Growth Mindset- Put your Finger on that Fixed Trigger!

We’ve had an interesting conversation over the weekend on our Belbin Whatsapp group on the ‘Growth mindset'. Carol Dweck who has done extensive research and introduced the concepts of the ‘growth’ and ‘fixed' mindset describes a 'growth mindset' as one wherein individuals believe their talents can be developed through hard work, good strategies, focus and input from others. Those with a ‘fixed mindset' on the other hand believe that their talents are innate gifts and prescribed. It has been found that those with a growth mindset tend to achieve more because they put in more energy in the learning rather than in having to prove one’s proficiency. Maria Popova in her brilliant article on Dweck’s work brings our attention to Dweck's discovery:

At the heart of what makes the growth mindset so winsome is that it creates a passion for learning rather than a hunger for approval.

 During our discussion on the group we looked at what would be behaviours that leaders with a growth mindset would demonstrate. Here’s a summary of our discussion points- think a good checklist to keep oneself on the growth mindset path! (Have to thank Thomas Lobo, Pallavi Wagle, Diksha Fouzdar, Sunil Garg, Deepak Deshpande, Stephen Chinnaswamy for the discussion)

• Being open to critique and feedback
• Supportive and encouraging of team members- mistakes are not frowned upon.
• Agile and upgrading self and others
• Forming new learning patterns
• Developing a Collaborative mindset to draw synergies between different teams- sharing information, collaborating
• The ability to ask questions
• Giving credit where it is due
• Excellence as a way of life in everything and everywhere, setting benchmarks
• Being aware, the quality of mindfulness and being honest with oneself
• Practicing what one preaches: consciously demonstrates the above eg: admitting to errors

 Of course today more than ever we need our organisations and people to embrace a growth mindset. This is truly what will enable maximising potential.

 But Dweck points out that this is not very easy. And that’s because there is no such thing as a ‘pure’ growth mindset! She says we are actually a mixture of fixed and growth mindsets and this mixture evolves with experience. When the fixed mindset triggers come in, it becomes difficult for us to put the ‘growth mindset’ into practice. Therefore knowing our fixed mindset triggers and addressing them becomes key.

 Dweck shares one of the main ‘fixed mindset’ triggers is insecurity or defensiveness- When we face challenges, receive criticism or fare poorly compared to others, we can get insecure or defensive. This then inhibits our ability to learn and grow!

 Tackling the Trigger!

 Here is where our Belbin team roles can play an important part. The Belbin Team Roles tell us that we have about three preferred roles, these are our strengths- we play them well. We have about three manageable roles- we can make these contributions, can possibly be a little stressful but often these are contributions that can be developed. The last three are our least preferred roles, these don’t come naturally to us as and as much as we try we possibly don’t do a great job of making these contributions.

 Now when we get feedback for improvement or critique, when we have our team role profile in our mind it becomes easier to replace the ‘fixed mindset’ trigger of defensiveness with one of acceptance. Ask yourself: the feedback you’ve received, does it relate to your manageable or least preferred roles?. Eg: if I have been told that my analysis of a document doesn’t seem to be up to the mark, reflect which team role contribution would this relate to. ‘Analysis’ would often call for a Monitor Evaluator (ME) contribution. Now if the ME is in my least preferred roles, I already realise that this isn’t really a strong point for me. As soon as we are able to accept the same, we are able to take the next step which is to figure how to get this right the next time. The Belbin methodology suggests one of the best ways to do so is to collaborate with someone who has this contribution as a strength.

In collaborating with a colleague, this is where we further develop the growth mindset- consciously appreciating, observing and looking for aspects of the ‘how’ of working that I can pick up or learn from my colleague. This will help me refine my skill but will also increase the appreciation and the readiness to reach out and learn from another.

 Those who operate from a growth mindset do not necessarily believe that anyone can be anything ie anyone with motivation or education can become Einstein but what Dweck shares is that they do believe that a person’s true potential is unkown and this sets one off on an exciting and rewarding discovery journey. In this then, one’s least preferred roles gives one the confidence to ask for help, to collaborate, the humility to appreciate and learn from another. One’s manageable roles give us the courage and stretch to try something new, out of our comfort zone and our preferred roles give us the space to build, explore and further our benchmark of the impact that we can create.

 The next time we sense the ‘fixed mindset’ trigger of insecurity or defensiveness, may we pull out our team role profile, and remind ourselves that we can indeed enhance our effectiveness. Does the situation call for our least preferred roles and hence is it calling us to collaborate and learn from another, is the situation inviting us to stretch and learn something new by leveraging our manageable roles or is it giving us an opportunity to explore and push the boundaries of our impact through our preferred roles.

As we begin the new year may we all truly strengthen the growth mindset.

Check out this fabulous article on 5 Ways Belbin Helps Cultivate a Growth Mindset- Victoria Bird

Readings & References: Fixed v/s growth: The Two Basic Mindsets that Shape our Lives- Maria Popova

What Having a Growth Mindset Actually Means- Carol Dweck

Pearl D'Souza is the Director at PrePearl Training Development Pvt Ltd. (www.prepearl.net) She works in the area of leveraging individual and team resources to maximize results. To know about the next Belbin Certification in India check this out