Competitive environment in which we live and work does put a lot of pressure but if we can embrace the growth mindset thinking, then it can be a real game changer. In a nutshell, the idea launched by Carol Dweck, PhD focuses on the idea of the capacity of personal abilities and intelligence to be expanded with the appropriate amount of practice. If the former is the fixed mindset that responds to challenges by avoiding them and considers failure as a definitive state, the latter is the one that welcomes challenges as well as failure as for it is a process of gaining experience. A growth mindset is critical to personnel and organizational development; thus, it increases achievement and satisfaction. This is how you can build this potent mental attitude.
1. Embrace Challenges
The first of the two central points when it comes to a growth mindset is the ability to welcome challenges. While the fixed mindset individuals avoid difficulties assuming that they are not capable to dealing with them, people with growth mindset consider them as favorable opportunities. To nurture such a mentality, it is necessary to change the perception towards difficulties. To such challenges, do not look at them as being threatening but as a way of moving from one level to the other in skills and character development.
The first step is to assess where exactly in the area of your life you retreat from risks. In other aspects of your life whether is it work, relationships, leisure, try to challenge yourself and do things that you think would be hard to accomplish. When you start overcoming these challenges, you will be creating the capacity to overcome even greater challenges.
2. Learn from Criticism
Receiving criticism no matter if it is in the constructive form might be unpleasant. But this task is among the basic and fundamental ones when it comes to cultivating a growth mindset. A fixed mindset is characterized by the belief that a person's talent is unchangeable, and so they perceive an adversarial relationship between the self and the acts of criticism. On the other hand, the people with growth mindset will look at the criticism as something useful in improving on the work done.
So, the first step towards training in developing a growth mindset should be to embrace feedback as well as criticism. Hearing the truth in the form of criticism looks pretty much like being swarmed by bees; instead of getting angry and avoiding the source of danger turn it into a learning experience. Ensure you get feedback often and when you do get it, concentrate on how you can learn from it. In time people learn to turn criticism from something that is purely negative to a concept that is fundamentally constructive.
3. Develop Passion in learning as well as Curiosity
This paper argues that a growth mindset is built on curiosity and a passion for the acquisition of knowledge. Such people also constitute knowledge and experience seekers who are ever in the process of gaining more knowledge and experience. They still consider learning as a lifetime process while some consider it as just a process of attainment of knowledge.
To develop curiosity, one should try to read or learn new things or try to get interested in new things. Read books, Professional development courses, Workshops or just simply ask someone in the stressful days. Choose friends who make you want to sharpen your knowledge and improve yourself. This, in turn, will help you have a growing desire to learn more and promote the affection toward learning, which makes one be more receptive to change.
4. Develop Grit and Persistence
Perseverance is one of the features of the growth mindset as a personal quality. Generally, while working on a particular project, growth mindset individuals do not quit so easily when they are faced with frustrations. They are aware of the fact that it takes some time, and may need protraction before one acquires a successful position. Grit is the ability to persevere and keep working towards a goal even if the process seems slow or even slightly painful.
To cultivate grit first of all it is necessary to set achievable but demanding tasks for a person. It is possible to approach these goals by emulating what has been explained above: The goals must be broken into smaller sub-goals and acted out in a routine manner. Hear this when you face challenges; it is okay to stumble because it is part of the growing mechanism. These are some of the hurdles that one has to face, do not quit, try to look for the ways on how to continue.
5. Shift Your Self-Talk
The tone of self-communication greatly influences the subject's state of mind. Learners with a fixed-endowment attitude construct self-defeating theories, and these are self-persuasions that utter that one is incompetent, or cannot attain a specific goal. This type of thinking is rather self-fulfilling and can lead to the complete lack of motivation and plain fear for failure.
However, to cultivate the growth mindset the primary shift is on the change of the words that we say to ourselves. It does not sound like, "I can't do this" instead say, "I can't do this yet, but I can learn" . It replaces failure thoughts with learning thoughts. Through restructuring the conversation you engage in over with yourself, you will notice that you are capable of learning.
6. Reward Initiative, Not Outcomes
In today's world, where people are judged by the outcomes they deliver, temporal success becomes the only source of worth. But growth mindset considers effort and progress at least as important as results are in a achievement mindset. Those having such attitude know that the effort is the key to change, although the outcome might not necessarily be positive in the near future.
To cultivate this kind of thinking, try and be deliberate in complimenting the effort you as well as other people place into a challenge or project, even if the outcome may not have been favorable. Reward yourself for the work that you do instead of focusing only on the outcomes of the learning process. This change of mindset will assist you to remain focused and dedicated to the change process since progress can sometimes be slow.
7. Take note of the people you surround you yourself with also, make sure they are the kind of people who are oriented towards growth
Based on the sources, it can be concluded that people affect one's attitude to a great extent. Therefore, if one is exposed to the fixed mindset people all the time, he or she will be influenced by the attitudes and beliefs of such people. On the same note, you establish yourself around others who are growing, it in turn encourages you to as well, thus exercising the attribute of a growth mindset.
Make yourself surround with people who respect study and effort and who are still eager to learn. Always listen to words that make you controversial and venture out like you've never done before. That is where you will gather the kind of people who are also interested in growing, and who will help you maintain your growth mindset.
8. Practice Gratitude and Self-Compassion
Growing up is not a signal that you should be harsh on yourself each time things do not turn up as expected. Of course, it does not exclude the need to remain thankful and kind to yourself on this journey as well. Gratitude enable you to start seeing the positives of the growth journey that you are experiencing while self-compassion enable you to be kind to yourself when experience some hitches.
Additionally, practice positive thinking and introduce elements of gratitude, and self-compassion to the previously mentioned routines by focusing on your achievements. Whenever you face a difficulty state to yourself that it is alright to face difficulties and that the process of growing takes time. This way, you will form a culture of appreciation and self-care that supports the disposition required for change.
