Growth Chaining - A Path To Faster Growth And Progress

Did you know that you can have more than One Mindset?

When most people talk about Mindsets, you'll often hear "Growth" or "Fixed" Mindset.

The Idea is that if you have a Growth Mindset, you believe you can learn new Skills and become Better.

On the other hand, if you have a Fixed Mindset, you believe that you cannot gain Skills or become Better.

When most people talk about it, they make it "seem" like we only have "One" Mindset.

However, this isn't True.

We have at least One Mindset in every aspect of our Lives, and within those, we have both Growth and Fixed Mindsets mixed together.

This isn't a good or bad thing necessarily.

For Instance, I have a Fixed Mindset when it comes to Basketball.

I don't think I will become significantly better at the game in any meaningful way at this point in my life.

"Could" I attempt to if I wanted?

Probably yes, and I'm sure I could make decent progress if I dedicated myself to it.

But I also don't have any desire to attempt it, and it is alright.

Having a Fixed Mindset on Basketball isn't going to Impact my life Negatively.

There are only 2 times where having a Fixed Mindset is a Bad Thing.

The first situation is if it is of a Moral Reason.

For instance, if you have a Habit of saying Horrible Things to People without regard to any potential Emotional Impact it has on them, you should work on that!

It's not alright to have a Fixed Mindset in that Situation and you would be demonstrating exceptionally Low Emotional Intelligence (EI/EQ).

The second situation is if it has to do with a Mindset around a necessary Skill or Aspect of something you DO want to Grow in.

For Instance, when I started my own Business, I thought I was Horrible at both Sales and Marketing.

I had a Fixed Mindset when I began.

However, over time I developed a Growth Mindset around Sales and Marketing and it has really allowed my Business to Flourish.

In these types of Situations, you need to Cultivate a Growth Mindset so that you can find Success.

However, some people Struggle with Cultivating that Growth Mindset, for a variety of Reasons.

If that is you, don't worry!

It's just a part of being Human and most other people either are currently Struggling with it or have DEEPLY Struggled with it in the Past.

Is it possible to Change this though?

Could we potentially gain a Growth Mindset faster in the areas in which we need it?

We actually can!

There is a Process that I call Growth Chaining.

The Concept of "Chaining" has been applied anywhere from Teaching to increasing Engagement in Video Games.

The Idea is that to Accomplish something, you can either Break it into Smaller Pieces and master Individual Pieces to get to the Goal, or you take the Success of one thing and "Chain" it to something else to gain Faster Success.

So if your goal is to Brush Your Teeth, you might break it down into Wetting your Brush, Applying Paste, Brushing the Top Teeth, Brushing the Bottom Teeth, Spitting, and Cleaning Up.

You then Master each step and Success in the First Step pushes us to gain Success in the Next Step.

In Video Games you might see it as when you Accomplish the First Move, you then go straight into the Second Move to get a 2X Chain, into the Third Move to get a 3X Chain, and so on.

Generally, the Higher the Chain, the better.

So how does this apply to Growth?

Well, let's say that there is a Skill that someone wants to develop, such as Improving Finances.

Let's say the person has ALWAYS Struggled with Finances (aka had a Fixed Mindset around it) because they have ALWAYS been Bad at Math (aka have another Fixed Mindset).

In that Situation, they are not Gaining Momentum because they have a Fixed Chain - one Fixed Mindset is "Chained" to another Fixed Mindset.

This person tells themselves I "can't" be good at Finances BECAUSE I'm "not" good at Math.

However, we could take a different Approach.

What if we look at where this person "already" has a Growth Mindset and figure out how to "Chain" it to the Desired Goal of Improving Finances?

Perhaps you discover that this person may believe they are horrible at math (Fixed Mindset), BUT they are an EXCEPTIONALLY Organized Individual and LOVE trying to become better at Organization (Growth Mindset).

In order to help them become better at Finances, you come from the angle of Improving Organization.

If they continue to try to "Chain" Math to Finances, they will be Stuck in a Fixed Chain.

If they instead ask how they could Organize their Receipts into different Groups that are Easily Distinguishable, and how those Groups fit into the greater Organization of Finances THEN you begin a Growth Chain.

By playing into their Strengths, you give them a Path to Develop a New Growth Mindset.

As they go through this Process, they may also begin to think that Finances aren't that Hard (Growth Mindset) which probably means they aren't as bad at Math as they thought (A NEW Growth Mindset Starting).

By Focusing on where you already have a Growth Mindset, you can begin to Chain those areas to New Areas to gain MORE Growth Mindsets where you need them.

How long of a Growth Chain can you make?