69传媒

Opinion Blog

Ask a Psychologist

Helping 69传媒 Thrive Now

Angela Duckworth and other behavioral-science experts offer advice to teachers based on scientific research. Read more from this blog.

Student Well-Being Opinion

How to Help 69传媒 Try New Things

A shift in mindset is key to the answer
By Angela Duckworth 鈥 September 13, 2023 1 min read
How do I help students who are afraid to try things?
  • Save to favorites
  • Print
Email Copy URL

What can I say to students who are afraid to try things?

Tell them the story of David Fajgenbaum, who I wrote about for as a :

David Fajgenbaum didn鈥檛 die. He thought he would. He almost did.

But he didn鈥檛.

What almost killed him was Castleman disease, an immune disorder so rare that David, a medical student when the symptoms first appeared, had never heard of it.

Pondering his mortality at close range, David realized his greatest regrets in life were not what he鈥檇 done wrong, but rather, what he hadn鈥檛 done at all:

鈥淲hen you鈥檙e dying鈥攐r at least when I was dying鈥攖hese memories become quite insignificant. It鈥檚 the absence of memories that you wish you had made鈥攁nd the realization that you鈥檒l never get the chance to make them鈥攖hat coalesce into a horribly vivid pit of regret in your stomach.鈥

shows that when you鈥檙e making up your mind about what to do, you鈥檙e in an entirely different frame of mind than when you鈥檝e committed yourself to take action. Before you commit to a goal, you鈥檙e deliberative, giving equal attention to pros and cons, shying away from choices that are long shots. But after you commit to a goal, you enter an implemental mindset. Now, the pros get more of your attention, while the cons become obstacles to be overcome and problems to solve.

As a professor, I meet a lot of young people who are experts at deliberating but amateurs at implementing. They fear the unknown. They fear failure. They fear the suboptimal.

David tells me he used to be one of those people.

Not anymore.

His mantra now? Think it, do it.

鈥淓very thought should be broken down and evaluated to determine if it鈥檚 worth doing,鈥 David explains. This is why the comma is so important. You need to take decisionmaking seriously.

But what if you decide, say, that ? 鈥淭hen it鈥檚 go mode鈥攚hether or not you have all the ideal skills to do it.鈥

顿辞苍鈥檛 live life as if it will last forever. 顿辞苍鈥檛 live your whole life on the left side of the comma.

Do help your kids practice proactivity. And model it yourself. What do you want to change in your life? Think it, do it.

Related Tags:

The opinions expressed in Ask a Psychologist: Helping 69传媒 Thrive Now are strictly those of the author(s) and do not reflect the opinions or endorsement of Editorial Projects in Education, or any of its publications.

Events

School & District Management Webinar Crafting Outcomes-Based Contracts That Work for Everyone
Discover the power of outcomes-based contracts and how they can drive student achievement.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
School & District Management Webinar
Harnessing AI to Address Chronic Absenteeism in 69传媒
Learn how AI can help your district improve student attendance and boost academic outcomes.
Content provided by 
School & District Management Webinar EdMarketer Quick Hit: What鈥檚 Trending among K-12 Leaders?
What issues are keeping K-12 leaders up at night? Join us for EdMarketer Quick Hit: What鈥檚 Trending among K-12 Leaders?

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide 鈥 elementary, middle, high school and more.
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.

Read Next

Student Well-Being Download Traumatic Brain Injuries Are More Common Than You Think. Here's What to Know
Here's how educators can make sure injured students don't fall behind as they recover.
1 min read
Illustration of a female student sitting at her desk and holding hands against her temples while swirls of pencils, papers, question marks, stars, and exclamation marks swirl around her head.
iStock/Getty
Student Well-Being How Teachers Can Help LGBTQ+ 69传媒 With Post-Election Anxiety
LGBTQ+ crisis prevention hotlines have seen a spike in calls from youth and their families.
6 min read
Photo of distraught teen girl.
Preeti M / Getty
Student Well-Being 69传媒 Are Eerily Quiet About the Election Results, Educators Say
Teachers say students' reactions to Trump's win are much more muted than in 2016.
6 min read
Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump greets Republican vice presidential nominee Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, at an election night watch party at the Palm Beach Convention Center on Nov. 6, 2024, in West Palm Beach, Fla.
Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump greets Republican vice presidential nominee Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, at an election night watch party at the Palm Beach Convention Center on Nov. 6, 2024, in West Palm Beach, Fla.
Evan Vucci/AP
Student Well-Being Student Journalists Want to Cover Politics. Not Everyone Agrees They Should
Student journalists are grappling with controversial topics鈥攁 lesson in democracy that's becoming increasingly at risk for pushback.
7 min read
Illustration of a paper airplane made from a newspaper.
DigitalVision Vectors