The Mindset Series Part 2: Growth Mindset

When you look at the mindsets or belief systems that lead to healthy, vibrant organizations, a critical one is valuing growth rather than the status quo.

Our corporate world is saddled with the belief that we don’t or can’t change, that our values were solidified years ago and we should just play the cards we’re dealt.

Nothing could be further from the truth, and this outdated belief cripples growth.

People can change, but it is true that people don’t like to be changed. Forcing people to do anything with a threat to their job will have a limited long-term effect.

Engagement and fulfillment rise significantly when employees are involved in the changes affecting their lives, plus the outcomes are usually long-lasting.

Change also becomes easier when those involved have a growth mindset instead of a fixed mindset. Coined by Dr. Carol Dweck, these mindsets impact how we behave:

• Fixed mindset: You believe qualities like intelligence or talent are fixed traits that cannot be changed. You also believe talent alone creates your success without additional effort, creating an unfortunate need to constantly prove yourself.
• Growth mindset: You believe that your basic qualities are things you can cultivate through your efforts, your strategies, and help from others. This creates a love of learning and a resilience needed to achieve greatness.

Organizations that embrace a growth mindset can get better over time because those involved — from the C-Suite to contract employees — can change and grow their intelligence and personality through actual experience. Nothing is set in stone.

In this article, we’ll look at the biggest challenge to adopting a growth mindset and how leaders can start to implement lasting, positive change within their organization.

What Keeps Us from a Growth Mindset

We know a mindset that values growth over the status quo makes organizations better. With that said, ask yourself these questions about the modern workplace:

Why do we waste time proving how great we are rather than focusing on getting better?

Why do we hire the safe choices rather than those who will stretch our organizations?

Why do we seek out the status quo versus looking for better ways to solve problems?

The unsurprising answer to all those questions is fear.

We all have fears, limiting beliefs, and behaviors that hold us back, the lies that make us stop growing, taking risks, and showing up fully. To start growing, we must get to know our fears and where they came from so we can find ways to move past them.

This is easier said than done, however. Fear can be ever present, like a shadow. It can be a motivator, but more often, it paralyzes us in key moments. Fear tells us that we’re imposters, that we can’t put our whole selves out for the world to see and criticize.

Ask yourself, when do you feel fear?

A growth mindset can lead to corporate and personal evolution, but to get there, you’re going to deal with some discomfort and risk. You’ve got to be prepared to confront your fear and ask it to move aside so a “love in action” approach can take its place.

Thankfully, growth can start with making small but important choices.

Choose to Change Yourself First

Change happens from the inside out, not the other way around. Begin by changing the dynamics within yourself before expecting to see lasting change outside of yourself.

You have to stop pointing the finger at someone else to change first. When we take responsibility and shift ourselves, people around us begin to shift as well.

If we as leaders want to change organizational culture, we must start with our own actions and beliefs. If we’re trying to be more customer focused, ask yourself:

• What are the values you have around customers?
• What are the values and actions you need to change?
• How can you lead that change within the organization?

It takes courage for a leader to say, “I want to change. I want to act differently and lead my team differently.” It takes even more courage to say, “What’s happening today doesn’t work. We can do something different and I’m going to model that change.”

The work needed to make change happen is difficult and risky, so leaders might face their fear when climbing out on that limb. That’s a big part of the reason 70% of change initiatives fail. But what’s the alternative? Stagnation and extinction.

A growth mindset allows people to thrive during the most challenging times of their lives. The same is true as we confront the challenges found in the modern workplace.

Leaders who truly act from a growth-based mindset don’t have to prove they’re better than others. They don’t claim credit for other people’s contributions. They don’t undermine others to feel successful themselves. They don’t need to.

Growth mindset leaders don’t have to be the big fish; instead, they are able to surround themselves with the best talent and seek to grow together with that talent.

These leaders look at their deficiencies and try to find ways to improve. They can get feedback and develop the skills needed to take the company into the future.

As Carol Dweck so eloquently says, “Growth-minded leaders…start with a belief in human potential and development — both their own and other people’s. Instead of using the company as a vehicle for their greatness, they use it as an engine of growth — for themselves, the employees, and the company as a whole.”

For more on the growth mindset, pick up a copy of my book: The Evolved Executive: The Future of Work is Love in Action