There were multiple insights taken from Eduardo Briceno’s TED talk on the power of belief but a rather prominent and dominating insight was that the key to success is not simply effort or focus or resilience but is the growth mindset that creates them. Eduardo discussed the concept of fixed and growth mindsets and how they affect success. Personally, throughout high school I had a rather fixed mindset and believed intelligence came from developing tunnel vision and I focused intently on being judged by others. Eduardo raised a point about children being praised by those around them and the importance of parents making their feedback process related as opposed to praising or criticizing talent as it can make children afraid of failing and will refrain in from challenging themselves and demonstrating resilience.

When I was completing year 12, I had my teachers around me praising my progression in good grades and recognizing the effort I was putting in as throughout the previous years I didn’t try very hard for fear of failure. The comments made by my teachers regarding my progression helped me develop a growth mindset and break out of my shell and chase success as well as encouraging me to communicate with those around me to seek assistance with my work instead of keeping my questions to myself.

This talk really opened my eyes to the importance of a growth mindset and helped me realize that the facts Eduardo was sharing are extremely accurate and I have experienced and witnessed myself throughout my life. One benefit of understanding the critical role of a growth mindset in the field of professional communications is that it can help develop my confidence further in sharing my ideas and being open to listening to others in order to achieve the best possible result. Walking away from this talk, I have been reminded that it is important for me to listen for a fixed mindset voice and when I hear it, talk back with a growth mindset voice.