"Mindset" by Carol S. Dweck

"World-renowned Stanford University psychologist Carol Dweck, in decades of research on achievement and success, has discovered a truly groundbreaking idea--the power of our mindset".

Grow Your Mindset:

Here are some questions from the book. Review and decide if you mostly agree or disagree with each one.

1.  Your intelligence is something very basic about you that you can't change very much.

2.  You can learn new things, but you can't really change how intelligent you are.

3.  No matter how much intelligence you have, you can always change it quite a bit.

4.  You can always substantially change how intelligent you are.

The first two are examples of a fixed mindset.  Numbers 3 & 4 are examples of a growth mindset.  You need to read this book about how the power of mindset can change your personal and professional life.  The research is compelling and it is an entertaining book filled with stories that flesh out the implications of mindset.

"The Thin Book of Appreciative Inquiry" by Sue Annis Hammond

This thin and deceptively simple book is based on the assumption that if a team focuses on what went right whether it be during a meeting, implementing an initiative or running a school, then more good things will continue to happen.  Educators are good at talking about what doesn't work.  Appreciative Inquiry challenges us to focus on the 94% satisfied customers, rather than on the 6% unhappy.  Ask the 94% what we did that made them happy instead of problem solving by talking about what didn't work for the 6%.  The book explains how to do an inquiry process and what to do with the results. This is a great topic for a staff retreat.  It is non-threatening and yields positive results.

"How Children Succeed: Grit, Curiosity, and the Hidden Power of Character" by Paul Tough

Paul Tough has crafted a book that is a must-read for anyone in education.  Motivated by the birth of his son, Tough researches which skills and traits lead to a child's success in life.  He does this by diving into the scientific research, interviewing the experts and sharing what he has found in an engaging, optimistic and well-thought out educational journey with great evidence for why character trumps any other trait in predicting a successful education and future. Buy the book.