{"id":39343,"date":"2024-11-07T13:09:26","date_gmt":"2024-11-07T21:09:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/?p=39343"},"modified":"2024-11-07T14:43:40","modified_gmt":"2024-11-07T22:43:40","slug":"recipe-for-success","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/recipe-for-success\/","title":{"rendered":"Recipe for Success"},"content":{"rendered":"

Cooking is one of my favorite activities. There\u2019s something deeply therapeutic about it, and nothing excites me more than discovering a new recipe, experimenting with ingredients, and adding a personal twist. But it wasn\u2019t always this way. When I first began, cooking felt like a high-stakes test. I needed a foolproof recipe, something guaranteed to come out perfectly. I approached every dish with a drive for perfection, as if my entire reputation were on the line.<\/span><\/p>\n

While reading Carol Dweck\u2019s Mindset<\/em>, where she explores the concepts of fixed and growth mindsets, I realized how closely her ideas mirrored my own journey in the kitchen. I was self-taught and anxious about every outcome; if my cooking wasn\u2019t met with praise like \u201cdelicious\u201d or \u201csuperb,\u201d I\u2019d quickly doubt my abilities, feeling I had no future in the kitchen. I cooked with what Dweck would call a fixed mindset. She explains, \u201cThe fixed mindset\u2014creates an urgency to prove yourself over and over\u2026those with the fixed mindset [don\u2019t] want to expose their deficiencies.\u201d[1]<\/a> My worst kitchen flops came when I was trying to prove myself, and each failure filled me with frustration and self-blame. Dweck captures this feeling perfectly: \u201cYou look for your talent to carry you through, and when it doesn\u2019t\u2026you\u2019re a finished product. And finished products have to protect themselves, lament, and blame. Everything but take charge.\u201d[2]<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

This example of my fixed mindset in cooking is meant to be lighthearted yet telling. In truth, this mindset has affected other areas of my life beyond the kitchen. Dweck explains that, within a fixed mindset, failure becomes more than just an action\u2014it\u2019s an identity.[3]<\/a> This sense of failure seeped into my work, studies, and even my faith, where I would default to self-criticism instead of acknowledging that every challenge takes practice, and yes, \u201cflops\u201d are part of the process. Fortunately, Dweck offers an alternative: the growth mindset, which she defines as \u201cthe belief that your basic qualities are things you can cultivate through your efforts, your strategies, and help from others\u2026everyone can change and grow through application and experience.\u201d[4]<\/a> The growth mindset is a recipe for success.<\/span><\/p>\n

Over time, I\u2019ve learned to appreciate the growth mindset in my own life and constantly experiment and adapt my recipe for success. Here\u2019s a list of essential \u201cingredients\u201d I\u2019ve come to value, and while these can be adjusted to taste, they\u2019ve each become a key part of my approach.<\/span><\/p>\n

Recipe for Success from a Growth Mindset:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n