What is Important – Attitude Or Intelligence?

What is Important

We usually find people climbing the ladders of success, and we admire them saying that they all are intelligent personalities and that is what leads them to success. A new research carried out at Standford will change not just your mind, but your attitude too.

Research suggests, “A person’s attitude is a better predictor of his/her success than his/her IQ” According to the research, a person’s attitude falls into two categories:
1. Fixed Mindset
2. Growth Mindset

A Fixed Mindset is a person who believes that they know themselves the best and agree that if they are challenged with something more than they are capable of, they tend to feel hopeless and overwhelmed.

While for a person with Growth Mindset; although knowing their limitations well, they believe they can improve with efforts. They outperform those with a fixed mindset, even if they have low IQ.

Where a Fixed Mindset prefers to take the road most commonly traveled and prefer a smooth going life, while keeping the obstacles at bay, a Growth Mindset, on the other hand, embraces challenges, find a route through obstacles, and learn from their criticism.

There are a few strategies that will help you develop a growth mindset:

Don’t Stay Helpless: In our life, we all have faced such situations where we are helpless and no matter how much efforts we put, we cannot come out of it. At this juncture, we have two roads, either learn from it and move forward, or let it drag you and consume you completely. In situations as such, one must give oneself time to understand the situation and try to find ways to deal with it, rather succumb to the feeling of helplessness. In the world history, there are many personalities who have fought this situation, Steve Jobs the founder of Apple Inc., was thrown out of his own firm for ‘his idea of launching Apple electronic devices’, Walt Disney known for Mickey Mouse, was fired from Kansa City Star, saying that ‘he lacked imagination and had no good idea.’ Had these people succumbed to rejections there wouldn’t have been Apple devices and no Mickey Mouse Club House in our childhood.
Be Passionate: Passion is what makes you outstanding. Everyone is not blessed with the same quality, but what we lack in talent, can be complimented through passion. Having a passion and zeal to achieve something in life will take you to different levels, even if we have less IQ. The best example of passion is Late Dhirubhai Ambani the owner of Reliance started from a pump attendant but his determination, passion, and zeal made Reliance what it is today.
Take Action: It is not that the people with a growth mindset are born with some super power, they are born just like any normal being, but they never let setbacks and fears affect them, rather they sort actions to overcome it. They do this because they know that there is no perfect moment to move ahead or for the things to happen, rather they sort ways and take actions to empower their failures and worries into positive focused energy.
Walk an EXTRA Mile: It is not in literal sense, that they walk an extra mile to be successful, rather they try to differentiate themselves from others. Martial Art fame Bruce Lee had once said, “Quit and you might as well be dead. If you always put limits on what you can do physical or anything else, it’ll spread over into the rest of your life. It’ll spread into your work, into your morality, into your entire being. There are no limits. There are no plateaus, but you must not stay there, you must go beyond them. If it kills you, it kills you. A man must constantly exceed his levels and break his limits.”
Expect Results: People with a growth mindset attitude, know that they will keep failing from time to time, but they won’t stop trying with the fear of failure or with the results that actually motivate them and gives them a chance to try and rectify their mistakes.
Be Flexible: Being flexible is a lot important for an organization. Being flexible means accepting the change, living by the change, and trying to differentiate themselves from the competitors. Everyone encounters unanticipated adversity. People with an empowered growth oriented mindset embrace adversity as a mean for improvement, as opposed to something that holds them back. Being flexible is to face the unexpected challenges and flex until they get the results.
Don’t Complain: Complaining and giving excuses is a sign of fixed mindset. Never complain when things don’t go your way. A person with a growth mindset looks for opportunities in everything, so there is no room for complaining.