The Power of Mindsets
DO YOU HAVE A FIXED MINDSET OR A GROWTH MINDSET?
I love sports! Growing up, it wasn’t hard for me to jump into a new sport, in large part because I was born with solid hand-eye coordination. This meant that I never had any trouble catching or throwing or hitting the ball - it all felt natural. In my head, there were people who could catch and there were people who couldn’t … that was just the way it was!
Boyo! I can clearly remember when this mindset was completely turned upside down. It was my first year of university and I was playing on the intramural basketball team. Our star player was Eric - in every aspect of the game, he was leading the charge. Three pointers. Blocking. Beautifully timed lead-on passes. Rebounds. All round incredible!
After one of the games, I said to him, ‘Crickey, you are a natural athlete!’
Eric replied, scoffingly, ‘Natural athlete, ha, not me! As a kid, I couldn’t catch for shit. I taught myself how to catch by throwing this ball against the wall over and over again. All just hard work and long hours!’
Mindblown.
Hello Reader,
WHAT IS A GROWTH MINDSET?
The term, Growth Mindset, was coined by Carol Dweck, an American Psychologist, in her 2006 book, ‘Mindset - the New Psychology of Success.’ The concept is most easily understood by means of a comparison ...
Let’s re-examine the question I asked you in the title of this blog; do you have a Fixed or Growth Mindset? Do you believe that you can improve your talents, intelligence and abilities with effort and perseverance (Growth Mindset), or do you believe that nothing you can do will change the status quo (Fixed Mindset)?
If you are like me, you will find this question a tad unrefined.
NUANCE OF MINDSETS
I urge a more nuanced approach, in the sense that we can have both a fixed mindset and a growth mindset within us. We can move between the two depending on the situation, for example, I believe I will never be good at sciences (physics & chemistry), I will never like olives, and I will always be scared of heights. Conversely, I believe I can develop my driving skills, learn how to be a better public speaker and improve my singing. As you can see from these examples, I have a fixed mindset in some areas of my life, and a growth mindset in others.
So, let’s refine the question: in what areas of your life do you have a fixed mindset? A growth mindset?
Exercise - Find your mindset(s).
Take a couple minutes to scan your inner doings … in what areas of your life do you have a fixed / growth mindset?
Brilliant, once we are aware of our different mindsets, we can begin to work with them.
WHY LEAN INTO A GROWTH MINDSET?
Dweck, and subsequent researchers, have found that a Growth Mindset leads to a wealth of positive outcomes. I have chosen to focus on three; psychological well-being, greater resilience, and academic success (Yeager, 2019; Zeng, 2016; Seibert, 2016; Truebridge, 2016; Smith, 2016; Seligman, 2002).
Psychological Well-Being: when we have a Growth Mindset, we have hope and control. Hope that it (our situation, our ability, us) can change … it will not be static forever. We also know that we can exert some control on our situation or ability - we can be the agents of change if we put in effort and learn. Hope and control reduce anxiety and stress, thus leading to greater psychological well-being.
Resilience: when we lean into a Growth Mindset, we see setbacks as opportunities to learn. Instead of falling into catastrophe and despair when adversity hits, we understand that although it sucks, this experience is an opportunity for development and we can come back stronger as a result. This mindset helps us bounce back and overcome the obstacles that life will inevitably throw at us!
Academic Success: Dweck highlights the phenomenon that if we have a Growth Mindset, we approach learning with more vigour and engagement, which in turn promotes higher grades.
NURTURE A GROWTH MINDSET
It takes many cycles of cutting back and uprooting brambles before the garden can have sustained new growth. The same goes for mindsets, we need to dig them out and plant new mindsets in their place.
How do we develop a mindset? Firstly, we need to recognize that the journey is not going to be easy. Picture a garden overrun by blackberries. It takes many cycles of cutting back and uprooting them before the garden can have sustained new growth. The same goes for mindsets, we need to dig them out and plant new mindsets in their place.
Here is a process you can apply to nurture a growth mindset:
Awareness (reference exercise above: Find your Mindsets): we start with recognizing what areas of our lives have a fixed mindset. Take the time to reflect and explore your inner doings.
What do you believe you can never change?
Finish the sentences:
I will never …
I cannot change …
I am always going to …
Select: Choose the mindset(s) you would like to work on.
Background: explore why you have this mindset. How did you come to this conclusion? Was there a build up to it?
Challenge (reference the hand-eye story at the top): in this section, we are looking for a different perspective. Ask yourself some of the following questions:
Why can’t this change?
What would it take to learn this ability, talent, intelligence?
How do other people see this mindset?
Momentum: there will be ups and downs, times of success and times of trials, but keep driving forward. In time, momentum will build and your new growth mindset will start to blossom untended.
A tool to aid the process is to set visual and mental reminders of ‘Yet’. Understanding the power of yet helps us combat the fixed mindset … we will get there, we can change this, we are just not there yet!
Wonderful! Feel free to reach out for any reason or connect if you would like the support of a coach on this journey!
Happy Improving!
Helping Young Professionals and Postgraduate Students Improve