What’s so alarming is that we took ordinary children and made them into liars, simply by telling them they were smart.
I think kids, and people in general, have the want or need to prove themselves. When someone compliments them they want to deserve it. Those kids felt like failures, because they were told they were smart and then "failed" to live up to those expectations.
the world of fixed traits — success is about proving you’re smart or talented.
I feel like fixed traits are "celebrated" in high school education because the goal of high school isn't about stretching or improving yourself (at least not really). It is mostly about succeeding or failing at standardized tests and classes in general in order to graduate.
Why waste time proving over and over how great you are, when you could be getting better? Why hide deficiencies instead of overcoming them?
This mindset reminds me of playing sports. You have to practice to get better, and when you aren't good at a certain thing, you keep training until you are where you want to be. It is encouraging to me that life is the same. If you keep working towards something you can eventually get there.
this advice actually reflects what modern psychology knows about how belief systems about our own abilities and potential fuel our behavior and predict our success.
This reminds me of the idea of self-fulfilling prophecy which we talked about in my psychology class. Positive and negative thoughts aren't just thoughts, they can influence how we actually "perform" and react in certain situations.