To advance your team to a growth mindset, you must establish the work environment and organizational culture into one where learning, experimentation, and continuous improvement are normalized. Effective leaders set the tone by acknowledging challenges openly and transparently, by modeling curiosity and by treating mistakes as data rather than failures. When team members witness that adaptability, effort, and progress are placed at a higher value than perfection, the result is their increased willingness to innovate.
The Benefits
- Increased collaboration and cross-generational knowledge sharing
- Resiliency amasses in the face of change
- Lines in the hierarchy of an organizational chart blur to foster full contributions of team members’ talent
Without a Growth Mindset
- Stagnation leads to a lack of relevancy to customers and community
- Processes remain outdated and static, reducing organizational agility
- Team identity is fixed and distrust takes root
Some Reflection Prompts
- Have you recently assessed or surveyed your team to determine how psychologically safe they feel and to determine if they feel they are able to use their full bank of talents?
- When is the last time you have supplanted an outdated process, stepping forth to indicate that it’s just not working anymore?
Success Story
Serving as an evaluator for a new pilot program at a colleague’s organization, I witnessed team members who knew that change was needed and were clearly dedicated to it, but they had no voice. When prompted to share during activities in the pilot program, many were silent. Their nonverbal communication showed, however, that they had a great deal they were not saying and likely wonderful ideas for improvement and innovation.
After discussing with program facilitators that participants might feel psychologically unsafe to speak freely, subsequent sessions began with relationship-building exercises designed to establish a safe environment and allow participants to connect. Since then, there has been an increased sharing of thoughts and ideas, several of which will provide immediate positive returns for the organization.
Takeaway
“Becoming is better than being.” — Carol Dweck
A growth mindset emphasizes learning, effort, and resilience. It is an ongoing process, not a fixed state. Being comfortable sitting in the knowledge that you’re never really “done” is the hallmark for continuous improvement.
