There isn’t really a clear antonym for Growth Mindset: Status quo mindset? Default mindset? Staying in your comfort zone?
It’s easy to settle into routines and familiar ways of thinking, and then feel stressed and overwhelmed at the thought of breaking out of them. It doesn’t help that naysayers will tell you not to bother and stick with the status quo.
Combined, this is why people stay in their default mindset. It’s less about worrying over making a splash when you dive into the pool, but more a question of wondering how deep it is. Will you quickly hit the bottom and get injured, dive too deep and be unable to come back up, or have just the right amount of depth to get the best swim of your life?
If you’re looking for ways to become a better leader, advance your career, expand a business, or multiply opportunities for your people, a willingness to do things differently is the first step.
Because the truth is that no one grows when they are tucked safely into their comfort zone. And, if you aren’t growing and learning new things about yourself and how to lead a company, how do you expect that the business will grow?
A Growth Mindset Integrates:
- Looking ahead. Defining clear goals gives you, and your teams, a unified and focused purpose.
- Doing things differently. You might be able to continue doing things that brought you to this point, though having a method to distinguish between what to keep doing, what to start doing, and what to stop doing is key.
- Making mistakes. Perfection is not synonymous with a Growth Mindset, the pursuit of excellence is. Excellence invites innovation and accepts errors.
- Understanding how you make decisions. Leaders make hundreds of decisions daily. And, it’s not just you. Every day decisions are made by each member of your team that impact whether the business growth you defined will become a reality.
The Ripple Effect of Your Growth Mindset
The Leader’s Growth Mindset is integral to your professional success because it makes you unafraid to tread unknown depths in search of bigger rewards and fulfillment. And, it includes spreading that empowerment to others.
In short, if you are continuously expanding your perspective and understanding how you make decisions, you learn to lead-easier™. That educated perspective translates into how you fuel performance within the business. Your teams will feel how you are developing yourself and empowering them in the process.
Case Study – Growth Mindset in Action
Whether you are a corporate leader or a business owner, this scenario might seem familiar. Listen to her situation as you read this example, with less focus on the specifics of her particular business role.
One of my clients is an executive leader with 285 people who report up through her. Even with 30 years of experience, she engaged me as her Leadership Coach to advance her skills to the ‘next level’ and elevate her career, all in conjunction with raising the fulfillment of her employees.
She was surprised to discover that it was her wobbly confidence that held her back. As our work together continued, her direct reports noticed her new confidence. One stopped her in the hallway to share a compliment on her new energy and decisiveness. She started to notice that the energy in staff meetings was more grounded, and the discussions held a more productive purpose.
As a result of understanding the blind spots she had about how she was thinking about herself, and how that impacted the way she led, she committed to instilling a Growth Mindset. With 30% more confidence (her assessment of herself), in one instance, she calculated that she saved the business $750,000 with one bold decision. She is now on track for a prestigious promotion where she’ll run the entire division. I am so excited for her!
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About the Author: Debra Kunz is an Award-Winning Executive Coach and Business Performance Consultant, and the Founder of the Center for Deliberate Growth®. With over 25 years of experience, Debra specializes in teaching and implementing practical leadership, business performance, and growth strategies that unlock prosperous results at an intentional pace. She delivers in-person and virtual programs for US and international clients, and her unique coaching method includes the option to measure the ROI.