Do you have two left feet or a brown thumb? Not good at math, athletics, or art? Many of us believe one or more of these statements are true reflections of our innate abilities. Psychologist and researcher Dweck (Stanford Univ.), however, argues that attributes such as intelligence, personality, creativity, and talent are all a matter of our mind-sets, or our beliefs about ourselves. She posits that there are two basic mind-sets: fixed and growth. People with the fixed mind-set believe that everything about themselves is innate-e.g., that they are either smart or they're not, talented or not. Those with the growth mind-set, on the other hand, embrace challenges, struggles, criticism, and setbacks as opportunities for learning and growth rather than indications of failure. The good news is that mind-set, according to Dweck, can be changed from fixed to growth. This book is an essential read for parents, teachers, coaches, and others who are instrumental in determining a child's mind-set, and in turn, his or her future success, as well as for those who would like to increase their own feelings of success and fulfillment. Highly recommended for all libraries.-Wendy Wendt, Marshall-Lyon Cty. Lib., MN (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Mindset is "an established set of attitudes held by someone," says the Oxford American Dictionary. It turns out, however, that a set of attitudes needn't be so set, according to Dweck, professor of psychology at Stanford. Dweck proposes that everyone has either a fixed mindset or a growth mindset. A fixed mindset is one in which you view your talents and abilities as... well, fixed. In other words, you are who you are, your intelligence and talents are fixed, and your fate is to go through life avoiding challenge and failure. A growth mindset, on the other hand, is one in which you see yourself as fluid, a work in progress. Your fate is one of growth and opportunity. Which mindset do you possess? Dweck provides a checklist to assess yourself and shows how a particular mindset can affect all areas of your life, from business to sports and love. The good news, says Dweck, is that mindsets are not set: at any time, you can learn to use a growth mindset to achieve success and happiness. This is a serious, practical book. Dweck's overall assertion that rigid thinking benefits no one, least of all yourself, and that a change of mind is always possible, is welcome. (On sale Feb. 28) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

In sharing her years of research on how people's beliefs influence their lives, Dweck (Columbia Univ.) hopes to help people have better lives. She focuses on what she calls "mindsets," the fixed mind-set (i.e., one's abilities are set) versus the growth mind-set (one's abilities are changeable through learning). An individual's mind-set, the author argues, coordinates with his or her beliefs about risk and effort and about the causes of success and failure. Dweck sees the fixed mind-set as typical of people who seek to validate, rather than develop, themselves; the opposite is true of the growth mind-set. In the last chapter, Dweck provides strategies to help the reader change to (and maintain) a growth mind-set. This book is at its core more self-help than scholarly. Drawing examples from education, sports, business, and relationships--and then making connections to the research--Dweck makes psychology accessible to the uninitiated. Those looking for extensive details of the research will not find them here. ^BSumming Up: Recommended. Lower-/upper-division undergraduates; general readers. C. J. Speaker Wells College