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This week, for the very first time in the three years I’ve been writing this blog, I am devoting the entire space to reprinting an article written by someone else. I think Anne Lieberman, who is a Certified Lefkoe Method Facilitator, has written a brilliant piece on how beliefs can literally make us less intelligent. I think you will find her article fascinating and useful.
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As a Lefkoe Method practitioner, I spend my days working with clients to eliminate beliefs that are adversely affecting them. The central tenet of TLM is that our beliefs drive our behavior. I find it exciting to read research by others that confirms and extends this basic idea. The work of Stanford Professor, Carol Dweck, illustrates the connection between beliefs and the kind of behavior that primes us for success or failure.
Investigating Failure
As a young researcher, Dweck was obsessed with how people cope with failure. She decided to investigate failure by inviting children into her lab to solve puzzles. After a few easy-to-solve examples, she gave her unsuspecting subjects some doozies and investigated their strategies as they grunted, sweated and chewed their pencils. Probing their thinking and feeling, she expected to see differences in how kids cope with failure. What she saw astonished her. One ten-year old, confronted with the hard puzzles, pulled up his chair, rubbed his hands together, smacked his lips and said, “I love a challenge.” Another attacked the task with equal relish and said, “You know, I was hoping this would be informative!”
Dweck was flummoxed. She thought you either coped with failure or didn’t. It never occurred to her that people could love failure. Her first instinct, “What’s wrong with them,” was quickly followed by “or are they on to something?”
What Dweck has learned through decades of research is that our beliefs about our brains can set us on the path to success … or not.
In our lifetimes, intelligence has been thought of as a fixed phenomenon. We know now that it is not. People begin with their unique genetic endowments, but it is clear that experience, training and personal effort take us the rest of the way. Scientists have shown that we have a great capacity for lifelong learning and brain development. Intelligence is not fixed, but evolves via a constant give and take between genetics and the environment.
What Does All This Have to do with Beliefs?
Dweck says that one simple belief has the power to determine what you accomplish in life. She talks about this in terms of a Fixed Mindset and a Growth Mindset. Dweck says, “Mindsets are beliefs individuals hold about their most basic qualities and abilities.” In a Growth Mindset, people believe they can develop their brain, abilities and talent. This view creates a love for learning, a drive for growth and a resilience that is essential for great accomplishments. On the contrary, people with a Fixed Mindset believe their basic qualities, such as intelligence and abilities, are fixed and can’t be expanded. They also believe that talent alone creates success, and see effort as a sign of weakness rather than as a positive element of life needed to reach one’s full potential.” (I have worked with clients who believe that if something is hard, it means it’s beyond them.)
The misconception that IQ is fixed has been largely discredited by neuroscience. And the pervasive assumption that hugely successful people are “naturals”–that Michael Jordan was born to be a star, that top entrepreneurs and CEOs are rare geniuses and natural leaders–has not been borne out in research. Studies of extremely successful people show that hard work is the key to success. And if you don’t believe you can accomplish something, are you likely to work hard at it?
What does it take to create that kind of fire-in-the-belly attitude? It turns out that the way people view the learning process itself and what they believe about their brains are hugely important in determining their willingness to put forth effort to achieve mastery. Dweck discovered that she could actually change kids’ mindsets. Further, children who adopted a Growth Mindset and came to believe that their brain is like a muscle that gets stronger as they use it were more likely to excel in school. They approached new challenges with enthusiasm, while other students shirked pursuits outside their comfort zones.
Do you have a Fixed or Growth Mindset?
Would it surprise you to know that you can think you are very intelligent and still have that debilitating Fixed Mindset? How do you know you have it? People with the fixed mindset operate in some or all of these ways:
When you fail at something, you feel unworthy in some way and pessimistic about yourself.
You’re more focused on being seen as smart than on learning.
You feel like you have to prove yourself over and over. (If our intelligence is fixed, you want to make sure people know you have a lot of it, right?)
You shy away from people and experiences that challenge you.
In brief, in the face of failure, those with Fixed Mindsets become self-critical and throw up their hands. People with a Growth Mindset look at how they might have approached things differently and they redouble their efforts.
If your Fixed Mindset is limiting you, a few Lefkoe Method sessions can eliminate those long-held, limiting beliefs about your intelligence and abilities.
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If you haven’t yet eliminated at least one of your limiting self-esteem beliefs using the Lefkoe Belief Process, go to htp://www.recreateyourlife.com/free where you can eliminate one negative belief free.
For information about eliminating 23 of the most common limiting beliefs and conditionings—which cause eight of the most common problems in our lives including a lack of confidence—and get a separate video of the WAIR? Process, please check out: http://recreateyourlife.com/naturalconfidence.
