Andrew Huberman: How to Enhance Performance and Learning by Applying a Growth Mindset (Huberman Lab Podcast)

The video is about the concept of growth mindset and how it can enhance performance and learning. The speaker, Andrew Huberman, explains that growth mindset is a way of embracing challenges and thinking about one's bodily and brain's response to challenges in a way that allows for optimization of performance. The key features of growth mindset include distancing one's identity from the challenge, attaching one's identity and efforts to the process of learning and getting better at learning, and enjoying the process of learning. The speaker also discusses the stress-enhancing mindset and how it can synergize with growth mindset to improve performance. The video provides an overview of the classic work of Carol Dweck, the founder of the growth mindset field, as well as newer research on how growth mindset and stress-enhancing mindsets can be applied in various settings. The speaker emphasizes that the podcast is separate from his teaching and research roles at Stanford and is part of his effort to bring zero-cost consumer information about science and science-related tools to the general public.

This video by Andrew Huberman was published on Jul 17, 2023.
Video length: 01:41:24.

The video is about the concept of growth mindset and its impact on performance and learning.

The speaker, Andrew Huberman, explains that growth mindset is a way of embracing challenges and thinking about one's bodily and brain's response to challenges in a way that allows for optimization of performance. The key features of growth mindset include distancing one's identity from the challenge, attaching one's identity and efforts to the process of learning and getting better at learning, and enjoying the process of learning. The speaker also discusses the stress-enhancing mindset, which can act synergistically with growth mindset to improve performance. The video explores the classic work of Carol Dweck, the founder of the growth mindset field, as well as newer research from people like David Yeager and Ali Crum.

The speaker emphasizes that this podcast is separate from his teaching and research roles at Stanford and is part of his effort to bring zero-cost consumer information about science and science-related tools to the general public.

• The Huberman Lab podcast is hosted by Andrew Huberman, a professor of neurobiology and ophthalmology at Stanford School of Medicine
• Today's episode is about growth mindset and how it can enhance performance and learning
• Growth mindset is a way of embracing challenges and thinking about one's bodily and brain's response to challenges in a way that allows for optimization of performance
• It consists of many things, which will be discussed in detail today
• Growth mindset is the process of distancing one's identity from performance and attaching one's identity and efforts to the process of learning and getting better at learning
• It involves enjoying the process of learning and getting better at learning anything
• Growth mindset is often discussed in terms that are not accurate to the science
• It is not about being smart, talented, or good at something
• It is not about performing well in school, athletics, or music

How to Enhance Performance & Learning by Applying a Growth Mindset | Huberman Lab Podcast - YouTube

Introduction

• Welcome to the Huberman Lab podcast
• Discussing science and science-based tools for everyday life
• Hosted by Andrew Huberman, a professor of neurobiology and ophthalmology at Stanford School of Medicine
• Today's episode is about growth mindset and how it can enhance performance and learning

What is Growth Mindset?

• Growth mindset is a way of embracing challenges and thinking about one's bodily and brain's response to challenges in a way that allows for optimization of performance
• It consists of many things, which will be discussed in detail today
• Growth mindset is the process of distancing one's identity from performance and attaching one's identity and efforts to the process of learning and getting better at learning
• It involves enjoying the process of learning and getting better at learning anything

What is Growth Mindset Not?

• Growth mindset is often discussed in terms that are not accurate to the science
• It is not about being smart, talented, or good at something
• It is not about performing well in school, athletics, or music
• It is about recognizing that one's identity is not tied to performance

How to Enhance Performance & Learning by Applying a Growth Mindset | Huberman Lab Podcast - YouTube

The Stress-Enhancing Mindset

• The stress-enhancing mindset is another mindset that can act synergistically with growth mindset
• When combined with growth mindset, it can vastly improve one's performance in essentially anything
• It is important to note that growth mindset and stress-enhancing mindset are not mutually exclusive

Classic Work of Carol Dweck

• The classic work of Carol Dweck, the founder of the growth mindset field, will be discussed
• Some of the newer research on how growth mindset and stress-enhancing mindsets can be applied in various settings will also be explored

Tools for Applying Growth Mindset

• By the end of today's episode, you will have a rich understanding of the science as well as many tools that you can apply in everyday life in essentially any endeavor

Section 1: Introduction to Growth Mindset

• Growth mindset is the idea that our abilities are malleable and can change through deliberate focused bouts of learning.
• Neuroplasticity, or the nervous system's ability to change in response to experience, is a core aspect of growth mindset.
• Growth mindset can occur throughout the entire lifespan, but is more robust early in life.
• Neuroplasticity can occur for the worse through injury or disease, but can also occur for the better through deliberate focused bouts of learning.
• Growth mindset allows us to simplify our world and make certain choices, allowing us to focus on specific actions or inactions.

