Important achievements require a clear focus, all-out effort, and a bottomless trunk full of strategies. Plus allies in learning.

Wow, that's a really good score. You must have worked really hard.

Just because some people can do something with little or no training, it doesn't mean that others can't do it (and sometimes do it even better) with training.

So what should we say when children complete a task—say, math problems—quickly and perfectly? Should we deny them the praise they have earned? Yes. When this happens, I say, “Whoops. I guess that was too easy. I apologize for wasting your time. Let’s do something you can really learn from!

The best thing parents can do is to teach their children to love challenges, be intrigued by mistakes, enjoy effort, and keep on learning.

Why waste time proving over and over how great you are, when you could be getting better? Why hide deficiencies instead of overcoming them? Why look for friends or partners who will just shore up your self-esteem instead of ones who will also challenge you to grow? And why seek out the tried and true, instead of experiences that will stretch you? The passion for stretching yourself and sticking to it, even (or especially) when it’s not going well, is the hallmark of the growth mindset. This is the mindset that allows people to thrive during some of the most challenging times in their lives.

Effort is one of those things that gives meaning to life. Effort means you care about something, that something is important to you and you are willing to work for it.