Hank [BS/MSEE,
MSM $$$, Ph.D. Mgmt] teaches 
Guy K’s blog has an interesting entry about Stanford psychology professor Carol Dweck. It examines her thirty-year study of why some some people excel and others don’t. (Hint: the answer is not “God-given talent.”)
The article postulates that people have two kinds of mindsets: growth or fixed. People with the growth mindset view life as a series of challenges and opportunities for improving. People with a fixed mindset believe that they are “set” as either good or bad. The issue is that the good ones believe they don’t have to work hard, and the bad ones believe that working hard won’t change anything. 
Students for whom performance is paramount want to look smart even if it means not learning a thing in the process. For them, each task is a challenge to their self-image, and each setback becomes a personal threat. So they pursue only activities at which they’re sure to shine—and avoid the sorts of experiences necessary to grow and flourish in any endeavor. Students with learning goals, on the other hand, take necessary risks and don’t worry about failure because each mistake becomes a chance to learn. Dweck’s insight launched a new field of educational psychology—achievement goal theory. From here:
The bottom line? Very few readers of this blog will indeed “scare themselves” everyday. And even less will “step up.” Where do you fall? It’s “lint in the navel time,” boys and girls. Hank
I totally agree with this blog, some people just become content with what they have. While others want to strive for more.
I agree with Gavin, there are people who are content with a 9-5 job, and there are others who strive to be more.
I have to agree with the two posts, some people are just more motivated to do better
The lint in the belly button is excessive. I think nothing is set in stone, everyone has a chance to succeed, but taking the risk is another story. ~John Fodor
For me, I’ve realized that the greatest growth both personally and otherwise stems from strife. Without it you can easily become set in your ways and satisfied. Being satisfied is a surefire way to become stuck. And Hank, WHY would you put that picture there, I was eating breakfast dammit!
I totally agree, sometimes it makes me frustrated when people do not try to do their best or strive for more. People just have different mind sets and want different things out of life. I mean what says that you are sucessful? Everyone should just do what makes them happy!!
I do believe that there are two different kinds of people. Either your a person who is willing to learn and try new things therefore you grow. You might not always succeed but you grow. People in general learn from failure more then success when you fail you don’t want to ever make that mistake again. Therefore you grow more when you take risk. There is no such thing as good risk or bad risk but in the end no matter what it works out to your advantage being that you learn and that is all that really matters.
This blog entry makes sense. There are always going to be people who are more ambitious and take more risk than others. After taking this class, I am more confident in taking risks and scaring myself. Hopefully I can carry with me the ability to learn and step up to each and every obstacle I face.
Thanks for a great class and this experience Hank!
This is a perfectly reasonable analysis of the mindsets of different people when it comes to learning and growing. I have found this to be very true, working with various groups of my peers in different classes I have taken over the years. I find it extremely crucial to remember that failure is a part of life - there is no one in this world that has not failed at something in their lives. One of my favorite sayings to live by is “Without hardship there can be no growth.” These words can be applied to all aspects of life, not just school. I always strive to step up, as you are talking about, Hank, and go the extra mile in all my endeavors. I am absolutely opposed to taking the easy way out, even if the opportunity presents itself. This can be scary in itself, as it sometimes requires stepping outside your own comfort zone that you’ve built up over your lifetime. Taking ENTR200, without doubt, helped me to build up these ideas - and I have you to thank for that, Hank! Thank you for an outstanding semester!
I have worked in many different jobs in my short career from an intern at an architectural firm, to a life guard at a water park, to a psychiatric technician at a mental health facility. At every job I’ve worked at the same thing always happens to me: I find myself doing the same thing every day, this routine of tasks built for someone else, and I end up asking myself, “what are you doing?” For me I always end up with this conflict of “what am I accomplishing in this job?” And I always see myself as just a pawn for someone else’s endeavors. I was at my current job the other day and a nurse was talking about how it was her 20th year anniversary working at the hospital and that really struck me hard. She gets a pin to put on her name tag after 20 years and she had been truly looking forward to receiving that pin. That’s when I realized that some people are content with just doing their job; just working a job to provide for a family; just being a pawn. She had been doing the same thing every day for 20 years and is excited to receive a pin for it, but really what have you done in those 20 years? I realized that the reason I never work at any job for more than a year is because I could never just be a pawn working 9-5 taking baby steps in life when I could be causing a checkmate. And every time I make this observation I feel bad to an extent for “bashing” their profession or basically saying that their job doesn’t matter or isn’t accomplishing anything, but the fact is that we are just different kinds of people. Although I am the way I am, I need pawns in order to carry out my endeavors. The worst part about feeling this way or having these thoughts is trying to share them with others. I come home from this observation and try to explain it to my friends, or my family, and they give me blank stares or just don’t understand what I am saying. I have ONE friend with the same desires that I can go to and tell him these things. There are not many people who think in the way that we do, but at least I know we are out there.
