Why Attitude Is More Important Than IQ
When it comes to success, it’s easy to think that people blessed with brains are inevitably going
to leave the rest of us in the dust. But new research from Stanford University will change your
mind (and your attitude).
Dweck found that people’s core attitudes fall into one of two categories: a fixed mindset or a
growth mindset.
With a fixed mindset, you believe you are who you are and you cannot change. This creates
problems when you’re challenged because anything that appears to be more than you can handle
is bound to make you feel hopeless and overwhelmed.
People with a growth mindset believe that they can improve with effort. They outperform those
with a fixed mindset, even when they have a lower IQ, because they embrace challenges, treating
them as opportunities to learn something new.
Common sense would suggest that having ability, like being smart, inspires confidence. It does,
but only while the going is easy. The deciding factor in life is how you handle setbacks and
challenges. People with a growth mindset welcome setbacks with open arms.
According to Dweck, success in life is all about how you deal with failure. She describes the
approach to failure of people with the growth mindset this way,
“Failure is information—we label it failure, but it’s more like, ‘This didn’t work, and I’m a
problem solver, so I’ll try something else.’”
Regardless of which side of the chart you fall on, you can make changes and develop a growth
mindset. What follows are some strategies that will fine-tune your mindset and help you make
certain it’s as growth oriented as possible.
A
ttitude is the way a person reacts to a particular situation. The approach
can be positive or negative. It is the factor that impacts the action, behavior
and response to any challenge or stimuli. Intelligence Quotient (IQ), however,
is the scale that tells us about the intelligence of person.
a) Fixed mindset &
b) Growth mindset.
If you are a fixed mindset person, then you have fixed boundaries; you are
happy with what you have and are rather less keen or interested in developing
newer things. This puts you in trouble when you are encountered with
criticism, failure or challenge. Moreover, if you are a person with fixed mindset
you are likely to show cynicism in your approach. Thus, this kind of attitude
pulls you down even if you have a great IQ.
People with growth mindset never underestimate themselves or anyone else.
They believe that anyone can do anything because the ability is action oriented.
They show easy acceptance and positive attitude towards new things. This
attitude of theirs helps them outshine everyone around even if they are low at
IQ.
Development of practical mind: This will help you look at challenges like
opportunities. It will help you find positivity in each task you do. It will make
you an innovative person and will also change your approach towards a lot of
things. For example: If Michael Jordon, a famous basketball player had a fixed
mindset; then he would have applied the same kind of strategy against all the
teams he encountered and would have failed. We would not have known him
for what he is today.
Have you wondered why some people like CEOs or sports persons tend to achieve
more success than others? The answer is they have the correct attitude; they
believe in growth mindset.
Adaptability is the prerequisite: It is very important to adapt well and
quickly in a new team or at a new job. This will help you accept your job and
the work better. It will make you dedicated towards the work as you have
adapted with the environment. Further, this will be one of your major growth
drivers. For Example: Narayan Murthy, the retired chairman of Infosys, had
started the company with capital injection of just US$250. Adapting the
business with the IT trends & requirements of the western countries, within
the first five years itself Infosys made a good turnover as well as opened a joint
venture with Kurt Salmon Associates, in the USA.
Figuring it out is the key: Carol Dweck while conducting studies asked
variety of people “When do you feel smart”. The people with fixed mindset said
when they have accomplished the task perfectly; whereas, those with growth
mindset replied that when they are learning they feel smart. It is not important
to be perfect but it is important to try doing it, in the same way that it is not
important to have good IQ but it is important to have the right attitude.
Dealing with failure gets easy: Those with growth mindset believe that
failure is a new opportunity to learn. They understand that making mistakes is
fine, but they should be the new ones. You have been appointed for a job
because you have the right IQ but it’s now your responsibility to harbour the
right attitude.
Flexibility helps troubleshoot: With growth mindset, your approach will
help you think openly, positively and creatively. This will help you find
solutions to sudden adversities that you encounter.
Enhance your relationships: When you are ready to accept your
shortcomings, you start improving. People find you more approachable as a
leader and are also open for your suggestions, because they do not have the
fear that you will get offended.
It is common sense that you have been hired for a job because you have the
right knowledge and IQ. However, to be able to grow while doing your job, you
need to be a person with growth mindset.
The trend is changing, so suit yourself and take a leap towards developing the
right attitude!
OR
Think of IQ like a measurement, like height.
It is true that tall people in society statistically tend to be more successful than
short people in society. But it is also true that this is only a statistical
probability, and there are lots of successful short people, and plenty of
unsuccessful tall people.
What makes the difference? Of course, it is the person themselves. Do they
have good ideas, make plans, follow through, work hard toward their goals?
It is the same with IQ. IQ is a measurement. Sure, it is statistically more likely
for people with a higher IQ to be successful than people with lower IQs. But
there are plenty of people with IQ’s that are not high, who are successful, and
many people with high IQs who are not successful.
I don’t know if “attitude” is all it takes, but a person with a positive attitude,
where they are willing to learn and work hard, but doesn’t have a high IQ, is
definitely more useful than a person with an attitude of laziness and disinterest
who happens to have a high IQ.
Your attitude may help more than your IQ, and intelligence is not the most important factor in
achieving success.