Last Straw

The Secret to Rais­ing Smart Kids

Many people assume that super­ior intel­li­gence or abil­ity is a key to suc­cess. But more than three dec­ades of research shows that an over­em­phasis on intel­lect or talent—and the implic­a­tion that such traits are innate and fixed—leaves people vul­ner­able to fail­ure, fear­ful of chal­lenges and unmo­tiv­ated to learn.

Teach­ing people to have a “growth mind-set,” which encour­ages a focus on effort rather than on intel­li­gence or tal­ent, pro­duces high achiev­ers in school and in life.

Par­ents and teach­ers can engender a growth mind-set in chil­dren by prais­ing them for their effort or per­sist­ence (rather than for their intel­li­gence), by telling suc­cess stor­ies that emphas­ize hard work and love of learn­ing, and by teach­ing them about the brain as a learn­ing machine

This has an intriguing syn­ergy with pare­con, an eco­nomic sys­tem which remu­ner­ates people based on effort. Fancy that, an eco­nomic sys­tem that actu­ally encour­ages the way we learn and achieve.