Adopting a Growth Mindset for Your Business

Whether your business is recruiting staff, planning an expansion, or going through a difficult patch, adopting a growth mindset will let you see opportunities where others see obstacles.

Growth Mindset is a term that is frequently bandied about and often misunderstood.

So what does it actually mean?

And how can you cultivate a growth mindset?

And how will it benefit your business?

Growth mindset is the belief that you can improve your skills and abilities with practice. Fixed mindset is the belief that you are either good at something or you’re not. And there is nothing you can do to change it.

If you are running your own business, it is almost inevitable that you’ve had to learn new skills along the way. Most self-employed people have had to get to grips with the finances, admin, recruitment, marketing, time management and planning at some point in their entrepreneurial journey. The fact you’ve learned these new skills is a demonstration of your growth mindset.

We all possess a degree of growth mindset – but if you can make it a bigger part of your thinking and adopt it into your business life as a matter of course, you’ll reap the benefits.

How can you adopt a Growth Mindset?

1. Welcome Feedback

When you’re given feedback, view it as an opportunity to learn rather than as criticism. I have a friend who says feedback is a gift, because they see it as a direct route to improvement. So listen to feedback – sometimes you may need to read between the lines, as it may be given indirectly. And when you’ve really embraced a growth mindset, ask for constructive feedback at every opportunity.

2. Embrace Mistakes
I once heard about a CEO who told staff that if they didn’t fall off their bike, they weren’t riding fast enough. This was a culture that encouraged risk-taking and accepted that mistakes would happen as a result. But this was part and parcel of their growth mindset – take risks, make mistakes, learn, adapt and move forward.

The result was that people challenged themselves and their colleagues. They took risks and found new ways of solving problems, new ways to work and new ways to delight their customers. It was an innovative culture that kept the business ahead of their competition.

Don’t fear mistakes. Seek them out, embrace them, understand why they happened, learn, adapt and move forward.

3. Relish a challenge

When an obstacle gets in the way of your goal, what’s your attitude?

Do you enjoy the challenge of finding a solution and beating the problem? Or do you feel defeated before you’ve even started?

A growth mindset will put the challenge in a positive light. It’s an opportunity to flex your mind muscles, stretch yourself and find a way to overcome the obstacle. At the end, you’ll have learnt something and achieved your goal.

Carol Dweck talks about reframing the situation through language. Saying “I don’t know how to solve this problem” is very different to “I don’t know how to solve this problem yet”. The first approach defines the situation as a failure before you’ve even started. The second approach signifies that success is on its way. The way you talk about yourself will affect how you behave, which in turn affects the outmode.

4. Be curious

Ask questions, seek out new ideas, read self-improvement book – treat every day as a school day.

Ask advice from others, whoever they are and whatever their position.

Curiosity will lead you to new knowledge, new solutions and new ideas – all of which will help you to grow.

Don’t be afraid to dig deeper because you may well unearth something valuable.

By taking every opportunity to employ a Growth Mindset approach, you will become more agile in business and find it easier to tackle obstacles and to face challenges. You will be less fearful of failure and consequently more open to risk. Taking risks will create opportunities to move your business forward and for you to develop as a business owner.

Are you ready?

As we say at Your Business Matters, “On your marks, get set, grow’!
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If you’d like to hear more ideas for small business owners, connect with me on LinkedIn . I’d love to meet you and learn about you and your business.