In contrast, those with a learning-oriented attitude continue to plug away until they reach their goal, like The Little Engine That Could.

FORBES: How a Subtle Difference in Attitude Transformed a Small Store into a Global Brand

This kind of thinking constitutes a learning-oriented attitude.

FORBES: How a Subtle Difference in Attitude Transformed a Small Store into a Global Brand

"They were remarkably polite, self-disciplined and calm and had a good attitude to learning, " she said.

BBC: London teachers' Jamaican lessons

Their attitude is, we want our kids learning English when they're in first grade -- and we're laying off teachers here in North Carolina?

WHITEHOUSE: President Obama on the American Jobs Act in Jamestown, North Carolina | The White House