The things I liked about this book were that it moves at a fast pace informationally, the admonition to “challenge your thoughts,” and I love the phrase “Nothing grows in a comfort zone.” I also like how it explains neuroplasticity is real…we are ALWAYS changing for better or for worse.
As for the rest of my review, I am not sure it is a “fair” review because my main problem with this book is that it conflicts with my Christian worldview, but I realize the book never purports to be Christian.
There is a self-help worldview portrayed in this book that is in direct opposition to a Christian worldview. According to the self-help worldview, sin is a problem we fix in ourselves rather than God alone being able to help us with that problem we all have. It discusses the merits of “believing in yourself,” “self-esteem,” “positive self-talk as a superpower,” “having boundaries = self first and others second,” “having gratitude for ‘all the love the world has given me.’” It talks about muting your inner-critic (but it also might be your God-given conscience and it’s not wise to shut that up).
Basically, having a growth mindset = being a lifelong learner and realizing you have more control over what you are learning than you think, so be intentional with your thoughts, time and attention. I think the book written by the founder of the Suzuki Method called “Nurtured by Love,” (by Suzuki) does a better job at jogging our imaginations in this area so that we are stimulated to think differently about talents and what we are capable of. It is a short book, but can be hard to read because Japanese is his first language so some of the wording in English seems weird. Also “Practicing the Presence” by Brother Lawrence is a wonderful book about fixing our minds on God over and over every single second of the day and how that can stretch and shape us.