The difference between a know-it-all and a learn-it-all is the framing of their realities. This is through the mindsets that they have.
What is a mindset?
As Stanford professor, Carol Dweck said, “Mindsets are just beliefs. They’re powerful beliefs, but they’re just something in your mind, and you can change your mind.” She coined the growth mindset term from her extensive research in the field.
Know-it-alls have a fixed mindset about their abilities. They believe their intelligence now is finite for the future. They are afraid to ask questions that could divulge their weaknesses. Receiving feedback is scary and they take it as an assessment of their worth.
Learn-it-alls see a setback as a challenge to overcome and get better. They grow and strive for improvement always. Fear doesn’t shut a learn-it-all down. It wakes them up. The challenge gets seen as an opportunity to grow. The foundation is set where any mistakes made are key learnings. They aren’t ashamed of taking action.
Learn-it-alls see life as an exciting journey and have a love for learning. In school, they can be applauded for their efforts and trying as opposed to the outcome. Know-it-alls take the shortcuts. The escalator and relying on their natural competency as opposed to challenging further. They go with the first right answer which is to avoid the challenge.
It is a perspective shift that constantly serves as a reminder. Everyone can always be becoming something better. We are all human and fall into the traps of assumption. Striving to be a learn-it-all means noticing fixed mindset tendencies and choosing to respond to rewire actions with a growth mindset.