How Can I Instill A Growth Mindset in My Children, Even on Vacation?

We all have both a fixed mindset and a growth mindset. The moment we stress over failure or refuse to jump in and try something new our fixed mindset is in charge. But when we let loose, look for new opportunities to grow and just plain have fun out comes our growth mindset full of spontaneity and discovery. My children are like most teenagers, techno-geeks. If they aren't playing a video game they are watching someone else play, or watching you tube videos. It is a challenge to get all three of my teenagers off of the devices and into the real world. Vacations are tough because after the long drive, where they are fully immersed in the video realm, I have to draw them back over to reality. They are however not in a fixed mindset, they are looking for hidden clues, new paths to venture in these myriad of first person interactive games. Constantly taking-risks and trying again. Getting a new live every time they find a magical staff, healing herb or secret stash.

How can I keep this curiosity and open to adventure mentality going throughout spring break? Engage them with new experiences. Create challenges for them to conquer at the park- make it up that slide in ten seconds, balance on the teeter-totter without letting either side drop to the ground, how high can you swing. Winner gets a free chore pass. It works every time. The more active I can get them the better. after a long day of hiking they are ready to relax with a great board game. This is my families favorite past-time. Playing board games, like Ticket to Ride, Settlers of Catan, Cranium, Yahtzee, you name it. We are very competitive. It is always our weekend tradition, when there isn't too much homework on their end at least. I taught my children early on that losing does not mean failure, it means better luck next time. It means practice and get better. It means, you can not storm away and pout because we all lose sooner or later. Just have fun. This of course is most challenging for my youngest son, Alex who turns 7 tomorrow. But he is learning.

As with all vacations, it is my goal to spend as much time laughing and playing with my kids as possible. Get up early, hike. Visit museums. Have great debates about irrelevant things. Yea! I said that. But it is fun to argue and pump my kids up into a fun conversation. Anything to get them talking and interacting. A growth mindset peaks its head when we are engaged and feel safe to argue and play without any fear of judgment. Just be yourself and have fun with your family. It is the only family you have and every moment counts.