While I was growing up, I often heard my teachers say, “Oh, Tina is gifted in algebra.” While watching the Olympics, my parents would say, “These gymnasts are born with such ability.” Statements like these made me believe people were born with certain talents and if they didn't have a particular one at birth, then they never would. Therefore, I rarely focused on algebra. Nobody told me that if you keep trying and trying, one day a difficult task will seem easy.
Actually, I learnt this from my young daughter, Samaya. One day, I was finishing some paperwork and I said, “Oh no, how could I have made that mistake!” Samaya instantly said, “Mum, don't worry. Mistakes make your brain grow bigger.”
Actually, we all need to be reminded that mistakes or failures are just fine and that they are a huge part of growth and success. However, the regular belief is the opposite. We must correct this with our children. We must encourage them to make mistakes because that means they are trying out new ideas.
Billionaire Sara Blakely, founder of the shapewear business Spanx, has seen many failures. She made a living by selling fax machines for seven years. Knocking on many doors and making a lot of mistakes was a journey she calls educational. Sara Blakely owes her risk-taking skills to the weekend talk she had with her father.
As a child, her father would ask her the same question every weekend. "What did you fail at this week, Sara?" He did not care how high her scores were. He wanted to know what she had tried but failed at. When she told him about her failures and mistakes, he would give her a high five. He was reprogramming her mind to believe that mistakes and failures are fine.
So go ahead and ask yourself and your children, “What did we fail at this week?”
4. What discouraged the author from efforts in algebra?
A.She wasn't interested in it. | B.She thought she was not gifted. |
C.She thought it was useless. | D.She was not allowed to learn it. |
5. What does the underlined word “this” in paragraph 3 refer to?
A.Keep trying is necessary. | B.Failure is a path to success. |
C.Mistakes are not acceptable. | D.Encouragement is significant. |
6. Why did Sara's father keep asking her the same question?
A.To rebuild her mindset. | B.To keep her from failures. |
C.To know what she hadn't tried. | D.To prevent her getting high scores. |
7. What would be the best title for the text?
A.A Secret to Success | B.A Method of Education |
C.The Magic of Mistakes | D.The Power of a Fixed Mindset |