How do you cope with change? How good are you at adapting to new situations? Do you have a growth mindset? Are you resilient?

We are living in an unprecedented situation. We are constantly dealing with change and uncertainty, but we are also facing new opportunities every day. Are you ready to reimagine the world?

Reimagining the world

Crisis and tough circumstances tend to have an empowering effect on people, careers, and even countries. Some of the biggest companies were created or found their identity during their crisis. 

It is what inspires our creativity and makes us think outside the box. Being uncomfortable and outside our comfort zone can help us grow. 

“You need to be comfortable with being uncomfortable”.

Reality and facts are common to everyone, the only difference is how you perceive and react to them. 

Choosing to be proactive and look at the opportunity is entirely up to you. 

You can evolve and help create the new reality or you can sit back and wait to go back to the old ways and become obsolete by the end of the year. 

A growth mindset and Resilience

“In a growth mindset, people believe that their most basic abilities can be developed through dedication and hard work—brains and talent are just the starting point. This view creates a love of learning and a resilience that is essential for great accomplishment.” (Dweck, 2015)

“Psychologists define resilience as the process of adapting well in the face of adversity, trauma, tragedy, threats, or significant sources of stress—such as family and relationship problems, serious health problems, or workplace and financial stressors. As much as resilience involves “bouncing back” from these difficult experiences, it can also involve profound personal growth.” (American Psychological Association)

These are, under our current circumstances, the most essential aspects of a leader. 

You are now given the opportunity to create new systems, new ways of working, be more creative, and think differently. Even more important, there are no wrong answers because the truth is we have never been in this situation before. So there are no previous responses, we can come up with our own creative solutions to the problems we are facing. 

Having a growth mindset and being resilient will help you see the opportunities of the future instead of being stuck in the problems of the past. 

How to cultivate a growth mindset

We must stress, this change in mindset is not something that is achieved in a day. It is rather something you need to work on every day, but the results will be with you forever. 

Pay attention to your thoughts. Since a mindset is just a belief, changing your thoughts should be the first step towards a growth mindset. Thoughts create feelings, that become emotions, and these influence your behaviour. This is how important thoughts are but unfortunately, we still don’t give them enough credit.

Focus on the process rather than the outcome, this way you can appreciate all you have done instead of worrying about how much you still need to do. 

Don’t be afraid of what you don’t know, because you have the possibility to learn. Accept that you will need to put time and effort into it but that you are capable of evolving. 

Change doesn’t happen outside, it happens inside. This transformation influences and inspires us to change the outside, but it only happens if you embrace the opportunity to change and improve yourself. Once this happens, great things can be achieved.

The Optimist View…

As Optimists, we believe it is our duty to reimagine the world and create a better and more efficient one. It is not an easy task, but you are not alone either, we would love to help. Are you ready to be part of the change?

At Optimist Performance, we specialise in helping individuals and teams maximise their potential, by supporting them in the rediscovery of their purpose and the realignment of their goals and values, to ensure the delivery of long-lasting behavioural change.  

Get in touch with us and learn more about how we can help you or your team with our executive coaching or leadership development programmes.