Self-Assessments

Are you wondering about how you stack up with regards to resilience and perseverance? Take a few of these self-assessments to learn more about your levels of these important traits.

Self-Compassion

Self-compassion is recognizing when you are having a difficult time and caring for yourself instead of judging yourself harshly.

skinned knees with bandages

From Kristin Neff, pioneer in self-compassion research and author of Self-Compassion:

Instead of mercilessly judging and criticizing yourself for various inadequacies or shortcomings, self-compassion means you are kind and understanding when confronted with personal failings – after all, who ever said you were supposed to be perfect?

Resilience

Resilience is the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties.

tree regrowing from stump

From Kendra Cherry, author of the article "Importance of Resilience: Coping With Crisis":

Resilient people are able to utilize their skills and strengths to cope and recover from problems and challenges... Instead of falling into despair or hiding from problems with unhealthy coping strategies, resilient people face life's difficulties head on. This does not mean that they experience less distress, grief, or anxiety than other people do. It means that they handle such difficulties in ways that foster strength and growth. In many cases, they may emerge even stronger than they were before.

Growth Mindset

Mindsets are your beliefs about yourself and your most basic qualities. Depending on your mindset, attributes such as intelligence, temperament, and talent are either fixed or can be developed.

hiking up a hill

From Carol Dweck, author of Mindset: The New Psychology of Success:

A fixed mindset comes from the belief that your qualities are carved in stone – who you are is who you are, period. Characteristics such as intelligence, personality, and creativity are fixed traits, rather than something that can be developed.

A growth mindset comes from the belief that your basic qualities are things you can cultivate through effort. Yes, people differ greatly – in aptitude, talents, interests, or temperaments – but everyone can change and grow through application and experience.