There is one thing all successful and sustainable organizations have in common. They can continuously shift gears and move ahead with the rapid changes in the environment. That brings us to the question-Isn’t mindset change an essential factor that organizations would need to consider when it comes to talent development? In the changing organizational landscape where the workforce dynamics are also continually evolving, individuals with a rigid mindset and conventional ways of working will not be able to raise the bar. It is high time organizations focus on developing the right mindset for their employees.
World-renowned Stanford university psychologist-Carol Dweck beautifully describes the concept of a Growth mindset in her book ‘Mindset’ where she explores the different nuances of mindset in individuals. According to her research, people with a fixed mindset believe that their essential qualities like their talent or intelligence are fixed traits. They spend most of their time documenting their knowledge instead of developing them. Individuals with a fixed mindset create a sense of urgency to prove themselves repeatedly. On the contrary, individuals with a growth mindset believe that their basic abilities can be developed through hard work and dedication. This view creates a love for learning and exploring and paves the way for greater accomplishments and creativity. However, The critical difference between individuals with a fixed mindset and growth mindset is how they see failure. Those with a growth mindset tend to view breakdown as a source of learning, and they find newer ways to overcome the failure next time! On the other hand, someone with a fixed mindset would have given up already.
It is interesting to note how some of the organizations today are working on fostering the growth mindset of their employees through feedback discussions and intervention programs that help nurture the growth mindset. Of course, it is not an easy journey when it comes to bringing this paradigm shift in the thought process of individuals. It helps the individuals and organizations to understand their purpose, values, and ecosystem better! What is more important is to remain in the growth zone and work with triggers that make people move back to fixed mind-set ways of working.
We can apply the principles of a growth mindset in our daily lives. Begin your journey towards becoming a growth mindset leader with these simple touch points:
- Be open to feedback from colleagues or peers-Feedback is an essential component for growth and development. Seek out for information and do not ignore the small cues that the team members are throwing at you while seeking the feedback. Admit mistakes if you observe and avoid the blame game.
- Always reward the effort more than the outcome-A growth mindset leader focuses their energy on looking at the efforts made to achieve the result rather than the outcome itself. They present skills as learnable, invest in coaching, and strive to create a culture of self-examination and open communication.
- Set Learning Goals-While performance-based goals are essential for an organization, learning based goals fosters a culture of learning and development. Setting learning goals will help the team members to take on challenges and expand their boundaries beyond their call of duty.
The learning outcome is definitely a focus area for a growth mindset leader in building teams with agility and innovation.
As Carol Dweck illustrates in her book, ask yourself these three questions constantly – ‘What did you learn today?’, ‘What mistake did you make that taught you something?’, ‘What did you try hard at today?’ and begin your journey towards making the fundamental shift from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset. After all, a mindset change cannot happen overnight but putting your efforts in the right direction can have a profound impact on your professional and personal well being! Let us grow together!
