Most students are happy to just get a passing grade on their university research projects, but Larry Page and Sergey Brin founded an empire on theirs. In the 1990s, a young man named Larry Page was doing research at Stanford University and struggling to sell some of his inventions.
Fortunately for him, no-one wanted to buy them. So, with his grad school buddy, Sergey Brin, in 1998, he set up his own company, Google, to launch the universal search engine that many of us use today.
Despite numerous setbacks, he persevered and created one of the most well-known and successful companies in the world. Why did he succeed? Well, Larry Page is an advocate of moonshot thinking, if you haven’t heard this term, it means, having a healthy disregard for what people say is impossible.
So, what motivated Larry Page to change our world. It’s called your mindset. It’s your collection of thoughts and beliefs that shape your thought habits – that affects how you think, what you feel, and what you do. Your mindset impacts your attitudes, philosophy and world view.
Your mindset is a big deal. And there’s a lot of talk today about the topic of your mindset. What is it? And why is it so important? Well let’s have a look at Thierry Henry, a world-famous footballer.
When Thierry Henry first moved to the UK Arsenal team from France, he was short on confidence and low on goals; in fact, he failed to score in his first 8 games in the Premier League. So, what did he do? But he refused to give up. Rather he persevered.
Henry says although he had self-doubts about his ability, he decided he had to re-learn all he could about the art of striking or kicking a goal. He practised and practised and today he is remembered as the player who has scored more international goals than any other player in France’s history and who is considered one of the most prolific goal scorers of his time.
He didn’t become a famous striker by giving up. Too often we only see a person’s success, we don’t see the hours of dedication and practice to fine tune the skills. Being successful takes time and what is called a growth mindset.
Here are some Characteristics of a Growth Mindset:
1.Believes intelligence and talents can be developed.
2.Believes effort and practice is the path to mastery.
3.Believes mistakes are an essential part of learning.
4.Views failure as an opportunity to learn.
5.Believes failures are just temporary setbacks.
6.Embraces challenges.
But there are two main mindsets, a growth and a fixed mindset. In a fixed mindset, the person believes that they cannot change or improve their current abilities, intelligence or talents. It prevents skill development and progress and inhibits your self-esteem and well-being.
So, let’s have a look at the difference a mindset can make. How could we change a fixed mindset to a growth mindset? Let’s have a look at some suggestions.
1. I’m not good at that. INSTEAD YOU COULD SAY… If I’m not good at it now, but I can always become better at it through practice.
2. That’s too hard, I struggle with it, I can’t learn that. INSTEAD YOU COULD SAY… I can learn whatever I want or need to, I just have to decide to do it.
3. There’s no point me trying, I’m just going to fail. INSTEAD YOU COULD SAY… I see failures as opportunities to learn, to reassess, and to do better next time.
4. I see feedback as a personal attack. INSTEAD YOU COULD SAY… I can find the value in every bit of feedback I receive. It will help me focus on where I can improve.
5. I can’t make this any better. INSTEAD YOU COULD SAY… I can always do better at something if I want to, but it will take effort. What could I have done better? How can I carry this forward?
6. I feel threatened by the success of others. INSTEAD YOU COULD SAY…When I see others succeed, it makes me think that I can too. What did these people do that made them so successful, and what can I learn from them?
7. I can’t improve my current abilities. INSTEAD YOU COULD SAY… My determination and effort are the measures of my outcome. I can improve my abilities if I really want to.
8. I already know everything I need to know. INSTEAD YOU COULD SAY.. I enjoy learning and growing, and learning is a lifetime pursuit for me.
9. I’ve always been told I can’t do that. INSTEAD YOU COULD SAY… No one can know my potential. I must discover it for myself, independent from outside opinion and influence.
Wow, what an amazing difference a growth mindset can make to your beliefs and your future. A growth mindset is the belief that you are in control of your own ability, and can learn and improve, and is the key to your success. Yes, hard work, effort, and persistence are all important, but not as important as having that underlying belief that you are in control of your own destiny.
Have you ever heard of ‘The 2% Mindset.’ Research shows that only 2% of the population go for their dreams with confidence and excitement. Only 2% of the population choose happiness and fulfillment. As for the rest, they really want to win, but the fear of losing is greater than the excitement of winning.
God wants us to achieve our full potential and he provides the courage and motivation for us to do just that. In Philippians 4:13 we read his promise.
‘I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” NKJV. Philippians 4:13.
I encourage you to trust God and take hold of His promise, jump out of your comfort zone, create new habits, learn new skills and develop a growth mindset.
