The Right Mindset For An Epic Comeback | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Student Life

The Right Mindset For An Epic Comeback

It's all about the power of having a growth mindset.

57
The Right Mindset For An Epic Comeback
https://pixabay.com/photos/mountain-climbing-mountaineer-802099/

In rare instances during school, we can actually learn something that may benefit our young existences outside the classroom. In between parabola's, mitochondria's, and old philosophers preaching about fairly pretentious theorems, there are golden nuggets of information that can apply directly to your life and help you solve a problem with ease. Recently, in a psychology class, I stumbled upon one of these golden nuggets of information when I learned about something called a "growth mindset."

To explain a growth mindset, one may first want to know about the opposite: a fixed mindset. A fixed mindset means that you believe your capabilities and talents are fixed traits. For example, you may believe that if you get good grades, it is simply because you are good at that subject. Likewise, if you fail a test, it is because you are bad at that subject. Thus, you may avoid more difficult tasks or subjects in life to avoid having your "fixed" abilities called into question.

On the contrary, having a growth mindset means that you are capable of attributing failures and successes to effort, rather than ability. It means that you do not believe that you are good or bad at certain tasks, but believe that you may have to put more effort into certain things in order to achieve the results you wish. In addition, you are more likely to seek out challenges and keep trying to achieve this until you see success. A beautiful thing about growth mindset is that you can adopt it whenever you'd like, as long as you consciously put effort into utilizing it.

Immediately prior to learning this, I had really bombed an exam (I'm talking, like, nuclear bombed it). Coming out of this test, I felt entirely demotivated and told myself I was just bad at that subject and didn't belong in that class. However, after learning about growth mindsets, I am now attempting a different angle on this test: it happened, I learned my lesson (for the 5000th time) about watching YouTube while "studying," and it's time to comeback and ace the next exam (okay, realistically speaking, B+ the next exam). After all, as author (and also owner of a popular quote account on VSCO, which may or may not be how I found him) Rodolfo Hernandez said, "Feeling defeated is not the end, but the start of a great comeback."

So whatever it is in life that you feel like you're totally failing at, whether it be a class, a relationship, an internship, or any other task you feel kicking your ass, try using a growth mindset about it. You are not defeated, you just simply have not achieved your goals yet. But if you continue trying your hardest and refuse to accept failure as an option, you sure will. Go pick yourself up off the ground, wipe off the dust and start your epic comeback. The world is waiting.

P.S. If that comeback has to do with a genetics class giving you migraines, illnesses, and an overall (and probably very unhealthy) sense of panic... we're in this together.

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
Gilmore Girls
Hypable

In honor of Mother’s Day, I have been thinking of all the things my mom does for my family and me. Although I couldn’t write nearly all of them, here are a few things that moms do for us.

They find that shirt that’s right in front of you, but just you can’t seem to find.

Keep Reading...Show less
Relationships

10 Reasons To Thank Your Best Friend

Take the time to thank that one friend in your life you will never let go of.

2269
Thank You on wooden blocks

1. Thank you for being the one I can always count on to be honest.

A true friend will tell you if the shirt is ugly, or at least ask to borrow it and "accidentally" burn it.

2. Thank you for accepting me for who I am.

A best friend will love you regardless of the stale french fries you left on the floor of your car, or when you had lice in 8th grade and no one wanted to talk to you.

Keep Reading...Show less
sick student
StableDiffusion

Everybody gets sick once in a while, but getting sick while in college is the absolute worst. You're away from home and your mom who can take care of you and all you really want to do is just be in your own bed. You feel like you will have never-ending classwork to catch up on if you miss class, so you end up going sick and then it just takes longer to get better. Being sick in college is really tough and definitely not a fun experience. Here are the 15 stages that everyone ends up going through when they are sick at college.

Keep Reading...Show less
kid
Janko Ferlic
Do as I say, not as I do.

Your eyes widen in horror as you stare at your phone. Beads of sweat begin to saturate your palm as your fingers tremble in fear. The illuminated screen reads, "Missed Call: Mom."

Growing up with strict parents, you learn that a few things go unsaid. Manners are everything. Never talk back. Do as you're told without question. Most importantly, you develop a system and catch on to these quirks that strict parents have so that you can play their game and do what you want.

Keep Reading...Show less
friends
tv.com

"Friends" maybe didn’t have everything right or realistic all the time, but they did have enough episodes to create countless reaction GIFs and enough awesomeness to create, well, the legacy they did. Something else that is timeless, a little rough, but memorable? Living away from the comforts of home. Whether you have an apartment, a dorm, your first house, or some sort of residence that is not the house you grew up in, I’m sure you can relate to most of these!

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments