Life is the most precious gift by the Almighty. Therefore it is important to navigate life with a ‘growth mindset’ because that is not only critical but a core skill to have if we want to seek a bright future.
The road map and strategic aim that the UAE has mapped out for the next 50 years is quite simply outstanding. The UAE leaders have planned this vision by considering futuristic trends and how they are likely to evolve over time.
The main question here is how we can get our society ready to embrace the growth and development in various areas such as education, health, infrastructure, tourism, science, environment, and the like.
A shift in mindset
The answer is simple: we need to shift mindsets by aiming at developing a growth model throughout the society. The noted American psychologist Carl Dweck has worked on human motivation and conducted studies to find out the reasons why people succeed and what they can do to nurture success.
She found out that the main difference between people -- in terms of achievement and potentials -- is their mindsets. People with a fixed mindset are often stuck in one corner and afraid to expose their limits and barely attempt anything they could fail at. So they prefer to be in the comfort zone and avoid any challenge. They simply believe that their basic qualities are fixed traits.
On the other hand, people with a growth mindset are not fearful of trying and pushing themselves out of their comfort zone because they know deep inside that they will learn, grow and develop themselves. In addition, they thrive on challenge and view failure as a stepping stone for growth and maximising their existing abilities. They believe that their basic qualities can be developed through commitment and hard work.
Out of these two mindsets, which one presents you and where you see yourself in the near future? That is a key question — one that will play a role in your behaviour, relationship with success and failure in both personal and professional situations.
We are all born with a specific gene, but through this scientific study we know now that we are creatures who can grow and mould our neural networks far more than what we were born with. The interesting bit is that people with a fixed mindset would rather blame their genes for being who they are.
A rapidly growing country
Having a growth mindset is central to our present and future life as UAE is developing at an incredibly fast pace. Our way of life is changing, and we should keep up and adjust to all of this development. If we seek to future-proof ourselves, it is important adapt to this change.
To create a promising future for ourselves and the nation we can adopt a few simple steps.
First, get to know the voice in your mind, which keeps talking to you every time you are about to do something important. Acknowledging this voice is the first step to achieve a growth mindset. For example, when you are about to approach a challenge, that voice may start saying, ‘Are you sure you can do it? Maybe you do not have skills and talents and what if you failed?’ Therefore it is essential to pay attention to this voice in our mind.
Second, react to the fixed mindset voice, which in some ways impacts your behaviour, by talking back to it using positive reinforcements. For instance: when your mind says that you cannot do it, your growth mindset should respond back positively for example, ‘with time and effort, I can learn and achieve it’.
Third, realise that you have a choice and you can view challenges as obstacles or you can look at challenges as opportunities by maximising your efforts. The choice is in our hands. So all we have to do is to make a choice between settling for ordinariness and going for greatness.
Fourth, act on the growth mindset voice. Hearing the voice without taking any sort of action will not get you anywhere, so it is essential to realise this voice and take action to get meaningful things out of this strategy. Positive behaviour can encourage you to be persistent and resilient.
The road map of any nation is shaped by the vision of its leadership and people’s collective effort and positive state of mind. Let us pledge to take the UAE into future by embracing an open and growth mindset.
Asma Ibrahim Al Blooshi is an expert in educational teaching and technology