Navel lint…really Hank? The things you can wikipedia.
Many people who run into hardships will turn back and take the easy way out. Those others that fight through it, they learn and make a better experience out of it, and most of the time become the more successful person.
This Blog is so true… There are people out there who is always giving 100% and wants to be better than others. In my opinion you do not have to succeed to grow as a person. I think everyone experienced at least one failure in their lives and theres nothing wrong with that. As long as you learn from your mistake and realize what you are doing is wrong and try to change that, I think is part of growth. However I think that you have to have the desire and willingness to be successful in this world. Hank thank you very much for a great semester. I learned so much in ENTR not just about being an entreprenuer but every different aspect of life.!! Have a great summer!
I like this blog entry a lot…maybe cuz I can see it as applicable to me. I don’t tend to get the best grades…I’m not someone who will freak out about getting anything besides an A or B in a class, but I feel like I really actually learn the material and can apply it to real life situations WAY better than many of the 4.0 students. To me this is much more beneficial than just some letter on a transcipt…now if I can only convince some more employers of this I’ll really be on my way…ahaha.
For those interested, here’s a very relevant read: http://headrush.typepad.com/creating_passionate_users/2006/03/how_to_be_an_ex.html
I do agree with this. anyone would want to do better with themselves but some people just like the life they live.
I agree with what the blogs says! Some people have that mindset that they are what they are and therefore either try or don’t try.
I totally agree with this… so many people are content with the way their life is now and soo many others work hard to grow and become more
well rounded individuals… this class has definately promoted change and growth.. each mistake is indeed a cahnce to learn…
I like the link Nwokedi. Personally, i see people like that graph describes every day.
I think that it is difficult to analyze yourself to fit into these categories. I can come up with ways to fit myself in both categories. I like to do activities that I’m good at because I know that the if I try my hardest then I will do well. I get easily frustrated when I try my hardest and don’t do well. However, I do think it is easier to fit other people into these categories. The type of people that frustrate me most are the ones that don’t try because they think they won’t do well. How do you know if you don’t try?
Amanda makes valid points but the one thing I dissagree with is being “absolutely opposed to taking the easy way out, even if the opportunity presents itself.” The point is not to try and make life as hard for yourself as possible but to do everything as best as you can. If you are given a great opportunity then take it (so long as it is ethically in line with your morals). Just because it seems easier doesnt mean slack off..but rather to do it that much better.
JT, im sorry but thats a pretty extreme view of things. Kind of a closed minded view i would say. Did it ever occur to you that maybe the ladie who was “content” with her job was as such because she feels like she is making a difference in the world be what she does? My mom is a nurse and she works her ass off but i know that she goes into work everyday because she feels like she is making peoples lives better. Since she just graduated and got her RN licence she will most likely be doing the same thing till she retires (granted she works 3p-3a), but she is content with helping people. Maybe the nurse was content and did everything she could to excel because she liked what she did. Just because someone likes what they do, and is comfortable with what they do, does not make them a pawn. Also you have to consider the types of people that dont like what they are forced to do but have no way out.
All that to say, if you view all people as underneath you then you are going to get knocked off your pedestal and it is going to suck.
I agree with professor Dweck’s findings. There are many people I know that do not try in school or at work becasue they feel like they do not have to worry about things at all. They seem like they have no drive to succeed or do something special. I agree with kristeen because I find it hard to analyze where you fit into this. I like to think that I have a growth mindset and I want to constantly do new and innovative things.
While I do agree with what the blog says, I find it hard to believe that you have to stay this way all of your life. I wouldn’t say that life necessarily cycles through, but people who go through the same routine all of their lives change and do the unexpected. I’ve seen it happen. I don’t know if he just realized that he had a growth mindset one day, but I think anyone can change.
That was very interesting. It makes me wonder which of the two I am. A teacher at my high school always told us to stop worrying about grades and to actually learn something. Much harder done than said. P.S. bellybutton picture is repulsive
I think people learn best in a situation where they make mistakes all the time. I know that I remember things the questions I missed in a test the most, not the questions that I got right. And when the final comes, I get the question that I got wrong before Right most of the time.
I really enjoyed the class and also the blogs. There are many interesting stories that I would have never found out if it weren’t for the class and the blog.
Thank you for the materials that you provided me and Have a nice break.
I agree with the posts above. Some people just strive for more than others.