Section 2: Neuroplasticity and Growth Mindset

• Neuroplasticity is the default process by which our brain is shaped by our everyday experiences.
• From age 25 and onward, neuroplasticity becomes less robust and more dependent on deliberate focused bouts of learning.
• Neuroplasticity can occur for the worse through injury or disease, but can also occur for the better through deliberate focused bouts of learning.
• Deliberate focused bouts of learning can lead to the acquisition of new languages, art, music, and other skills.
• Growth mindset allows us to simplify our world and make certain choices, allowing us to focus on specific actions or inactions.

Section 3: Tools for Enhancing Growth Mindset

• Everyday tools can be used to enhance growth mindset, such as learning new languages, playing musical instruments, and practicing physical activities.
• Teaching growth mindset to others can also reinforce one's own growth mindset.
• Tools for enhancing growth mindset can be applied in a variety of domains, including musical, athletic, intellectual, and more.
• Growth mindset is the brainchild of Carol Dweck, a professor of psychology at Stanford University.
• Others have expanded upon Dweck's discovery and applied growth mindset in various settings, including the classroom and beyond.

Section 4: Defining Mindset

• A mindset is a mental frame or lens that selectively organizes and encodes information.
• Mindsets help us organize information in a way that allows us to make certain choices and do away with thinking about and acting on other types of information.
• Mindsets include entire narratives that are often not even aware of how they are operating.
• Mindsets allow us to simplify our world and make certain choices, allowing us to focus on specific actions or inactions.
• Growth mindset is a specific type of mindset that organizes information in a way that allows us to simplify our world and make certain choices.

The Concept of Growth Mindset

• Growth mindset is a way of embracing challenges and thinking about one's bodily and brain's response to challenges in a way that allows for optimization of performance.
• The key features of growth mindset include distancing one's identity from the challenge, attaching one's identity and efforts to the process of learning and getting better at learning, and enjoying the process of learning.
• Growth mindset can enhance performance and learning by allowing individuals to embrace challenges and view their abilities as something that can be developed through effort and learning.
• The speaker emphasizes that the podcast is separate from his teaching and research roles at Stanford and is part of his effort to bring zero-cost consumer information about science and science-related tools to the general public.

The Importance of Self-Awareness

• The speaker emphasizes the importance of self-awareness in understanding one's own mindset and how it affects performance and learning.
• Asking oneself questions such as "What have I been told I'm really good at?", "What have I been told I'm really poor at?", "What am I good at and why did it come naturally to me?", "Why am I not good at other things?" can help individuals understand their own mindset and how it affects their performance and learning.
• By understanding one's own mindset, individuals can take steps to modify it and improve their performance and learning.

The Impact of Feedback on Performance

• The speaker discusses the impact of feedback on performance and how different types of feedback can affect an individual's mindset and performance.
• Feedback that is attached to one's identity, such as "smart" or "great athlete", can lead to a fixed mindset and limit an individual's potential for growth and improvement.
• Feedback that is based on effort, such as "you tried really hard" or "you really seem to apply yourself", can lead to a growth mindset and improve an individual's potential for growth and improvement.

The Role of Effort in Learning

• The speaker emphasizes the importance of effort in learning and how it can lead to improved performance and a growth mindset.
• By focusing on effort rather than innate ability, individuals can develop a growth mindset and improve their performance and learning over time.

The Discovery of Growth Mindset

• The speaker discusses the discovery of growth mindset and how it has become a widely accepted concept in the field of education and psychology.
• Research has shown that individuals with a growth mindset are more likely to embrace challenges, persist in the face of failure, and achieve success in their endeavors.

The Concept of Growth Mindset

• Growth mindset is a way of embracing challenges and thinking about one's bodily and brain's response to challenges in a way that allows for optimization of performance.
• The key features of growth mindset include distancing one's identity from the challenge, attaching one's identity and efforts to the process of learning and getting better at learning, and enjoying the process of learning.
• The speaker emphasizes that the podcast is separate from his teaching and research roles at Stanford and is part of his effort to bring zero-cost consumer information about science and science-related tools to the general public.

