The Magic of a "Yet" Mindset: Transforming Limitations into Possibilities
We are continuing our series on building a mindset that works for you and not against. In the previous article, we explored several tactics you can use to overcome mindset roadblocks and challenges. Those are useful to generate actions that will move you in new directions. There is another component to getting stuck in a fixed mindset, especially when there appear to be real hurdles in your own progress or feeling overwhelmed by where you are at and where you want to go. Sometimes, we have to realize that we just haven’t reach that part of the journey. Yet.
In a follow-up TEDTalk, Carol Dweck expanded on the initial concept of fixed versus growth mindset and explored the idea of ‘yet’. (I honestly encourage you here to pause reading this article and watch the TEDTalk to get a full understanding of her approach with this concept.) Using this to reframe the thinking and open options to what lies ahead. She references what is often a major hurdle for people. “Instead of luxuriating in the possibilities of the future, they were gripped by the tyranny of now.” What a powerful statement. And one that has so many applications to our retail business world.
Learning is a process. Getting to new heights comes in time. Where you see limitations or goals beyond your current experience levels, reframe your thoughts from I cannot do that, to I am unable to do that yet. This opens the door to the possibilities of what lies ahead, without overburdening the current status. It is a subtle shift, but important to see the potential and build motivation for the next best step towards the outcome you are seeking.
The idea of yet has so much potential in so many ways, it almost feels too good to be true. But when you pause and consider what that simple three-letter word makes possible, it also seems silly not to try it and apply it to how we lead our lives and our teams.
“Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly.” — Robert F. Kennedy
Setbacks and failures are learning experiences, not barriers to your abilities. Failure is an option, in fact, often, a necessary one. It is part of being a leader. I have written multiple times on how to lead through momentary failures. You can Find Success in Any Failure. And in, Failing Forward is Part of Learning as a Leader, I mention that it is an important learning stage for new and experienced leaders alike. Moving on from any small setback can always be overcome by a shift in mindset.
Overcoming failure is a choice. Therefore, failure is not a destination; it is a state of mind. — Allen Filson
After providing a list of ideas that can help foster the ongoing growth of your mindset, I also share a caution that Dweck herself called out in her book:
We often see books with titles like The Ten Secrets of the World’s Most Successful People crowding the shelves of bookstores, and these books may give many useful tips. But they’re usually a list of unconnected pointers, like “Take more risks !” or “Believe in yourself!” While you’re left admiring people who can do that, it’s never clear how these things fit together or how you could ever become that way. So, you’re inspired for a few days, but basically, the world’s most successful people still have their secrets.
Instead, as you begin to understand the fixed and growth mindsets, you will see exactly how one thing leads to another— how a belief that your qualities are carved in stone leads to a host of thoughts and actions, and how a belief that your qualities can be cultivated leads to a host of different thoughts and actions, taking you down an entirely different road.
You can read books, you can read articles, or try any number of other shortcuts to success. Nothing will outpace the work needed to understand the differences between how you look at situations with either a fixed or growth mindset. There are no substitutes for hard work, resilience, grit, and generating self-motivation to push forward in spite of any resistance that you encounter.
Supporting your mindset changes and building a process for approaching work, and life with a growth oriented mindset takes work. It is a process. Building better habits and routines that establish successful outcomes become the foundation for each day. Surrounding yourself with other growth minded peers, a support structure that seeks positive change, and a community that embraces challenges will create a network for possibilities and abundance. Tracking your goals, your outcomes, and reflecting on the good things you are doing only serve to encourage further work when inevitable hurdles hit. Reframe the negative self talk to be positive and encouraging. Then, in the most difficult of situations, remember it will come in time, you simply haven’t pushed through yet.
How can you use the idea of ‘not yet’ to build a forward-looking positive mindset habit?
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Photo by Volodymyr Hryshchenko on Unsplash