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Hi there!
I can. I cannot. I will. I will not. I could. I could not. I failed. I will try again. It is easy. It is hard. I will win. I will lose. I will fail. I will succeed. I will give up. I shall persevere. You will agree with me that these positions hold true for whoever speaks it. When you consider these statements, you notice that they are on the opposite side of the aisle. One is clearly on the positive and the other negative. While some may shift positions based on circumstances they are faced with, others have no plans to shift their thinking. The cause? Your Mindset!
Merriam-Webster describes mindset as, “a mental attitude or inclination”. It is a person’s way of thinking that directly reflects the way they interpret and respond to varying circumstances they are faced with. Mindset, philosophy, point of view is an established set of attitudes exhibited by someone. The Oxford dictionary further adds that it could “often be difficult to change”. In addition, the Free dictionary describes it as a fixed mental attitude or disposition that predetermines one’s response to certain situations.
To further understand the introductory statements, there are 2 broad sets of the mind, the Growth Mindset and the Fixed Mindset. The Growth mindset, on the positive side, is having the belief that one’s abilities and achievements could be developed with effort and dedication. One with a Growth mindset exhibits the willingness to engage in continuous learning and accepts failure as a challenge to succeed. There is the ability to view challenges and obstacles not as threats, but as a path to creating better opportunities.
On the other hand, one with a Fixed mindset, the negative side, assumes the established traits as innate and thus unchangeable and cannot improve. Thus, will see effort as futile. He or She is not willing to learn new traits but would rather want to prove self, based on already established traits. The Fixed mindset would, because of failure, completely avoid challenges. The unwillingness to accept feedback, even where constructive could lead to a defensive position. The irony is that one with the Fixed mindset oftentimes could view the success of others as a threat.
Being in a position where you are unwilling to grow inhibits your progress. Imaging planting a seed and you refuse to water it, weed the areas or even prune it, the likelihood is that you may not have a bountiful harvest. This is what it looks like when we lack the ability to positively nurture and guide our minds. The openness and willingness to continuous learning opens the door to a Growth or Positive mindset.
When you then consider these traits, that inhibit your growth, you will agree that there is need to switch from the Fixed mindset to the Growth mindset, which allows for continuous learning. To be able to do this, you must be willing and open. The truth is that the Fixed mindset could limit your potential for growth, personal or professional, lead to low motivation always and even prevent one from developing new and requisite skills needed.
Imagine being in an organization where some members of the team are more skilled than a few, while the one with the Fixed mindset would say, “I cannot compete because they are better than me”, the one with a Growth mindset would say, “I need to learn from them. Whichever way you look at these positions, they are correct. You must realize that your “words are real actions”.
Therefore, having the ability to positively shift your thinking would create immense results.
The question then is, could your mindset be the huge gap between you and your growth? In one of the old cartoons, Pogo clearly points out that, “we have met the enemy and he is us”. This implies that we are our own worst enemy. The ability to swing from one to the other solely lies with us. There is really no need to keep following existing trends because you could clearly chart a new path and create wins if you are willing to learn.
Finally, ask yourself, “which side of this aisle do I belong to”? What do I need to do to improve my disposition towards certain circumstances?
Remember, the Change you desire and deserve is YOU!
Let us create the Change we deserve!
Contributed by: Zinny Obidike
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