How is the human gap opened?

Since ancient times, people think differently, behave differently and experience differently. So one must ask, why are people different? Why some people are smarter or better behaved -- is there something about them that makes them perpetually different from others?

There are plenty of experts on both sides of the issue, some of whom argue that there are indeed physical features that create these unavoidable and unchangeable differences between people. These include the protrusions on the skull (phrenology), the size and shape of the skull (craniology), and what we now call genes.

On the contrary, others hold that the reasons for the differences among people are the differences in background, experience, education and learning methods. It may come as a shock to you that the most famous proponents of this idea are French psychologist Alfred Binet, the inventor of the IQ test.

After studying hundreds of children with learning difficulties, he concluded:

Some modern philosophers assert that individual intelligence is a quantity that cannot be increased. We must confront this brutally pessimistic conclusion. With practice, training and, most importantly, ways to increase your attention, improve your memory and judgment, and actually become smarter than before.

Most experts now agree that it is not an either-or question. It is not a question of nature versus nurture or nature versus environment; in concept, the two often complement and interact.

In fact, in our development, genes and environment are not just a cooperative relationship, genes need the help of the environment to function better. At the same time, scientists are learning that humans have more potential for lifelong learning and brain development than we thought.

Of course, everyone has unique, innate talents. It may be that in the beginning, human beings exhibit different temperaments and talents, but it is clear that personal experience, ability training and individual effort will have an impact later in life. Human expertise "is not a fixed innate ability, but acquired through purposeful exercise". People who are smart in the beginning are not always the smartest in the end.

Believing that your talents are fixed -- that is, a fixed mindset -- makes you eager to prove them over and over again. If you have an average level of intelligence and morality, and an average level of personality -- then you had better prove that you can live up to an average level in these areas and not look or feel inadequate in these basic traits.

Some of us have been trained to think in this way since we were very young. We arranged the seats in the classroom in order of IQ, and only the students with the highest IQ were allowed to hold a flag, take an eraser or write a report to the principal.

Too many of the people I meet have this intense goal of validating themselves -- in the classroom, at work, and even in their personal relationships. At each moment they are asked to testify to their intelligence, personality and characteristics. At every moment, they are being evaluated: will I succeed or fail? Do I look smart or stupid? Will I be accepted or rejected? Do I look like a winner or a loser

But isn't our society designed to assess intelligence, personality and characteristics? Isn't it normal to want these qualities? That's right.

But there is another way of thinking in the world. In this mindset, these qualities are not the cards you have to play, you don't have to convince others and yourself that you have a straight flush while worrying that you only have ten points. In this mindset, the cards you need to play are just starting points for your growth.

This growth mindset is based on the idea that your basic abilities can be developed through your hard work. Even if people are different in their innate talents and aptitudes, interests or temperaments, everyone can change and grow through hard work and personal experience.

Does this mean that people with this mindset believe that everyone can succeed at whatever they want to do? Anyone with a certain amount of motivation and education can be An Einstein or a Beethoven?

That's not true. But they believed that true human potential was unknown (and unknowable); There is no telling what human beings can achieve after years of passion, hard work, and training.