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copyright ©2011 Morty Lefkoe
Sorry to talk off the subject but there doesn’t seem to be any way of contacting you to ask the question I have: I do I find a blog you wrote on Oct 5, 2011? It was on our calling politicians, government stupid, crazy, etc. I have the email with the link in it but it doesn’t work anymore.
Thanks, Elly
This article was an excellent article of the growth mindset that I have had for years. Since I have a condition called Highly Superior Autobiographical Memory I always believed that I would be studied at a university and write a book about it , “Living WIth A Phenomenal Memory” It was exciting to be studied at the University of California earlier this year and be on NBC News on October 4, and the Australian talk show Sunrise on November 4. Another way I used a growth mindset was to be a counselor for a profession. I was a quiet kid and not very sociable, but I decided to grow and develop people skills even with naysayers telling me I should not do anything with people. This article drives home the point that what we think is what matters, not what others think.
Hi Frank,
Thanks for taking the time to post. Glad you were able to do what you wanted without concern for the naysayers.
Love,Morty
Morty,
Growth, definitely, though it was slow going when I first realized that I was “stuck”. To face my fears and beliefs, realizing that so much of what I learned growing up was irrelevant to the person I wanted to be, felt like a huge burden. Still, inside of my heart and soul, was a spark. I wanted to move forward, I wanted to feel happy and powerful and self-fulfilled. At 54, I am the happiest I’ve been in my life(except for getting married and having my children) and I continue to grow. Learning to trust myself is the biggest lesson I’ve learned. Everyone is made to live a life of fulfillment and it starts when one realizes that everything one needs is inside. Your mind, when cleared, is your most powerful friend.
Love and Light to all on the Journey,
Lauren
I was of the opinion that the first five or six years of our life is where we learn our mindset and from then on we are stuck with it. I now know that we are never stuck with our beliefs. We can change them at any time in our life, even to old age. We must first be aware enough to realize that our beliefs are sabotaging us. For that to happen, we usually have to be in pain. We first need the pain to wake us up. So for all of you who are feeling really bad, this is supposed to be. Now it’s time for Morty to help you recreate your life. Feel the fear and move forward. It is the best thing you can do for yourself.
Thank you Rachel. I will go for it. I AM.
eyeopener: the idea that you can have an open and fixed mindset at the same time, or in different areas. I’ve always considered myself an extremely open person. I’ll try anything. I have challenged myself with extreme sports (and I’m not sporty), new jobs and new countries to live in many times and made a success of all those things even through temporary setbacks. I am now working as a lawyer in a different country/culture than the one I studied in and after a gap of more than ten years. So how come I shy away from the one thing I have always wanted to do, which is advising/coaching people in conflict situations, writing about that and giving workshops? I am a certified mediator and besides, I know I’m good at it, it’s in my blood. But I’ve never seriously tried making it my work and now I realise why. I have the limiting belief that I am only good at a “profession”, I am not an entrepreneur, I am too “ordinary”, I miss that certain something (????), people will never pay money for me doing something like that. This is so dear to me, that I do not even try it for fear of failing. My book has been 3/4 ready for a decade or so! This sucks.
Morty, thnx for all ur insights since Ive started reading ur blog. I’ll get back to you when (not if) ur method has made me bust this belief! Cu.
Hi Bianca,
If you need help getting rid of the belief you either can call us for a phone session ((415) 506-4472) (we have a 25% off Xmas sale for this week only), or you can take our course to learn how to eliminate beleifs yourself.
Let me know if I can help.
Love, Morty
Hey Morty,
Awesome discussion! I want to throw in my two cents worth. My experience so far has been that I have had the “fire in the belly” for as long as I can remember, which would be the desire to master my art, playing guitar. Along with that, I have also had the limiting belief that there was something missing in me, like genius or ability like a prodigy would have, that would keep me from ever mastering my instrument. Also, I had the belief that what made me good and acceptable is that I never give up. So the result would be frustration; always wanting to improve but not having the belief that would allow me to put in the time necessary to get better. You can see how these two limiting beliefs actually worked against each other to keep me where I was, and not growing like I could.
Where I am now is using my “fire in the belly” or passion for my craft coupled with the belief that anything is possible, along with the knowledge that I can actually change my brain in a positive way to make great strides in honing my ability to play the guitar. And guess what, I am having a blast and learning to play things that I had previously thought were beyond me! This is good stuff!! Keep spreading the word!
Hi Dyarl
I would like to say to you that 10 years before I became a world champion dancer (and British Champion for 3 years running) I would have been laughed off the stage. There was no way I was good enough to compete, I had given up dancing as a teenager and had fallen way behind by about 5 years.
When I went back I had to battle against the feeling that I would never be good enough and against many of my peers and their families who patronised me and humoured me when I tried so hard in class. But the passion I had for dancing was so strong it overrode everything.
