A book about changing from a fixed mindset to a more growth-oriented one.

Good ideas, but the book is way more about success and failure stories and personal testimonials than numbers or data, which I think weakens the book. Not so much practical tips, either, until you get to the very end. Plus everything ends abruptly.

Weird as a book, but lots to chew on. In particular, I'd recommend if you're struggling with rejection, either the personal or the professional kind.

This was a transformative read for me. I didn’t realize how much of a ‘fixed mindset’ I had and how it was holding me back.

Listened to this book through the Audible app and found it a great fit for listening. I've applied the growth mindset throughout parts of my life already, but Carol introduces you to how you can apply it to relationships, career, parenting, and various other parts of your life. A simple read with clear examples, which allow you to quickly understand her lessons. She also provides tips on how to change your perspective into a growth mindset. These simple tips can make a significant difference to how you handle the various situations we all have to deal with in life. I will certainly re-read this book and I have already applied some of her recommendations.

I've had this book on the 'Need to Read' shelf for a few years until I finally read it for work. The overall concept, Fixed Mindset vs Growth Mindset, I absolutely agree with. I believe viewing, understanding, and performing daily tasks and other functions through life with a different viewpoint (or growth mindset) would be more beneficial than the regular/standard view of blaming everything else. I gave this book 3/5 stars because Dr. Carol Dweck could have written this book shorter. The examples were valid but it was long-winded at times, as well as extremely repetitive. Some repetitiveness is needed in order for the concept to sink in for the reader but I believe she took it a bit too far. I still recommend this book, especially for people striving to better themselves and looking for personal/professional development.

Far better than the average popular psychology book, as Dr. Dweck's warrant for her framework is a much more robust line of research than, say, Dr. Grey's Mars/Venus cottage industry. It makes common cause with some of Malcolm Gladwell's writing, but is better for the author's direct involvement in the theory building research. Dweck is open about her struggles in attempting to craft a work for the popular press, which is refreshing, and many of the personal examples of growth and fixed mindsets she shares provide compelling operationalizations of her concepts at a more grounded level than the lab reports or accounts of the rich and (in)famous. Basically, it's not that a growth mindset is the only way to success, but those who are successful and NOT insufferable a**holes got that way through the growth mindset. Widely applicable to multiple disciplines and endeavors, the only thing keeping it from a full five-star for me is the inclusion of congratulatory letters to the author from people who've been helped by adopting a growth mindset. Those bits were unnecessary for demonstrating the power of Dweck's ideas, and gave portions of the book an air of a sales pitch, much like the anecdotal success stories in Disconnected Kids masked that book's holes. I don't think there are such holes here, but the letters to the author feel a bit unsavory.

I really love Dr. Dweck's research. I wish the book hadn't been marketed in terms of "success" because (not only is it off-putting to me), it's actually antithetical to the book's deeper message. I also wish Dr. Dweck hadn't dumbed down her writing.

That having been said, this is one of those books that I have extra copies of laying around the house because I give them out as presents. Her research is some awesome stuff.

Fascinating book that every person could benefit from!

Repetitive and not particularly insightful. Written in a way that almost insults intelligence. Main takeaway, there are 2 mindsets, fixed and growth. Growth is emotionally neutral and resilient to failure.

Like most self-help books, this one falls into the panacea trap. The one where the researcher/author has spent so many years studying the effects of this one thing, that they now think that fixing this one thing will fix all or nearly all the things. They start with intros along the lines of “this is something I am confident will improve your work life, your personal relationships, your health and even your driving skills!”

Since our lives are not compartmentalized, every aspect of our lives touches nearly every other aspect, and so one change can “improve” many parts of our being. But it doesn’t fix everything.

A growth mindset has been having its moment in the sun, following on heels of Grit and 7 habits and the like. It is important? Absolutely. Does it guarantee exceptionalism in any part of your life you apply it to? No. As this book reads, athletes with a growth mindset will get to and stay at the top. With a fixed mindset they are destined to angry ignominy. She conveniently ignores that some people really do have different starting points. Some people are built swimmers and others built for gymnastics. And even though there are occasional exceptions, they are rare. No amount of growth mindset will get me into the WNBA at this point. That doesn’t mean I couldn’t get better, if I cared to, but I have some natural limits.


Specific to the book, she just had more examples than were useful. 1 or 2 will usually suffice, but each section had 3,4,5 + stories about how a fixed mindset ruined this athlete’s, businessman’s, or married couples life’s and counter examples of how a growth mindset made it soooooo much better. By 1/2 way through the listen I was ready to be done.

But, as with most books of this genre, some good ideas to be gleaned and used, so still worth 3 stars.