Intelligence Feedback vs. Effort Feedback

• Intelligence feedback is tied to labels of identity things like smart, talented, etc.
• Effort feedback is tied to verbs, choices, behavioral, and cognitive choices that children made in an effort to learn or get better at something.
• In a study which included over 100 children, the kids that got the intelligence-based feedback when they were then later offered problem sets that were either challenging or were of the sort that they knew they could perform well on tended to select problems that they knew they could perform well on.
• The kids that got feedback about their strong effort when later presented with problems that were either easy or hard more often than not they picked the harder problems that stood to teach them more.

Praise and Feedback Reinforce Patterns of Behavior

• Praise and feedback serve to reinforce a certain pattern of behavior.
• In the case of giving intelligence feedback, the kids are really just trying to reinforce being told that they're smarter, talented as opposed to reinforcing the engagement in the activity that got them the praise in the first place.
• When kids are told hey you really tried hard and that's great or I like how you persisted or you're so persistent I can really see how persistent you are in trying to get the right answer even if you don't get the right answer well then when you present those kids with additional challenges they work very hard to stay in Challenge and guess what no surprise the kids that are rewarded for effort and that continue to pick harder problems outperform the kids that are given the intelligence praise and feedback by a large margin.

Parents and Teachers Need to be Careful with Feedback

• If a child is performing well at something, parents and teachers should be careful about giving feedback to a child that is attached to their identity around an endeavor, especially if they're performing well at that endeavor.
• If a child is not performing well at something, parents and teachers should not tell them that they're stupid or deficient, but instead focus on the process of learning and getting better at learning.

The Concept of Growth Mindset

• Growth mindset is a way of embracing challenges and thinking about one's bodily and brain's response to challenges in a way that allows for optimization of performance.
• The key features of growth mindset include distancing one's identity from the challenge, attaching one's identity and efforts to the process of learning and getting better at learning, and enjoying the process of learning.
• The speaker emphasizes that the podcast is separate from his teaching and research roles at Stanford and is part of his effort to bring zero-cost consumer information about science and science-related tools to the general public.

The Study on Intelligence and Effort Praise

• The study found that kids who were in the control group, who did not get any specific form of praise, performed more or less the same way as they did before.
• Kids who were in the intelligence praise group, who were told they were smart and talented, had their performance go down significantly.
• Kids who were in the effort praise group, who were told they worked hard and were determined, had their performance increase significantly.

The Bi-Directional Effect of Praise

• Giving intelligence praise reduces performance.
• Giving effort praise improves performance.

The Importance of Rewarding Effort

• Rewarding effort is the best way to improve performance.
• Rewarding oneself based on identity labels, such as being smart or talented, can undermine performance.

The Notion of Persistence

• Kids who got intelligence praise tended to pick easier problems down the line.
• Kids who got effort praise tended to pick harder problems.
• Kids who got effort praise also tended to take on more challenges and perform better.

The Concept of Growth Mindset

• Growth mindset is a way of embracing challenges and thinking about one's bodily and brain's response to challenges in a way that allows for optimization of performance.
• Key features of growth mindset include distancing one's identity from the challenge, attaching one's identity and efforts to the process of learning and getting better at learning, and enjoying the process of learning.
• Growth mindset can enhance performance and learning by allowing individuals to embrace challenges and view their abilities as something that can be improved through effort and dedication.
• Stress-enhancing mindset can synergize with growth mindset to improve performance by increasing motivation and focus during high-stress situations.
• The classic work of Carol Dweck, the founder of the growth mindset field, emphasizes the importance of embracing challenges and viewing one's abilities as something that can be improved through effort and dedication.

Intelligence Praise and its Effects

• Intelligence praise, when given to children, can lead them to lie about their performance in order to preserve their ego.
• Intelligence praise can undermine performance by leading children to believe that their abilities are fixed and cannot be improved upon.
• Effort praise, on the other hand, can lead children to accurately represent their performance and improve their abilities through dedication and hard work.
• Surveys conducted in 1996 showed that most people believed that intelligence was fixed and could not be improved upon.
• These results highlight the importance of the type of feedback we receive about our performance and how it can impact our future performance.

