Category Archives: grateful

#9 Have a growth mindset

So, you may be asking yourself “What exactly is a growth mindset?” Well, a growth mindset is an actual, demonstrable psychological phenomenon. It turns out that many long-term successful individuals possess certain characteristics that they share with other long-term successful individuals. This set of characteristics has been termed a “growth mindset”. Now, some people, who tend to achieve less than their full potential, also possess a set of characteristics that they share with other under-achievers. This set of traits has been dubbed the “fixed mindset”. Most people, more or less, fall into one camp or the other.

People with a growth mindset tend to have a desire to learn from life. This desire leads to the ability to embrace challenges, to overcome setbacks, to see effort as worth the results, to accept criticism and to admire and learn from the successes of others. These behaviors allow native intelligence to grow throughout a lifetime. (Hence, the name.) People with a growth mindset are believers in free will and this belief allows them to achieve their goals time and time again.

People with a fixed mindset tend to have a desire to appear smart, with a corresponding fear of looking foolish. Their desire leads them to avoid challenges, to give up easily, to see extra effort as wasted, to ignore or reject criticism and to envy and begrudge the success of others. These behaviors tend to limit native intelligence to a fixed amount. (Again, hence the name.) People with a fixed mindset often plateau early in life and fail to have, let alone reach, fixed goals.

The good news is that a growth mindset can be cultivated fairly easily by changing some critical behaviors. First of all, you have to decide to choose growth over stagnation. You also have to be willing to take positive action and begin to accept challenges and criticism and learning from both. An excellent way to begin is by developing the philosophy of “yet”. This simple step simple attaches the word “yet” to the end of every negative thought, as in “That will never work, yet…” or “It’s probably not worth going, yet…” This simple trick opens up the possibility for growth and that possibility leads to changed behavior that actually does cause the development of the growth mindset.

#9 Have a growth mindset

So, you may be asking yourself “What exactly is a growth mindset?” Well, a growth mindset is an actual, demonstrable psychological phenomenon. It turns out that many long-term successful individuals possess certain characteristics that they share with other long-term successful individuals. This set of characteristics has been termed a “growth mindset”. Now, some people, who tend to achieve less than their full potential, also possess a set of characteristics that they share with other under-achievers. This set of traits has been dubbed the “fixed mindset”. Most people, more or less, fall into one camp or the other.

People with a growth mindset tend to have a desire to learn from life. This desire leads to the ability to embrace challenges, to overcome setbacks, to see effort as worth the results, to accept criticism and to admire and learn from the successes of others. These behaviors allow native intelligence to grow throughout a lifetime. (Hence, the name.) People with a growth mindset are believers in free will and this belief allows them to achieve their goals time and time again.

People with a fixed mindset tend to have a desire to appear smart, with a corresponding fear of looking foolish. Their desire leads them to avoid challenges, to give up easily, to see extra effort as wasted, to ignore or reject criticism and to envy and begrudge the success of others. These behaviors tend to limit native intelligence to a fixed amount. (Again, hence the name.) People with a fixed mindset often plateau early in life and fail to have, let alone reach, fixed goals.

The good news is that a growth mindset can be cultivated fairly easily by changing some critical behaviors. First of all, you have to decide to choose growth over stagnation. You also have to be willing to take positive action and begin to accept challenges and criticism and learning from both. An excellent way to begin is by developing the philosophy of “yet”. This simple step simple attaches the word “yet” to the end of every negative thought, as in “That will never work, yet…” or “It’s probably not worth going, yet…” This simple trick opens up the possibility for growth and that possibility leads to changed behavior that actually does cause the development of the growth mindset.

#12 Be passionate

There is probably nothing as important to achieving success as passion. It may sound extreme, but in order to reach a goal, you have to burn for it. It has to be something that’s on your mind all the time. To has to be all-consuming. In fact, passion is the flip side of our previous subject, hustle. The two go hand in hand with each other.

So, how do they work together? Well, the one requires the other. They each, in some sense, drive the other. Finally, without one, you cannot have the other. Hustling, as we discussed, is all about hard work, long hours and the extra mile. Passion is the motivation that gets all that hard work done. Face it, if you’re not on fire about a project, you’re not going to be able to motivate yourself to do the hard work needed to complete that project successfully.

So, how do you obtain or maintain the passion necessary for success? Well, as a business owner you should already be passionate about your business and its success. If you’re not, then you need to examine why. If you’re not doing what you love to do, then you may need to think about what you are passionate about and then get into that line of work. There’s no sense and no reason to waste your time trying to be enthusiastic about something that doesn’t move you. If you are already doing something you love to do, then you’re halfway home. Let your love and passion for your line of work show through in that work. Your customers and competitors will notice the difference.

#12 Be passionate

There is probably nothing as important to achieving success as passion. It may sound extreme, but in order to reach a goal, you have to burn for it. It has to be something that’s on your mind all the time. To has to be all-consuming. In fact, passion is the flip side of our previous subject, hustle. The two go hand in hand with each other.

So, how do they work together? Well, the one requires the other. They each, in some sense, drive the other. Finally, without one, you cannot have the other. Hustling, as we discussed, is all about hard work, long hours and the extra mile. Passion is the motivation that gets all that hard work done. Face it, if you’re not on fire about a project, you’re not going to be able to motivate yourself to do the hard work needed to complete that project successfully.

So, how do you obtain or maintain the passion necessary for success? Well, as a business owner you should already be passionate about your business and its success. If you’re not, then you need to examine why. If you’re not doing what you love to do, then you may need to think about what you are passionate about and then get into that line of work. There’s no sense and no reason to waste your time trying to be enthusiastic about something that doesn’t move you. If you are already doing something you love to do, then you’re halfway home. Let your love and passion for your line of work show through in that work. Your customers and competitors will notice the difference.

#16 Be grateful

It is easy to expect success as if being successful was a right instead of a privilege and a gift. The problem with expecting to succeed is that, without more, the self-absorption of that expectation can slowly and subtly poison everything around you, including your business. True success is earned and when it arrives it should be, and needs to be, accompanied by a strong sense of gratitude. This gratitude is not simply about being grateful for what you’ve achieved. It is about being grounded enough in the moment of success to remember and recognize everyone who helped you get to this particular time and place. Without this grounded gratefulness any success is lessened and will, in all likelihood, be fleeting.

So how do you repay those how helped you in achieving your goals? Well, obviously, acknowledging those individuals and sharing the benefits of your success with them is a great place to start. Yet, above and beyond taking care of your nearest and dearest, you also need to “pay it forward” by becoming a mentor and helper to others who are currently on their own journey towards success. Think about how you can collaborate with someone else in order to further their efforts. See if you can contribute in some way to their projects. This contribution doesn’t have to be monetary. Advice and the wisdom of experience are often far more valuable than cold cash.

This gratitude can extend even further. There are people who are currently helping you every day that you may not see as mentors. Your customers are among these people. Without them, success becomes impossible. Take the time to let them know how important they are. Your vendors are also equally important. Yes, they provide you with materials that you pay them for, but a true grounded and grateful attitude would also recognize each of them for the critical element they play in your business. Look outside the box and you’ll see that success is not a solo effort, it’s a team sport.