I had an insight this week about myself that was uncomfortable, and I’d like to share it with you if that’s ok.
I was presenting to a room full of managers on ‘Leadership, Positive / Emotional Intelligence, and Crucial Conversations’ last week in Alberta. Part of day 1 of my workshop with them was sharing and establishing the importance of Growth Mindset.
Of all the common mindset dichotomies – Abundant vs Scarcity; Grateful vs Not Enough; Employer vs Employee/Union; Long term vs Short term; Ownership vs Victim; Growth vs Fixed – I believe the Growth vs Fixed dichotomy is the most important to understand and cultivate.
When you have strong Growth mindset, you have the desire & drive to overcome and learn. Growth to learn to stretch and achieve in the other mindset areas as well. It’s like the ‘master’ mindset in my opinion.
I was reflecting on how I feel when I’m in a growth season…as I’ve mostly been in (with a few short breaks) since mid-pandemic. I feel some resistance to it at times, usually due to some overwhelm and a desire to pull back & rest.
And while rest and recovery is always a part of staying near peak mental fitness, at times it’s not as necessary as I think it is.
My own insight here is that I could embrace change and transition with even more gratitude. With more ease and delight. With a more welcoming attitude. Appreciating the gift and opportunity of more growth.
A Simple Growth-Welcoming Test You Can Use
The self-test I have implemented, that you can use too, is to think of a recent episode where you were in a growth spurt and getting outside of your comfort zone. Did you embrace the opportunity as a gift of growth? Or went kicking and screaming? Or perhaps somewhere in the middle…moderate resistance to it.
The feeling you recall you experienced tells you everything you need to know about how welcoming you are to Growth opportunities.
A strong Growth mindset would welcome the opportunity. Celebrate it. Appreciate the gift and offering of stretching abilities.
That doesn’t mean you don’t get a little excitable, or even some overwhelm and Imposter syndrome (self-doubt)…however, it means that you choose to embrace the opportunity as a gift of growth. Welcome it with increasing ease. To make you better than you were before.
So as you embark on your next growth journey or challenge, be even more intentional about what feeling you’d like associated with it. Ease. Appreciation. Pride.
And use the simple growth test above to judge whether you are effective at implementing this growth-welcoming mindset.
Let’s Grooooow!
If you're feeling stuck somewhere or want to play a bigger & better game contact me and we'll have a conversation. Email me at info@coachingwithchris.ca or schedule your free Discovery call at https://calendly.com/coachchrisw