Intelligence Tests and Emotional Intelligence

• Standard IQ tests and emotional intelligence tests both show that anyone can improve their scores through dedicated effort.
• There are many different forms of intelligence, and emotional intelligence is just one aspect of it.
• The paper that was published in 1998 was ahead of its time and seeded the entire field of growth mindset.
• Understanding the simple set of tools, such as narratives, that can enhance one's ability to learn is important for improving performance.
• Asking oneself what their typical narrative is when engaging in things they believe they are good at and what their typical narrative is when engaging in things they are not good at can help shift their mindset towards effort-related narratives.

The Concept of Growth Mindset

• Growth mindset is a way of embracing challenges and thinking about one's bodily and brain's response to challenges in a way that allows for optimization of performance.
• The key features of growth mindset include distancing one's identity from the challenge, attaching one's identity and efforts to the process of learning and getting better at learning, and enjoying the process of learning.
• Growth mindset allows for continuous improvement in a given domain even when or perhaps especially when one stops getting the results they want or start getting poor results.
• The effort process of practicing a lot, many repetitions, analyzing errors and why one did something incorrectly, and getting back to the drawing board is central to who one is and exists in one's brain and nervous system and body.

The Importance of Effort Verbs

• Effort verbs are inherent to one and allow for continuous improvement in a given domain even when or perhaps especially when one stops getting the results they want or start getting poor results.
• When we talk about effort, we're talking about verbs that are inherent to one and allow for continuous improvement in a given domain even when or perhaps especially when one stops getting the results they want or start getting poor results.
• When we talk about verbs like effort, persistence, practicing a lot, analyzing errors, and why one did something incorrectly, and then getting back to the drawing board, we're really talking about something that's central to who one is.

The Role of Labels in Performance

• When we attach performance labels to things that we are really good at, we internalize a sense of self that says "I'm good at this particular thing."
• When someone gives themselves or hears a performance or intelligence label around something that they're good at and then has an error or has a period where they're not that good at something, they internalize a sense of identity around that diminished performance.
• When we attach effort verbs to why we got good at something as well as why we are not good at something, there's only room for improvement.

The Benefits of Growth Mindset

• Growth mindset allows for continuous improvement in a given domain even when or perhaps especially when one stops getting the results they want or start getting poor results.
• Growth mindset allows for optimization of performance and learning.
• Growth mindset allows for enjoyment of the process of learning.

Section 1: Introduction to Growth Mindset

• The video is about the concept of growth mindset and how it can enhance performance and learning.
• The speaker, Andrew Huberman, explains that growth mindset is a way of embracing challenges and thinking about one's bodily and brain's response to challenges in a way that allows for optimization of performance.
• The key features of growth mindset include distancing one's identity from the challenge, attaching one's identity and efforts to the process of learning and getting better at learning, and enjoying the process of learning.
• The speaker also discusses the stress-enhancing mindset and how it can synergize with growth mindset to improve performance.
• The video provides an overview of the classic work of Carol Dweck, the founder of the growth mindset field, as well as newer research on how growth mindset and stress-enhancing mindsets can be applied in various settings.

Section 2: The Detrimental Effect of Labels of Intelligence

• Labels of intelligence, labels of identity, and undermine performance.
• If someone is told they are a great athlete, smart, or talented before or after a task, game, or exam, it still has a detrimental effect on their performance.
• Even if they get an A+ and everything perfect, telling them they are smart or talented undermines their performance on the next exam.
• The same is true for effort-based praise, which can improve performance.
• Before a child or adult heads into a competition or exam or preparation for a competition, telling them they are really dedicated and persistent can improve their performance.

Section 3: The Power of Effort Labels

• Effort labels can be very powerful at improving performance.
• Telling someone they really worked hard after a task, game, or exam can improve their performance on the next one.
• Even when someone knows they got kicked in the shin and are limping along, telling them they really worked hard can continue to motivate them.
• Effort labels can also set the mind and brain of a child or adult up to provide more effort to future endeavors.
• Giving effort praise before performance goes up can also improve their performance.

