Alright, let’s talk about your mindset. Does it matter? YESSS!!! I know that may have been a no brainer, but seriously. I wanted to talk about this because it is the single most significant reason why you will be successful or fail. There are good people I had to stop being friends with because their mindsets didn’t match mine. Some minds will never see what you see and that’s okay. But what does this have to do with you???
Before I get into it… I want to tell you the mindset you should adopt. A growth mindset is the belief that abilities and intelligence can be developed through effort, learning, and persistence. It is the embracing and acceptance of things Unlike a fixed mindset, which sees traits as unchangeable, a growth mindset encourages resilience, adaptability, and a positive outlook, which are things essential to overcoming adversity. If you want long term success, you’ll need it.
What Growth Mindset Does
Challenges are opportunities. Problems are opportunities. Adversities are opportunities! We are faced with them because we are strong enough to face them. They are tests, and we must RISE to the challenge of said tests! Depending on the way you handle them is a paramount to telling how strong and effective of a person you are. Embrace them, and they will make you harder, better, faster, stronger, and ultimately more effective! With a growth mindset, you’ve already won.
A growth mindset is practical to become resilient. For example:
- An entrepreneur reframes a failed product launch as a lesson in market fit.
- A student embraces mistakes in math as stepping stones.
- An athlete sees defeat as motivation to train harder.
If you own a business, if you play a sport, if you lead a team, if you raise children, if you’re trying to impress that hot guy or that hot chick, if you just want the MOST out of life, then your life’s success now depends on a growth mindset. Without it, you will fail, or you will simply rely on luck, in which case you may as well be a gambler.
With a growth mindset you can expect:
- Daily effort to shift thought patterns.
- Reframing setbacks as learning experiences.
- Recognizing negative self-talk and replacing it.
- Setting realistic but challenging goals.
- Surrounding yourself with supportive influences.
- Practicing gratitude and affirmations.
Life Without a Growth Mindset
This is dangerous! Quitters live without a growth mindset, and they’re real Debbie downers. You may have heard of a fixed mindset, which is the exact opposite. Anyone that avoids challenges, quits too early, is scared to fail, and negatively reacts to criticism most likely has a fixed mindset. Avoid those people.
Alright, for the people in the back, a fixed mindset is the belief that intelligence, talent, abilities, and outcomes are unchangeable things—it is what it is, and it isn’t what it isn’t. Thinking like that creates a closed loop where effort feels pointless and progress just plain stops.
When you believe your abilities are fixed like that, challenges seem scary instead of exciting, and failure feels like proof that you’re not good, when the reality is you actually are world class at what you do. This limiting belief causes avoiding risks, giving up easily, and missing opportunities for personal or professional growth. That’s exactly the premise of being an entrepreneur! And if that sounds like you, I bid you keep reading, for your own sake.
Let me change your mind:
I’m about to bust some myths right now to maybe convince you why having a fixed mindset makes no sense.
- Myth 1: “Growth mindset just means being positive all the time.”
Not true; it’s about learning, not blind optimism. As you grow, you must be able to combat adversity, and the only way to do that is by learning how to do it, which is growth in and of itself.
- Myth 2: “You either have it or you don’t.”
Fake news! it can be developed. That’s up to you and your determination to actually improve. In that case, you either choose to do it, or you choose not to.
- Myth 3: “It’s only for kids.”
This ain’t Trix! it applies at every stage of life. There are 11 year old billionaires and 80 year old first time fathers. There’s no need to make that make sense because these are real examples.
- Myth 4: “Growth mindset ignores failure.”
Lies! It embraces failure as feedback. There’s a reason something didn’t work. It is worth your time and energy to find out why, and pivot accordingly.
Life With a Growth Mindset
Now with a growth mindset, life feels like you’re chewing 5 gum everyday! You have a totally different outlook on what’s possible, and you see the world as yours to conquer. Setbacks become stepping stones, learning accelerates, and opportunities multiply.
I remember when I was starting out, and had no clue about business. When I started my first etsy store selling things I thought were cool, but didn’t even think anyone would buy them. But guess what, I continued to work on my marketing, my exposure, and the quality of my products, and I was making up to $400 a month in college making bracelets!
I could have easily stopped on the second month, after realizing no one was going to buy my bracelets. But seriously, come on. I knew I was better than that. I was confident in my ability to succeed because people wanted the bracelets I made. I knew they would do well, and they did. Even if they didn’t, I would have learned something either way.
Now, I sell web services for upwards of $4000 a website with rendered with a many other web based services. It’s fantastic!
Why This Matters
Wanna know why it matters? For entrepreneurs and individuals, mindset isn’t just abstract—it’s practical. The way you think directly affects your results, relationships, and resilience. A man once said “your mind has to show up before you do. Once your mind is convinced without a doubt that it is worthy of more from your efforts, it will find a way to realize that subconsciously! A growth mindset can transform setbacks into lessons and keep you moving toward your goals.
It’s almost simple psychology. It may come off as sort of strange, because one could argue it can create delusions. But if you think about it, all ideas are just delusion until they work. I’ll admit, $4000 for a website was delusion once upon a time. But guess what… I have clients! And they love my products!
You WILL be surprised. Here’s why
If you ever think your ideas are stupid or dumb, just remember, a man once sold a rock you can call a pet and made millions of dollars. A better example: have you ever heard of the PFC (Pillow Fighting Championship)? Google it… you won’t be disappointed. Just remember, someone was sitting down talking to someone else about an idea one day, made it real, and it became a hit!
The PFC has sponsors, rules, dedicated rings, specialized equipment, a fighting ring, television broadcasters, play by play announcers, and most importantly worldwide fans! It’s very entertaining! I’m not saying this to downplay the PFC, but what I am saying is that something as unconventional as that went on to be a world class business idea.
Key Components of Growth Mindset
- Beliefs: Conviction that you can grow.
- Attitude: Positive, open to feedback.
- Language: Empowering words like “I will” over “I can’t.”
- Focus: Energy directed at what you can control.
- Resilience: Ability to bounce back after failure.
- Environment: Surroundings that nurture growth.
Quick recap
So just to recap, a growth mindset will take you places you never thought you could go. Your mind is so much more capable than you think. It can build you up as well as it can destroy you. A growth mindset means believing abilities can be developed through effort, learning, and persistence, while a fixed mindset assumes talents are set in stone.
With growth thinking, failure becomes feedback, challenges turn into opportunities, and resilience grows stronger over time. Without it, fear of failure, resistance to feedback, and self-doubt can hold people back from reaching their potential. For entrepreneurs and anyone seeking progress, adopting a growth mindset is the difference between staying stuck and moving forward with confidence.
Remember follow the below and you will be alright:
- Reframe failure as feedback.
- Use empowering language.
- Write down goals regularly.
- Focus on controllable actions.
- Surround yourself with growth-oriented people.
- Practice gratitude and mindfulness.
- Seek feedback actively.
- Take risks with calculated optimism.
What Can You Do Right Now?
Well, for you, I have created a checklist below of what you need to affirm daily until you can break out of any fixed mindset issues you may be having. Do these:
- Identify fixed-mindset thoughts.
- Reframe failure as learning.
- Write down goals.
- Use affirmations and empowering language.
- Seek supportive people.
- Take small risks to build resilience.
- Track progress regularly.
- Keep learning, always.
Do this, and watch your possibilities soar above anything you’ve ever known.
