Mindsets of Self-learner
By: Purna Satria Nugraha
Tags: Self Improvement, Personal Development, Growth, Motivation, Beyourself

“Picture your brain forming new connections as you meet the challenge and learn. Keep ongoing.” — Carol Dweck

Our Thoughts Define Us

Thoughts will determine a person’s behaviour. Our mindset will affect our character, habits, behaviour, and attitude, that strongly influenced by the belief system, value system, family values, education, and the environment. Therefore we must ensure that our mindset is only shaped and influenced by right and good values.

If we want to have a quality life, we must change our mindset to optimally develop our potential and talents.

Mindset is the essence of self-learning that determines how we view potential, intelligence, challenges, and opportunities as a process that must be pursued with perseverance, hard work, commitment to achieve our life goals.

The self-learning process always starts from formulating a vision and mission of life to guide us to success. But that alone is not enough; we need a growth mindset that will be a catalyst in responding to every opportunity, challenge, and change, making it a process carried out with patience, effort, and ongoing commitment to developing our quality of life.

A person with a growth mindset will always view talent and intelligence are not a gift (already determined) but can be obtained through certain efforts. Therefore, people with a growth mindset will try to take advantage of the opportunities and challenges that come their way. They interpret success as “trying to do something better” and failure as “lack of skills and experience”, therefore every failure needs to be responded to with efforts to work harder, more diligently, and be more motivated.

A Gallup survey on “Characteristics of Successful People in America”​ explains that almost all successful people are those who have a growth mindset. These mindsets include hard work, clear goals, a high desire to learn, never stop learning in one field, value every thought, and constantly strive to change and grow. A growing life can be achieved because the right mindset has been applied in successful people’s character, habits, attitudes, and behaviour.

A good learner always follows the principle that makes him a person who never gives up, is always open to change, and is willing to change.

Success is about learning, self-development, and the process of becoming more competent.

Whatever the reason may be, the search for meaning in what we do is critical

There is no success without learning. There is no learning if there is no goal to be achieved. Learn to accept change, challenges, and opportunities. Learn to always be curious to increase knowledge. Learn to be willing to change and grow.

Intelligence is the process of learning something over time, meet challenges and make progress.

Intelligence can continuously be improved through diligent and earnest effort. It is not something that has been set. Although some people are endowed with exceptional intelligence, we still can obtain intelligence by learning to face challenges and successfully make progress in every process.

Failure is not the result. It is a problem that must be faced, studied, solved, and learned from.

Failure is not the end of everything. It does not determine our future. For a person with a growth mindset, failure is an issue that needs to be addressed and solved with more adequate effort than before. Failure motivates people with a growth mindset to work better, focusing on improving their weaknesses and shortcomings.

Effort is something to ignite abilities and turn them into achievements.

Efforts will improve one’s capabilities, competencies, and abilities with determination and commitment to transform these abilities into achievements.

Endless curiosity, as well as the quest for challenges.

The “primacy of knowledge” means that knowledge is superior to ignorance, conjecture, doubt, or unsubstantiated belief. “The primacy of seeking it” means that there is nothing more virtuous than travelling a path that leads to attaining it.

The soul of a learner is a never-ending desire to learn in everything. There is no time at all to stop that desire. Develop curiosity by seeking new challenges. Never satisfied with the current condition, but always looking for ways for improvement and development. When the desire is extinguished, the soul of the learner also dies.

Take responsibility for the processes that lead to success and maintain it.

One should speak and act following what one learns and teaches. Putting into practice what one learns results in an increase of knowledge, a transformation of behaviour, and benefit to others.

Every process that forms the character and habits of success must be accounted for by maintaining the process when the challenges become more severe and complicated. Although perhaps the process should be pursued harder, more diligently, more enthusiastically than before. But this is what growth means. Will never face the same situation and challenges. But proactively looking for problems and challenges that are much tougher than before. A learner must continue maintaining and improving the character quality that brought him to his previous success.

Willing to accept feedback and criticism for quality improvement and progress

Feedback can be medicine or poison, depending on our attitude and mindset. A learner who is aware of the process, always looking for feedback for necessary improvement. Never allergic to harsh criticism, no matter how sharp the criticism is. For a learner, the number of criticisms does not determine his future, even though the criticism may be valid. If he faces failure and receives criticism, a learner with a growth mindset will be motivated to increase his efforts because his perspective views failure as lacking skills and experience. Criticism is the medicine that heals him.