impact of purpose-driven work on motivation, highlighting the value of aligning personal and organizational goals with a deeper sense of meaning and contribution.
- The book draws on research in psychology and behavioral science to provide a compelling framework for understanding and harnessing intrinsic motivation, offering practical insights for individuals and leaders seeking to cultivate a more engaging and fulfilling work environment.
14. Novice to Expert by S.J. Scott
Takeaways:
- Novice to Expert: 6 Steps to Learn Anything, Increase Your Knowledge, and Master New Skills outlines a six-step process for learning and mastering new skills, providing a structured approach to knowledge acquisition and skill development.
- S.J. Scott emphasizes the importance of deliberate practice and focused learning, guiding readers to break down complex skills into manageable components for systematic improvement.
- It offers strategies for building a foundation of knowledge and proficiency, empowering readers to progress from novice to expert through consistent effort and dedication.
- The author provides insights into the role of mindset and perseverance in the learning process, highlighting the transformative power of sustained commitment and resilience.
- The book draws on principles of cognitive psychology and skill acquisition to offer actionable techniques for accelerating the learning curve and achieving mastery in various domains.
15. Winning the War in Your Mind by Craig Groeschel
Takeaways:
- Winning the War in Your Mind: Change Your Thinking, Change Your Life emphasizes the power of thought and mindset in shaping one's life, offering practical guidance for transforming negative thinking patterns and cultivating a positive mental outlook.
- Craig Groeschel delves into the impact of self-talk and belief systems on behavior and emotions, providing strategies for overcoming destructive thought patterns and embracing a mindset of resilience and hope.
- It offers insights into the connection between thoughts and actions, empowering readers to take control of their mental landscape and make intentional choices that lead to personal growth and fulfillment.
- The author provides practical tools for combating fear, anxiety, and self-doubt, guiding readers to reframe their thinking and develop a more empowering and optimistic perspective.
- The book draws on principles of cognitive behavioral therapy and positive psychology to offer a holistic approach to mental transformation, inspiring readers to harness the power of their thoughts to create a more purposeful and fulfilling life.
Final Thoughts on Growth Mindset Books
The books featured today will help you lay the foundation for long-lasting success. However, it is important to note that they do not offer quick fixes or “magic” solutions.
Instead, they encourage you to commit to your own success. Hard work is necessary, but in the process, you’ll develop a growth mindset and get to fully enjoy the benefits of success.
If you are looking for more resources on the growth mindset, the following posts are worth checking out:
- 11 Benefits of Developing a Growth Mindset in Life
- Fixed Mindset vs Growth Mindset: 9 Differences with Examples
- 10 Growth Mindset Goals Examples to Change Your Thinking
- 9 Growth Mindset Worksheets and Templates for 2023
- 21 Children’s Books to Teach the Growth Mindset
- 13 Growth Mindset Videos for Kids to Watch on YouTube