Section 4: Conclusion

• The video emphasizes that the labels of intelligence and identity undermine performance.
• Effort labels, on the other hand, can improve performance and set the mind and brain up for future endeavors.
• The video provides an overview of the classic work of Carol Dweck and newer research on how growth mindset and stress-enhancing mindsets can be applied in various settings.
• The speaker emphasizes that the podcast is separate from his teaching and research roles at Stanford and is part of his effort to bring zero-cost consumer information about science and science-related tools to the general public.
• The video provides an overview of the classic work of Carol Dweck and newer research on how growth mindset and stress-enhancing mindsets can be applied in various settings.

The Concept of Growth Mindset

• Growth mindset is a way of embracing challenges and thinking about one's bodily and brain's response to challenges in a way that allows for optimization of performance.
• The key features of growth mindset include distancing one's identity from the challenge, attaching one's identity and efforts to the process of learning and getting better at learning, and enjoying the process of learning.
• The speaker discusses the stress-enhancing mindset and how it can synergize with growth mindset to improve performance.
• The video provides an overview of the classic work of Carol Dweck, the founder of the growth mindset field, as well as newer research on how growth mindset and stress-enhancing mindsets can be applied in various settings.

Early Work on Growth Mindset

• Early work from Dweck and colleagues transformed the way that we think about education and learning in general and in fact neuroplasticity.
• The study used event-related potentials (ERPs) to measure brain activity and found that people who have a growth mindset respond differently to feedback and errors than those with a fixed mindset.
• ERPs are a non-invasive way to measure brain activity and can be used to study how people respond to different types of tasks.
• The study had people play a game and indicate their confidence in their responses, allowing researchers to compare their thinking as they tried to get the right answer to their confidence in that answer.

Experimental Design

• The experimental design allowed researchers to look at people's thinking as they were trying to get the right answer and compare that to their confidence in their answer.
• The study used a clever experimental design that allowed researchers to compare people's thinking as they were trying to get the right answer to their confidence in their answer.
• The study used a game that required participants to answer trivia-type questions and indicate their confidence in their responses.
• The study used two pieces of feedback: one that provided information only about the participant's response accuracy and another that provided information about the participant's confidence in their response accuracy.

Results

• The study found that people with a growth mindset responded differently to feedback and errors than those with a fixed mindset.
• The study found that people with a growth mindset were more likely to enjoy the process of learning and getting better at learning.
• The study found that people with a growth mindset were more likely to embrace challenges and think about their bodily and brain's response to challenges in a way that allowed for optimization of performance.
• The study found that people with a growth mindset were more likely to distancing their identity from the challenge, attaching their identity and efforts to the process of learning and getting better at learning, and enjoying the process of learning.

Section 1: Introduction

• The speaker, Andrew Huberman, explains the concept of growth mindset and how it can enhance performance and learning.
• Growth mindset is a way of embracing challenges and thinking about one's bodily and brain's response to challenges in a way that allows for optimization of performance.
• The key features of growth mindset include distancing one's identity from the challenge, attaching one's identity and efforts to the process of learning and getting better at learning, and enjoying the process of learning.

Section 2: Growth Mindset vs. Fixed Mindset

• The speaker discusses the difference between growth mindset and fixed mindset.
• A fixed mindset is one in which you're trying to look smart, not so focused on effort, and your response to setbacks is to give up.
• In contrast, a growth mindset is one in which your goal is to learn, you value effort, and you respond to setbacks by working harder.
• The speaker emphasizes that the distinction between a fixed mindset and a growth mindset is fundamental to understanding how to enhance performance and learning.

Section 3: P3 Wave and Error Signal

• The speaker discusses the P3 wave, a certain pattern of activity that emerges during the presentation to the subject that they gotten something wrong.
• The height of the P3, or error signal, correlated with the error signal in the brain that signal was larger in people with a fixed mindset as opposed to in people with the growth mindset.
• The location of the activity was above a brain area called the interior cingulate cortex (ACC), the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) is a structure involved in many different functions in the brain but one of its primary functions is that in the front of the ACC what we call the rostral or anterior ACC activity tends to correlate with emotional responses.
• In the group that had the fixed mindset, when they were told that they got something wrong, there tended to be a greater signal in that rostral or anterior ACC, meaning they had a bigger emotional response to it or at least the neural activity suggested that whereas people with a growth mindset when presented with ah you got something wrong the error signal within their brain tended to reside or even to shift toward areas that are associated with cognitive appraisal.

Watch the video on YouTube:
How to Enhance Performance & Learning by Applying a Growth Mindset | Huberman Lab Podcast - YouTube