As a leader, work on your patterns of behavior in the face of failure. If someone on the team has made a mistake, it is easiest to pass the task on to someone else, but this is a sign of a fixed mindset. Instead, ask your colleague how you can support them now and in the future, or what they need. Perhaps additional training or help from the team? Teams only become stronger when employees have the opportunity to grow.
#3
Professor Dweck's research shows that people with a growth mindset cope better with problems, while those with a fixed mindset tend to avoid difficulties and give up more quickly.
The Yerkes-Dodson Law shows that there is a U-shaped relationship between task difficulty and performance. Tasks that are too easy cause boredom, while tasks that are too difficult increase anxiety and demotivate. The best performance is achieved when task difficulty is moderate.
If you want to equip your team with a growth mindset georgia mobile phone numbers database encourage them to step out of their comfort zone. At the same time, don’t cross the line beyond which tasks gradually become too difficult and unachievable. If they become too much of a challenge, this can lead to a decrease in motivation, giving up on trying to do them, and developing a fixed mindset.
#4 Create a culture of mutual feedback
Leaders often believe that a feedback culture is well-developed if they provide feedback to the team themselves. However, this process should be mutual. Only dialogue can "unlock" a development mindset in the team.
For example, Google practices “cross-feedback”: managers regularly hold one-on-one meetings with employees, and quarterly team members complete surveys assessing their interactions with their manager. And it works: According to statistics , companies that have implemented employee feedback have a 15% lower turnover rate.
A feedback culture that works both ways shows that the company is focused on development, not judgment. It’s a way for the manager to acknowledge that he or she doesn’t know everything, but is willing to learn.
In addition, it creates an atmosphere of psychological safety. Employees cannot focus on development if they are busy fighting stress and fear of not meeting expectations.
#5 Develop a culture of criticism
People with a fixed mindset believe that their intelligence and skills cannot be improved, so criticism makes them defensive. For people with a growth mindset, criticism is a tool to become better.
If you can instill this mindset in your team, feedback will become a positive experience. The person will see criticism as a learning opportunity, not as an attack – as if their achievements were being questioned.
#6 Don't be afraid of "dumb" questions
A team with a fixed mindset won’t ask “dumb” questions for fear of losing authority. By adopting a growth mindset, you’ll create a culture where everyone can question what they find confusing or resistant.
At first glance, asking a novice why a process is done in a certain way may seem out of place – but it takes courage. What’s more, such questions often allow you to discover a problem that has become invisible because it has disappeared into the accepted routines.
#7 Measure Results, Not Hours
People with a growth mindset like to be judged by results rather than hours worked. This is called “trust work.”
In an interview at the World Economic Forum, former Deutsche Bank HR director Michael Ilgner noted that coming to the office, doing your time and going home is a story where there is no accountability for results. In that case, the responsibility is passed on to someone else.
Ilgner shares the view that a manager should assign tasks and give the team complete freedom. With this approach, employees see the benefits of using their time effectively. After completing a task, they will not have to sit in the office "for the sake of principle."
#8. Take it step by step
Some teams, especially those with predictable, pre-defined responsibilities and work patterns, function effectively with a fixed mindset.
If you still feel like this mindset is holding your team back, start small. For example, improve the information exchange process.
Many problems in companies result from insufficient communication between departments, e.g. when the marketing department has no idea about the state of sales. If both departments share their problems and tasks on an ongoing basis, they will be able to find new ideas for creative solutions and improve the quality of leads.
