Mindset: Growth or Fixed

Do you have a growth mindset or a fixed mindset? According to Carol Dweck, PH.D. in her book Mindset, she states that we all have one or the other. The fixed mindset is a belief that your qualities are carved in stone. You are who you are and it matters little what you do about it. This mindset means you either think you are smart or not smart and that’s just the way it is. Failure means “you’re not smart”; therefore, you avoid putting yourself in a position where you might fail.

The growth mindset is based on the belief that your basic qualities are things you can cultivate through your efforts, and very little is set in stone.

So what does this mean? It means the view you adopt for yourself profoundly affects the way you lead your life. It can determine whether you become the person you want. How can a simple belief have the power to transform your life?

Believing that your qualities are carved in stone — the fixed mindset — creates an urgency to prove yourself over and over. Every situation is evaluated: Will I succeed or fail? Will I look smart or dumb? Will I be accepted or rejected? Will I feel like a winner or a loser? Although people may differ in every which way such as talents, aptitudes, interests, or temperaments — the growth mindset says that everyone can change and grow through application and experience. This mindset doesn’t mean you can become anything you want, but it does believe that a person’s true potential is unknowable; that it’s impossible to foresee what can be accomplished with YEARS OF PASSION, TOIL, AND TRAINING.

Ben Hogan, one of the greatest golfers of all time, was completely uncoordinated and graceless as a child. Cindy Sherman, considered one of the twentieth century’s most important artists, failed her first photography course. Donald Trump, in 1997 was considered by many to be a complete failure; today he is regarded as a business and architectural genius. Henry Ford, ridiculed because of his lack of formal education, has created a legacy with his name.

So what mindset have you adopted? Why waste time proving over and over how great you are, when you could be getting better? Why hide deficiencies instead of overcoming them? Why look for friends or partners who will just shore up your self-esteem instead of ones who will also challenge you and push you to grow? Why seek out the tried and true instead of experiences that will stretch you? The passion for stretching yourself and sticking to it, especially when it’s not going well, is the hallmark of the growth mindset. This is the mindset where you will thrive during some of the most challenging times in life.

First Impressions

Is your first impression anticipated, personal, and emphatically relevant? In today’s free market there are plenty of brands, plenty of just about everything and definitely plenty of choices. With that in mind, why do the vast majority of business people leave such dull first impressions? There are several reasons, here are a few:

Most business people sell rather than lead.
Nobody wants to be sold, but everybody wants to buy. In the 80’s and 90’s you did not have blogs, LinkedIn, websites, Google, or Amazon. Today you have a plethora of tools and products that help you lead your prospect to a favorable first impression about you. My experience as a business coach is that most business people lack an impactful “breadcrumb trail” that leads a prospect towards a compelling first impression. Most business people sell rather than write. In the new economy, to get your way, you have to possess persuasive writing skills. Here is what Seth Godin in Permission Marketing says,

“You can now choose whom you reach. When you reach them. The order of messages. The benefits offered. You can create dozens or even hundreds of paths for an individual to follow from the first contact until the highest level of permission is granted. If the marketing messages you send are anticipated, relevant, and personal, they will cut through the clutter and increase the prospect’s knowledge of the benefits you offer.”

The fact is most business people have only their product to offer because their mind has atrophied due to lack of use. Put yourself in the shoes of your customer. What do you know that can help them — not sell them? I have an attorney friend who says, “Tell me what a person knows and I will tell you what they earn.” So what is the purpose in writing? I’ll sum it up with what Jeffrey Gitomer says:

“I force myself to become better each time I write something. I try to make my concepts more clear, I try to make my ideas more convincing, and I try to make the strategy and the methods that I suggest be compelling enough that others will adopt them and adapt them to their style and their personality.” Most business people sell rather than impress. How can you create favor in a prospect? Be impressive, be memorable. Does your prospect see you as a door-to-door salesperson or an expert? In the 70’s and 80’s you could get someone to answer the door. Today the door will not open if you are not remarkable. This means you must be a student in the new economy. Know why people buy. Give people a reason to say yes. Share your knowledge in creative ways. What kind of first impression do you make?

