The Growth Mindset Workbook for Teens: Say Yes to Challenges, Deal with Difficult Emotions, and Reach Your Full Potential

Learn how changing your mindset can change your life!

Do you ever give up when things are difficult? Sometimes we all say things like, “I’m bad at math, so there’s no point in studying” or “I can’t change—so why bother trying.” This is called having a fixed mindset. When you have a fixed mindset, you take failure as evidence that you’re not good at something.

On the other hand, a growth mindset is a way of viewing yourself and the world that says, “I may not know how to do this now, but with effort, I can learn.” People with a growth mindset believe they can learn from challenges and setbacks—that they have constant potential for growth, change, and improvement. So, how can you develop a growth mindset?

Written by experts in growth mindset and neuroscience, this easy-to-use workbook will show you how to change the way you think, so you can change your life. You’ll learn powerful, proven-effective skills for coping with difficult feelings—including sadness, worry, and anger. And, most importantly, you’ll find the tools you need to transform a fixed mindset into a growth mindset, make change happen, and reach your highest aspirations. 

If you want to go from “No, I can’t do it,” to “Yes, bring it on!” this workbook will show you how to build a growth mindset and boost your confidence, so you can be your very best. Look out, world!

Jessica L. Schleider, PhD, is assistant professor of psychology at Stony Brook University, where she directs the Lab for Scalable Mental Health. Schleider completed her PhD in clinical psychology at Harvard University, her doctoral internship in clinical and community psychology at Yale School of Medicine, and her BA in psychology at Swarthmore College. Her research on brief, scalable interventions for youth depression and anxiety has been recognized via numerous awards, including a National Institutes of Health Director’s Early Independence Award; the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies (ABCT) President’s New Researcher Award; and Forbes’s “30 Under 30 in Healthcare.”

Michael C. Mullarkey, PhD, is a postdoctoral fellow at Stony Brook University. He previously completed his PhD in clinical psychology at The University of Texas at Austin, his doctoral internship in clinical psychology at Stony Brook University, and his BA/MA in psychology at American University. Mullarkey has been recognized as a Bridging Barriers Fellow and the Top Student Researcher in the Mindfulness Special Interest Group of the ABCT. He has partnered with nine high schools and colleges to test and disseminate single-session interventions for depression and anxiety.

Mallory L. Dobias, BS, is a clinical psychology PhD student at Stony Brook University, with a BS in psychology from The University of Texas at Austin. Dobias has contributed to the development and/or dissemination of six different mental health interventions for depression and anxiety. Through intervention research, she disseminated an online growth mindset program to over 2,900 students in seven Texas high schools, and developed her own first-authored intervention program that is now undergoing research evaluation at the Child Mind Institute in New York City, NY.