SharePoint Training and the Growth Mindset

The growth mindset has been the focus of numerous studies on effective learning, yet few corporations are familiar with the growth mindset and how they can take advantage of it. This article will walk you through the mindsets and show you how appropriately timed interventions can make your company's SharePoint training more effective

 

What is the "growth mindset"?

Carol Dweck, a psychologist and researcher, introduced the term "growth mindset" as part of her studies. These studies took place over several decades and aimed to discover how a "growth" versus a "fixed" mindset influenced learning capabilities.

Simply put, the "fixed" mindset is the belief that each person is born with innate attributes that cannot be changed over time: We have a set degree of intelligence, potential for happiness, and talent. The "growth" mindset is the belief that change and growth are possible when time and energy are invested into learning itself.

Dweck's studies had phenomenal outcomes: Those with the fixed mindset were found to make counterproductive choices and to learn slowly, if at all. Those with the growth mindset were found to grow more quickly and maintain a higher level of motivation when faced with stress or failure. More importantly, it was found that simple interventions could be used to instill students with a growth mindset.

Teaching SharePoint with the Growth Mindset

 

Mindset interventions can be simple: Devoting time at the beginning of a course or a set of trainings to show why the brain continues to adapt—and that emphasizes that skill comes from effort and experience, not inborn traits—has had a surprisingly strong influence over the success of those training programs.

SharePoint is a complicated system that can be intimidating for those in a fixed mindset. This is especially true for those coming from the baby boomer generation—and, to a lesser extent, any time before the "millenials" (those born in the 1990s). The new software, hardware, and patterns of work can feel like they're impossible to master; those with a fixed mindset quickly believe that "you can't teach an old dog new tricks" or, even worse, that they're simply not smart enough to learn SharePoint.

By showing that effort and continued training are the processes that result in skill, you can help immerse your employees in the software in a growth-oriented way. Be careful about your approach, however. Even beyond the interventions you use in your training program, it's possible to sabotage the growth mindset by making statements that establish a fixed mindset for your staff.

The growth and fixed mindset are just one part of an effective SharePoint training program for your company. To learn more about how you can develop the best training program possible, contact SharePoint Engine today.