The mindset needed to succeed in a male dominated industry…
Hey you! 😊
To anyone who is new here, my name is Asia. I am an award-winning self-taught Junior Software Engineer & Junior Blockchain Developer & Engineering mentor & Public speaker; I transitioned into tech January 2021. I am the Founder of a EdTech platform and the Founder of a upcoming blockchain startup which is focused on revolutionising communications within the Prison Industry. I love writing, self-development and just living life in the moment.
University drop out. No handout. Foster kid. Just trying to make a difference in the world, “you are who you are in this world, you’re either somebody or nobody.”
Why is mindset important?
I believe that working on your mindset will allow you to think greater than your environment and get you to achieve your goals. I’m not talking just career goals, I’m talking everything; physical, mental, spirutal, emotional and financial goals.
Think about it, do you ever look at someone who has been through ‘a lot of struggles’ and think “how the hell did they get over that?”. How do you think?The only answer is mindset. Every action we take is controlled by our mind. So, when you’re having a ‘bad’ day, what do most people tend to do? They sit around and dwell on it and focus on the negativity. However, someone with a growth mindset will look and find a solution and focus on what they can control.
One of the best books I have ever read was ‘How to lose your mind and re-create one — break the habit of being yourself’ by Dr Joe Dispenza and a quote that stuck with me was “Warning: when feelings become the means of thinking, or if we cannot think greater than how we feel, we can never change. To change is to think greater than how we feel. To change is to act greater than the familiar feelings of the memorized self.”
I understand we all go through unique struggles, and some extreme hardships and that is when we are faced with two questions:
- Do I focus on what I can control and find a solution? OR
- Do I focus on what I cannot control and let the problem eat me alive?
Everyone who achieves any sort of success it is all due to their mindset, they believed in themselves, they thought greater than their enviroment and they made it work through adveristy and they over came. And remember, success is not just financial! It can be anything from building the world’s largest house, to achieving A* grades, to losing weight, to achieving the highest form of discipline… success is what you make it, what do you want to do but you can’t seem to do due to excuses or obstacles? When you over come that excuse and obstacle… that is success.
Be calculated, think like a Grandmaster in chess. Your daily choices create your life. Think twice before you make a move, eventually you will build the habit of thinking clearly and logically even in the most pressurising moments, just like a Grandmaster; it will lead you to make great split second decisions.
Fixed mindset v Growth mindset:
You need to believe in yourself, believe that you can develop talent, believe that you can develop great abilities. That is what you call growth.
A fixed mindset will lead you down a rut and stuck in a plato where you will never get out. Whereas a growth mindset with lead you to success, to discipline, to control over your life.
Why a growth mind set needed to succeed in the tech industry?
Growth mind set is needed in the tech industry because you HAVE to believe that you CAN achieve what you set your mind set to do in the industry regardless of your colour, gender, sexuality, religion… these factors should never hinder your success and you should never allow it too.
The tech industry is made up of less than 19% of women and 3% of that being women of colour, not only is it male dominated but the industry lacks representation of people who come from underrepresented backgrounds. To top it off 1.2% of funding went to black founders and only 2% to women founders. Are you shocked? I’m not.
People will tell you that you can’t achieve what you speak off, especially in a male dominated industry… that’s where you do less speaking, and more actions. Let your actions speak for you. You need to create habits, discipline and tunnel vision, when you do this, no matter who you come across or what you face, I promise you, you will still keep moving forward.
In the tech industry, it will get hard especially if you are transitioning from a non technical background; things may look alien to you at one point. That’s when you need to keep pushing, focus on the small, daily, right habits and break down bigger goals into small daily ones.
So, go after that tech role, go after that funding, go after that leadership role! You got this!
My top tips to win in a male dominated industry:
- Be Confident — speak, act and walk with confidence!
- Believe in yourself and your decisions — don’t let a male talk you out of your decision.
- Seek mentorship — from both women and men in positions you aspire to be in.
- Stay outside your comfort zone — this is where you will grow the most.
- Strive for the leadership roles and get them!
- Always ask for what you deserve — promotion / raise.
- Forget emotion — think and act with logic.
- Love yourself — you’re unstoppable, you’re amazing, you’re an elegant boss woman!
- Learn the Power of NO.
Most importantly, surround yourself with the right people, your network is your networth. You literally are the product you surround yourself with.
Motivation v Discipline
Discipline is a choice, it leads to an action. Where as motivation is a feeling, which is only temporary. Focus on building habits, daily habits that will grow you internally and then will help you grow externally.
Motivation eventually fades, you will have second thoughts, and depressing feelings and that is where discipline kicks in. Discipline keeps you getting up even when you don’t want. For example, as a muslim, I am obligated to pray 5 times a day, for my spirtual growth, at first I was powered by motivation, eventually it faded. And I couldn’t keep up my prayers; I would make excuses. Now, I needed to build discipline, something that forces me to get up at 5 am every single day and pray and believe that it is for a greater goal. Just like Dr Joe Dispenza says “The quantum field responds not to what we want; it responds to who we are being.” and to be is via actions. Ask yourself, who do you want to be?
Look at myself, left home at 14, got fostered, dropped out of uni, was broke, sofa surfing, no stability, you name it all at one point in my life; motivation eventually ran out, I had to implement discpline in order to elevate physically, mentally, financially, emotionally and spiritually. I packed my stuff at 20, alone and moved to London and focused on a better life for myself.
You think motivation got me to where I am today? Hell no! Discipline however did, and the full belief in myself. Regardless of the breakdowns, the adversties I face and the obstacles that come my way, I WILL always find a solution.
“It’s what you do that changes everthing” — Jim Rohn.
Finally, here are the best resources, in my opinion, to build your mindset…
Ted Talks…
Books…
- How to lose your mind and re-create one — break the habit of being yourself by Dr Joe Dispenza
- Flow by Mihal csikszentmihalyi
- Psychocybernetics by Maxwell Maltz
- Letters from a stoic by Seneca
- The 15 Laws of invaluable growth
- Relentless by Tim Grover
- 50th Law by Robert greene and 50 Cent
- Meditations by Marcus Aurelius
Podcasts…
On that note, have a great evening and I wish you the best…
Asia x
