What is a Fixed vs Growth Mindset?
Psychologist Carol Dweck popularised the concepts of fixed mindset and growth mindset.
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A fixed mindset is the belief that intelligence, talent, and ability are fixed traits. You either “have it” or you don’t. Mistakes are seen as failures, and setbacks become proof that you’re not good enough.
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A growth mindset is the belief that intelligence and abilities can be developed through effort, learning, and persistence. Mistakes are opportunities to grow. Effort is valued as the key to success.
Boarding Schools and the Fixed Mindset
In my work with former boarders, I’ve noticed a strong pattern: boarding schools often cultivated a fixed mindset.
Why?
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Hierarchies and sets: Students were ranked — top set, bottom set — reinforcing the idea that intelligence was fixed.
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Older vs younger years: Power dynamics taught that those above you “had what it takes” while you did not.
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Shame around mistakes: Errors were punished or laughed at rather than seen as chances to learn.
This environment encouraged children to hide their flaws and feel ashamed of setbacks, rather than embracing them as part of learning.
This means that the fixed mindset can often be the norm in the corporate world. As former Cranfield Professor, Zena Me, said in an interview, ex-boarding school CEOs often run their companies like boarding schools.
The Growth Mindset Alternative
By contrast, a growth mindset recognises that effort is the pathway to success.
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Leaders and athletes: Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, and Usain Bolt became great not through innate talent alone, but through relentless effort and practice.
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Leadership examples: Angela Merkel modelled growth mindset during the pandemic when she apologised publicly for mistakes — a powerful act of vulnerability that built trust.
How Leaders Can Cultivate A Growth Mindset
If you grew up in a fixed mindset environment, you can shift:
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Reframe mistakes – Instead of seeing them as failures, see them as stepping stones.
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Praise effort, not outcome – In yourself and in others.
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Embrace setbacks – Use them as fuel to keep going.
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Practice persistence – Keep showing up, even when results don’t come straight away.
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Celebrate progress – Small wins matter.
Why This Matters
The leaders we see today often mirror the mindsets formed in their youth. Hiding mistakes, avoiding vulnerability, and resisting change are hallmarks of fixed mindset leadership.
But growth mindset leadership is different: it’s resilient, honest, and adaptive. And for many of us who boarded, part of the healing is learning to shift from fixed to growth — from shame to resilience, from “I can’t” to “I can learn.”
Closing Reflection
I often ask my clients: What mindset are you living with today? Fixed or growth?
Because while we may have been shaped by rigid systems, we always have the choice to grow, to learn, and to become more.
