A little while ago, I heard the following quote: “Nothing develops you more or helps you grow better than starting your own business”.
It could literally have been Suzi Dafnis (CEO at HerBusiness) or someone connected with the HerBusiness Network who said this; I don’t recall.
Having a “growth mindset” is extremely important in this context and will serve us all well as we grow our businesses.
The concept of fixed and growth mindsets was introduced by psychologist Carol Dweck in her book Mindset.
Derived from her research on children’s behaviour. Dr. Dweck coined these terms to describe individuals’ beliefs about learning and intelligence.
A growth mindset is the conviction that our capacities and talents are not fixed traits.
A mindset like that is open to effort and sees challenges as part of the journey and as opportunities to learn and expand our capabilities.
It would serve us well to get used to seeing failure as part of the growth process.
A growth mindset is the opposite of a fixed mindset.
The fixed mindset assumes our capacity to learn and improve is inherently limited.
People with a fixed mindset may think, “I’m not good at this”, “I’m most likely to fail if I try something new”, or “It’s too late for me to learn this”.
A fixed mindset closes down possibility and creativity.
A person with a growth mindset believes in their ability to learn and grow and that mistakes and setbacks are not actually mistakes and setbacks but opportunities to learn.
A fixed mindset closes down possibility and creativity.
This mindset encourages persistence.
Women, in particular, may have a fixed mindset and make “fixed mindset meanings” of their failures.
We tend to use language such as “I am not good at XXX” or “Everyone else is already better at this than me”, and we tend to identify with our failures by looking at them as a sign that we should not be pursuing our desired outcome.
It can, therefore, disconnect us from our inner resources.
Coaching can help with this. A coach can often hold a better vision of your growth potential than you can yourself.
Everyone can grow through practice, focus and awareness. Instead of being worried about being judged or evaluated, we need to be more open to feedback and suggestions for growth, and this will, in turn, lead us to be less judgmental of others.
People with a growth mindset will be more oriented toward self-improvement and more likely to seek feedback.
They will turn an obstacle into an opportunity to learn and grow rather than a sign of inadequate abilities. This is where we can put our creative thinking hat on, go into problem solving mode and try to think of a way around the obstacle.
A growth miDevelop a growth mindset – it will serve your business well.ndset acknowledges that progress takes time but is achievable and that abilities and skills develop through practice and application.
Hiding weaknesses actually prevents growth.
When we allow ourselves to be vulnerable, we can be more authentic and, that way, be more relatable and allow others to shine in areas that are not our own strengths.
Focus on developing your strengths instead of your weaknesses, and you will enjoy the process tenfold.
Prioritise learning over appearing competent.
Practice meeting any struggles with curiosity. Next time you are faced with a challenge, ask yourself:
“OK, so what lesson lies hidden for me in this challenge? What is this situation telling me that I need to learn?”
And perhaps you can even allow yourself to take a break to gather energy to implement the new learning.
GET YOUR COPY OF DR DWECK’S BESTSELLING BOOK – MINDSET
For more insights, you can grab your copy of Mindset by Dr Carol Dweck here!