I spent thousands of hours practising, constantly over and over. I went to competitions and fell, came last, cried , was frustrated, but with the help of an amazing teacher and my own tenacity after 10 years I won. That’s not to say I never felt crushing disappointment, anger, frustration, feeling not good enough etc
But I now realise that this is the path to success, it is not an easy ride, but when you absolutely are in love with what you are doing, it is as necessary to take these steps as it is to breathe.
Well that was my experience anyway and now it is teaching me something about other areas of my life.
I wish you all the success in the world with your guitar.
GO FOR IT!
:-)
Hi Morty,
Most people don’t realize that their life is a direct reflection of their beliefs. We are programmed to honor our beliefs what ever they may be. So my suggestion is to have beliefs that serve us and cause us to grow.
Justin,
This is sooooo true! I was made aware of this while working for a city job in NY and the civil servants were in the same exact job for 40 years, and never changed (not even hairstyles!) and were miserable all their lives. That comfort zone made them sink and rot there, so to speak. The problem with this is, they make the rest of us miserable. Or is it that we let them?
Growth is the key to success, as Steve Jobs reminded us, no matter how many obstacles come our way. It is not like successful people do not have obstacles, they most certainly do, but they never keep their eye off the goal , keep going, turn a different direction, and consider what we call “obstacles” mere nuisances.
Hi Morty,
I found this all very interesting. I “failed” at a business about 12 years ago. I thought it was the business itself, the product, the economic times etc etc, I never believed it was lack of effort or tenacity on my behalf. I really did everything as best as it could be. Ever since though I fell sick to mental illness and extreme tiredness and never have been able to work again. Do you think perhaps I did take it as a personal failure afterall? Just wondering……..
My turn to make a cuppa and this this over, Kaaren. xxx
Dear Kaaren-I too was part of a “failed” business. It was a business that i loved deeply and the “failure” to keep it going the same as in the good old days was very painful. It was the death of a dream and though i acknowlege my role in the event , I don’t really feel so bad about myself for what happened. Times changed and i was unable to change all the factors around me to make it all work. Even so, the loss of that dream was literally gut wenching and made me ill as well. 15 years on, i still drift because i had no plan for “what to do next”. Perhaps i believed that i was only fit for that one dream. That is changing. Morty’s little freebie lesson was a bit of help. Yoga helps too. It is tough coming up with a new long term dream… i jump around so. Though I look at the trail of dots( as Steve Jobs calls them) from my life and believe they lead somewhere good! Love, E
Thank you so much for your view point Eric, it hit me in my guts because it was “the death of the dream” that knocked me over the most. I was so lost I even left my country and don’t ever want to go back. I’m not unhappy as I have so many new wonderful things and people in my life, but I no longer have a dream. It kind of is an empty feeling not to have a dream. But I will take you up on your suggestion and do Morty’s work to identify where I am lost. I’m happy I found this site. Thanks for sharing, reading your experience I saw how I went through a similar experience and perhaps a lot of people have had the same loss of a dream. Which means it can be overcome somehow. xxx
Eric….I’ve taken a flying leap and ordered the program. I will keep you posted of any progress…….time to dream again. xxx
:) Huzza!
Hi Morty
I think we can also have a mixture of the two mindsets. I became a World Champi0n dancer after years of massive input and effort. My belief was so absolute that I COULD do it, that any pessimistic reaction from others, any failure, any mistakes that I made, were insignificant, because I had already achieved my goal in my mind. It had already happened in my head and there was no way it would not come to pass.
However, there have been other areas of my life where I have been fixed and didn’t believe I could….
….actually as I write this I realise that the thing I was massively successful at was related to a talent I had developed and my belief was that this was something I was good at and born with……hmmm…….
…..I think I am having an epiphany as I write this…..maybe my mindset has been more fixed than I realise and that would absolutely explain why have struggled massively in other areas where I don’t have the belief that I am talented enough or clever enough to succeed…….
WOW!! I am actually shocked here as I type this, this explains so much to me…
I have to make a cuppa and think this over
x
Hi Morty!
It never occurred to me that I was always trying to focus on being smart and focused less on learning. Like I have to prove myself over and over. I wonder if this has anything to do with me failing at exactly the same business six times over ten years. Not changing to a new business but always trying to prove I could be a success of that business.
Regards
Wayne
Wayne, your comment just woke me up! I have done the same thing and have been ready to give up and try something new… Marty, thank you!
It just struck me that i measure my sucess based on what people think of me rather what i think of myself .m going to change it i will
Hi KaustuabhT,
Worrying what people think of us is the result of several beliefs, especially: What makes me good enough or important is having people think well of me, and the two underlying beliefs: I’m not important and I’m not good enough.
When the 10+ beleifs and conditionings are gone, you will stop worrying about what others think.
Our Natural Confidence product contains all the beleifs and conditionings you would need to get rid of the problem.
Check it out at http://recreateyourlife.com/naturalconfidence.
Let me know what it feels like to be free of the opinions of others after you try it.
Love, Morty