A Growth Mindset: For Myself and a Senior Class

Yesterday morning, I dialed in from just outside of Boston to a group of seniors in Nevada to deliver a talk about a growth mindset. I was nervous and excited all at once. I was sure to practice what I was about to preach; reflecting on what an opportunity this was and how fortune we are to connect with others across the country. What they didn’t realize? This was a total moment of growth for me.

They had provided me with key questions, which honestly I was very thankful for. It was such a special process to reflect on these things myself, and then to have the opportunity to share my own experiences, tools, and advice for this special group of graduating seniors. The key topics included discussing my personal experiences in creating a growth mindset, how to maintain a positive mindset when faced with obstacles or difficulties, tips for these graduating seniors, and reflecting on the importance of post-secondary education.

I loved getting to reflect on and share my personal experience with creating a growth mindset. I think it’s funny that something that defined me so greatly throughout my life is something many people don’t know about me now. I shared my experience as a competitive soccer player and division 1 athlete. I talked about how I continued to challenge myself and how once I noticed myself getting to the top, I would reposition myself with those who were better to foster growth and improvement. I then spoke about the nature of my studies and profession, psychology and social work, and how so much of the knowledge we gained was through also gaining insight to our own experiences and challenging ourselves.

I got excited to talk about staying positive and determined in the face of adversity (that’s kind of my thing, as some of you may know 😉). I shared concepts around building your community, accessing supports, surrounding yourself with like-minded people, reinforced doing what you love, and of course gave the class two of my major thinking tools.

I finished up by talking about my tips: fiercely pursuing what you want, not waiting, talking to who you can when you can, and some other words of inspiration. I went over the importance of education in the sense that it gives you the tools to build a solid foundation to go where you want to go in life, as well as a built in community and support system.

I hoped the talk helped the kids, but it honestly helped me as well. This was one of my first few talks as a motivational speaker, which is something I’ve been wanting to pursue for some time now. To take the time and reflect on such importance concepts and themes is also something we don’t do often enough. Having the opportunity to share those things with our youth is priceless. I said to myself, “if something I said positively impacted even just one student, I did my job.” Well, low and behold, I got a notification and saw the kindest inbox message from one of the seniors from that class. I had given them my information as I genuinely love to connect and support others where I can. She had taken the time to reach out to me and tell me how much she appreciated my chat. That made it all so worth it. Never underestimate your power or impact. Don’t silence yourself because you’re worried what might go wrong. Think of who you might be taking away from by not sharing 💗

Sincerely,

Your Therapist