Why Attitude Is More Important Than Intelligence Or Skills?

Attitude plays an important role in our lives.

According to Google, it is ‘a settled way of thinking or feeling about something’. It is our attitude which can define how people see us. Attitude is also responsible for how we pursue different aspects of life. It is the way you see things, whether it is black and white or just gray. It shapes you into who you are now and who you will become in the future. Attitude molds our personality.

Scientists and psychologists have performed various studies and experiments on attitude. Many have spent their lives working on this. They say attitude is more important than intelligence or skills. But if it is ‘a settled way of thinking or feeling about something’, why is it so important?

Your Approach

Attitude is the way you look at and approach things. People think it is their intelligence or their skills that will help them succeed, but that is not entirely true. Knowledge and skills are important, but the most important attribute is attitude. If you can’t find a way to look at the world in a positive way, then it will be harder to succeed.

According to psychologist Carol Dweck, who spent his entire career studying attitude and performance, said that there are two types of mind-sets which are responsible for our attitude.

The first one is the fixed mindset.

In this case you depend entirely on your intelligence and skills and any significant change in both is inevitable. This type of mindset can be harmful since it does not prepare you to face challenges and accept change. Change is a vital part of life and understanding that is necessary for any person to succeed. It makes it hard to accept failure, which is actually the first step toward success. We learn from our mistakes which help us to accept and face challenges. Having a fixed mindset can sometimes make you feel hopeless and overwhelmed which is a bad sign to succeed.

The second type of mindset is the growth mindset.

This is where you don’t depend entirely on your skills and intelligence and there is always the possibility of change.

Studies show that people who have a growth mindset are better at facing challenges. In a growth mind-set there always space for improvement and change. Many people think that being smart and having abilities inspires confidence, but this is only true when things are easy and you are in your comfort zone. Once you’re out of it, moments and experiences can become difficult for people who have a fixed mindset, whereas people with a growth mindset find life easier to face since they have developed a certain understanding of failure and that attitude helps them to face challenges. So, having a growth mindset is beneficial for life, especially if you want to succeed. It is not something that arrives with you at birth, but something which you have to consciously develop over your life.

Here are some ways which will help you build a growth mind-set:

Say no to helplessness:
We all face those moments where we feel helpless. But being positive and knowing that your life will improve will make things easier.

Being passionate:
Passion is something which will always keep you going no matter what. Although you may not be as talented as the next person, your passion will bring out the best in you.

Don’t complain when things don’t go your way:
This is the crucial one. Don’t be sad about things not going your way, instead work hard to find and walk the path you are looking for.

Accept failures:
You are going to fail someday, so don’t be scared of that and work harder to succeed.

Use failure to learn.

 

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