Mindset and why it matters

Your mindset is what shapes your beliefs about your surrounding circumstances and yourself within them. It impacts what you perceive to be as positive, and as negative. It also impacts how you feel about different situations, and how they impact your emotions and perception. What you choose to believe about yourself and your world, has an undefinable impact upon your future success and happiness.

People often talk about having a “growth mindset”. Having a growth mindset allows you to change your perceptions of your capabilities. For instance, instead of thinking “I can’t achieve that, it’s completely beyond my capabilities” you can shift your mindset into thinking “that would be such a challenge and allow me to grow”. A great strategy to adopt when trying to shift your mindset is to use the word “yet”. Instead of saying “I can’t run a 10k” you can instead say “I can’t run a 10k… yet”. This allows your mindset to visualise your end goal, and you can subconsciously begin to plant the seeds of action that will help get you there. We encourage you to notice any negative thoughts, particularly when they relate to your ability to achieve a goal, and see if you can replace them with positive ones. Over time, your brain will begin to shift, and you will subconsciously be filled with positive thoughts!

Leading psychologist Dweck, in her years of research, has determined there are two types of mindsets - fixed and growth. Fixed mindsets preoccupy thoughts with a need to prove ourselves, and people with such mindsets find themselves seeking out confirmations of their intelligence or personality. This often leaves them living life in a “safe zone”. That is, not taking on increasing challenges, or trying new things, for fear of being rejected or looking silly. Those with growth mindsets however, embrace change and the ability to take on new challenges. If and when they inevitably fail, a fixed mindset leads to an individual viewing the opportunity as a learning experience, that can lead to positive change. As such, they are much more likely to place themselves in new positions and new experiences, whereby they can become the best versions of themselves and meet more like-minded people on their way.