4 Ways to Be Coachable

There is a glaring irony in life. Those that are at the top of a game know they need more insight and help to keep getting better. Those that are not even in the game think they have the answers. I guess this is why those that seek to be the best become the best. They understand that others help them get there.

World class athletes have a coach or several coaches. I enjoy reading about those relationships and how the athlete keeps enjoying greater results from being coachable. The same mentality is required in business for achieving more. Here are four ways to be coachable:

1. Eat and Drink Humility. Coachable people realize they do not know everything. Benjamin Franklin said, “Pride is a funny disease. It makes everyone sick except the person who has it.” Humility has to be chosen in order to see clearly. Without it, there is no opportunity to grow.
2. Ask Great Questions. Einstein’s mother used to ask him every day after school, “What questions did you ask today?” People who cannot be coached have stopped asking great questions. They are in auto-pilot. Either their passion is gone or their self-esteem keeps them from engaging people who have answers.
3. Invest In Yourself. If you were different in how you think, would you get different results? Obvious answer. Irrational behaviors, however. In our knowledge economy, what would it be worth to grow in knowledge? Coachable people connect knowledge to results. They connect knowledge to dollars. They value what they pay for and pay for what they value.
4. Constantly Upgrade. We can observe the rigidity in our parents and grandparents as they age. They love the routine and seem to stay safe. The funny thing is that we become them. They were once us. If you do not flex a muscle, it will atrophy. Train your brain to keep refining. Look for better ways. Never be content. The world around you is constantly upgrading. If you are not in the same mindset, then you will feel the effects of old age.

Coaching does not work for non-coachable people. Success will be limited if you cannot grow. The neat thing is that it is a choice. You are who you have been becoming. What will you choose?

Why Is a 91-Year-Old Still Growing?

“A man can fail many times, but he isn’t a failure until he begins to blame somebody else.” - John Burroughs

Jacque Fresco is 91-years-old. He is a fascinating picture of a human being. He has not limited his thinking or his attempts. He is a futurist who has conceptualized what buildings, ecosystems and life may look like by design. A movie that captures his brilliance and vision has been created.

Most of us will not live as long as Mr. Fresco. Many will not dare to think big like he has. One thing we can do, however, is adopt one simple behavior that has been the strand which has stitched his life together - constantly growing and failing forward.

Catch yourself when you get frustrated at yourself and others. Beware when you rationalize and make excuses. Those are signs of your mindset. You will eventually just grow old rather than grow.

Your Strengths Determine Your Moves

In our training of business professionals and entrepreneurs, the moves they make in their business always follow a path of their strengths. Think of a chess board. Each piece has capability to move according to its kind. So it goes with people. World-class organizations move together in concerted fashions with appreciation for each kind. If a bishop plays with moves of a pawn, it is limited. If a rook tries to move like a knight, it cannot. It does not have the inherent makeup, ability and allowance.

Successful people know their design fully and live into it. That has been my observation. In my own life, I have embraced unapologetically my strength as a Creative Designer. It is why I am able to lead with clarity and speed. It is the value I bring to organizations and teams. The liberation and fulfillment I feel for what I do is because I live fully into my strengths and limit exposure to my weaknesses.

As a business coach and speaker, I have witnessed many people who are like the car getting 8 miles to the gallon that should be getting 25 miles per gallon. They think they are operating at what they perceive is normal. I have also seen others who get the full 25 miles out of a gallon and their passion, drive and influence are measurably more impactful in their endeavors. Want greater success? Beware of what Peter Drucker observed, “Most Americans do not know what their strengths are. When you ask them, they look at you with a blank stare, or they respond in terms of subject knowledge, which is the wrong answer.” Take a next step and know your strengths intimately so you can align with your design.