The Growth Mindset: Why You Shouldn't Fear Failure

What Is The Growth Mindset?

My first year of college was filled with self-doubt, anxiety, and a crippling fear of failure. This fear kept me from trying new things and going outside my comfort zone, affecting not only my professional life but my personal life as well. I was struggling, as many do in their first year of college. 

Enter the growth mindset. 

The growth mindset is when individuals believe effort, learning, and persistence positively impact their intelligence and abilities, leading to personal growth and success. While rather simple in nature, this mindset requires the individual to embrace failure, difficulties, and criticism. 

The growth mindset begins with discomfort, accepting failures, and understanding what you can learn from them. Don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone — this is where growth takes place. Accept challenges that might come your way. Most importantly, reframe failure as a learning opportunity. For myself and others, embracing these concepts comes with a certain amount of discomfort. 

Why You Shouldn’t Fear Failure 

The fear of failure is prevalent throughout society. From infancy, we have learned to fear failure. To safeguard ourselves from the vulnerability that comes with it. It comes with judgment from others, stress, anxiety, disappointment, and even professional consequences. 

However, failure is a key pillar of growth. As I began my transition to college, I failed: I was fired from my job. While this failure is still hard to discuss, what I learned from it was instrumental to my growth and success. 

Being fired is embarrassing. There is vulnerability, sadness, and anger. However, this experience gave me the strength to no longer fear failure. My world did not end with this failure, and it would not end if I failed again. Without this misstep, I wouldn’t have become so involved in GrandPR or Grand Valley’s Public Relations Student Society of America(GVPRSSA), two organizations that have allowed me to transform personally and professionally. I also wouldn’t have taken the time to understand what I wanted to accomplish in college. Failure offers an individual the opportunity to reflect. To learn from missteps and stumbles. 

Practicing The Growth Mindset

Viewing failure as a learning opportunity ensures you gain something from every experience and endeavor. There are simple ways to embody the growth mindset such as reflection after accepting a challenge or trying something new. Another great way to grow is by listening to feedback from bosses, mentors, or professors. 

Only after being fired did I truly allow my professional journey to begin. It allowed me to fully commit myself to my passion for public relations and all things communication. As a young professional, this journey is oftentimes painful, awkward, and riddled with missteps. Failure is not the end of the road in your professional journey, but rather an opportunity for growth and exploration. 

Embrace the imperfections, the mistakes, and the “messy” parts of learning. As a young professional, now is the time to make mistakes and get your hands dirty. The growth mindset has allowed me to become the most confident version of myself and will perpetuate further growth for decades to come. The growth mindset gives you the tools to no longer fear failure and grow beyond your self-conceived limits. 

Ana Zapata is a senior studying Advertising and Public Relations with a minor in Writing. Ana is currently serving as the Chief Operations Officer of GrandPR. This summer Ana is working as a Marketing Intern for SalesPage Technologies. She is also the current Marketing Intern for the GVSU Department of Statistics. Ana’s passions lie within research, writing, and all things DEI.