Research has shown us that our own belief systems about our abilities and possible potential is the best indicator of our behaviours and predict our success. This research suggests that there could be two types of mindset that influence our thinking and belief about ourselves.

Two Types Of Mindset.

The first one is the fixed mindset. The people who have this type of mindset believe that intelligence is fixed and that our success comes from innate talents. They also tend to quit when things that do not come easily to them get hard.

The second type are people who have a growth mindset. These people feel they can change, grow and continue to learn through effort and throughout their life. They believe they can succeed and when things get tough they feel they are capable of overcoming things. They tend to have good resilience and greater happiness levels also.

So basically the view you adopt of yourself will determine how you will handle situations in your life. A growth mindset opens your mind to the passion of learning. It will encourage you to grow and see any form of failure as a learning exercise. It keeps the possibilities, hopes and dreams alive rather than shutting them down.

On the other hand having a fixed mindset will lead you down the path of constantly having to prove yourself good enough in both your professional and personal life. But never really feeling like you are good enough just as you are. Not a mindset we would wish on our children so why do we continue to give it our time and attention?

How Can We Build a Growth Mindset?

Believe that your efforts matter. 

People who have a growth mindset believe that their hard work can lead to growth and success. So if you want to change your mindset you will need to start believing in yourself. Cutting the negative self-talk will be a first step. I’m not saying you need to be constantly positive but be at least encouraging if you face a set-back.

View failures as learning experiences. 

For people with a growth mindset they don’t view any kind of failure as a reflection of their abilities. Rather it is seen as a means by which they can grow and learn. So reframe your thinking and focus on how you can improve. Plus what you can learn from the situation instead. It is far better to focus on all the progress you made even if you didn’t reach your goal. Utilize positive thinking and look for ways you can manage your stress, anxiety or fears by focusing on your positive feelings.

Be open to change.

People with a growth mindset are always open to change and are able to take a step back so they can reframe the situation. So you also need to be open to change. That can be a scary step to take but it is also very rewarding. Try to take a step back from any stressful situations you encounter. How could you change it or adopt it to ease your stress, anxiety or fear, so you can better manage the situation? Avoiding things will only cause the fear to grow more. It is better to face the fear in smaller increments and make the necessary changes instead.

Learn new skills and set some goals.

People with a growth mindset will look to face their challenges plus develop their skill set further. So be willing to challenge yourself by learning new skills. Stay curious about what life has to offer and try things that grab your attention. Take some control back by setting yourself some realistic goals also. All of this will help you build your mental toughness and resilience. Facing challenges and reaching our goals will help us develop our knowledge base and skill up. But it will also help us overcome and gain wins which will boost out self-esteem also. It is also a great way to build our motivation to succeed and overcome our fear of success.

Manage your emotions.

People with a growth mindset are able to regulate their emotions. You can also learn to do this by learning to pay attention to your emotions. Meditation and journaling are two ways to learn to do this. Meditation allows us to slow the mind enough that we can see our thoughts more quickly and get back in touch with our emotions and bodily sensations. It allows us to step back and view things with a more partial eye. Following on from our meditation we can also journal down those thoughts. This allows us to start accepting them and challenging them so we can begin to change our mind quite literally.

Find some positive support.

We need positive support and people with a growth mindset recognise this. They know they cannot go it alone. But this has to be of a positive nature, negative people will only bring you back into that fixed mindset. Make sure the people who surround you are there to cheer you on, offer advice when asked, and a listening ear. These people will only want you to succeed in whatever you chose to do in life.

Work With Me.

Remember you are allowed to ask for support. No one is an island. If you need extra support then you can also work with me. We all struggle with stress and overwhelm from time to time. If you find this has become a problem for you and you’d like some support then schedule an appointment with me.