INSIGHT

CULTIVATING A GROWTH MINDSET

By Michelle Despault

At the start of the new year, my husband and I were discussing how we could integrate more exercise into our daily lives. He suggested 10 minutes of yoga each night before bed. Typically, I would hem and haw and come up with about a million excuses as to why this just would not work, but to my own surprise I said, “Sure!” We went on to start a nightly yoga routine that I have not only kept up, but actually look forward to each night. This is absolutely shocking to me! Here is why.

First, I intensely dislike yoga. I have never seen its point. I am a high-intensity kind of gal. I love lifting heavy weights, doing cross-fit workout-of-the-day, and spin class. Basically anything that makes me sweat through every inch of clothing, and pushes me physically to the point where I can barely walk home after my workout. Yoga is the antithesis of exercise to me.

Second, I cannot stand working out at home. Over the years I have had numerous great ideas for home workouts that were meant to save time and money, only to abandon them within a few days. I recognized long ago that I thrive off the energy of other people at the gym or in a class; it pushes me to push myself.

Lastly, I do not have a spare 10 minutes in my day just waiting for me to find something to do with them. I used to work out consistently before I had my son, but since returning to work it has been a struggle to prioritize exercise given all the other demands of my life. I had long since given up believing I could ever make it work until my son goes off to college.

So this is big, dare I even say revolutionary, for me. There is no struggle or complaining. No looking for excuses to get out of it. Why? What is different now? It is not the activity, or the circumstances surrounding my decision. It is not the “what” I am doing, “how,” or with “whom.”

The answer is me. I am different. I am open to considering an opportunity in a way that, even one month ago, I was not. I shifted from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset, which opened the door for ideas to show up and be seen in new and different ways. I created a condition in which I could say yes to something and actually enjoy it.

Fixed mindset We have a fixed mindset when we believe that things are a certain way and they cannot change. We assume that our character, intelligence, and creativity are predetermined and finite. We fail a test and tell ourselves it is because we are just not smart enough. We make a mistake in a dance recital and lament our lack of talent. We burn the lasagna in the oven and believe it is because we are not a good cook.

If you think about it, there are probably several areas in your life where you have a fixed mindset. A few of my greatest hits are: I am not good at math, I am not a morning person, I could never run a marathon, and I will never fit back into my wedding dress. The problem with a fixed mindset is that there is no opportunity for re-interpretation, and thus no opportunity for growth. If you do not believe you are smart enough, you are not likely to invest more time in studying, because what would be the point? You have already

predetermined the outcome and are living into that future reality. Fixed mindsets can be holding us back from having things we want, or from really going for it in some areas of our lives.

Growth mindset A growth mindset, on the other hand, recognizes that our talents can be developed through hard work, fruitful strategies, and input from others. This allows for a different outcome. With a growth mindset, the test taker who fails recognizes they need to study harder if they want a better mark. The dancer who flubbed realizes they need to practice more, and the cook resolves to pay more attention. If you believe that something can change, you will act accordingly.

The terms fixed and growth mindset were coined by researcher Dr. Carol Dweck and examined in her book, Mindset: The New Psychology of Success. Dweck also notes that we all have a mixture of fixed and growth mindsets going on, and that mixture continually evolves as we do.

A month ago, I genuinely believed I could not find time to workout. I had many missed classes and wasted gym memberships to prove it! But as soon as I started to inquire as to whether there was any possibility things could be different and circumstances could change, I started to shift my mindset from fixed to growth. I did not have to believe there was a solution out there, I just had to be open to the idea that it was possible.

Growing your mindset Consider where you have a fixed mindset, then ask yourself, “Is this the truth?” Is there really a fundamental lack of skill or ability, or just a lack of motivation? Are you really not able to wake up early? Or is it possible you could wake up early to catch a plane to start a long-awaited vacation? Could you run a marathon if you followed a proven training program?

Distinguish what is actually not possible for you, versus what you are just not motivated to change. If you are like me, there are lots of areas that fall into the latter category. I probably could run a marathon if I trained for it, but I really do not care enough to put in the effort it would require. I am not really that bad at math, but telling people I am gets me off the hook for being expected to do any mental calculations on a moment’s notice.

Consider what it would take. A lesson? A degree? Years of training? Recognize that you do not have everything figured out. As we lessen resistance to something, new opportunities will show up. Given my preferences, I would never have thought of yoga on my own.

Establish your motivation for change. Sometimes we get to a point where the impetus for change in our lives forces us to grow. I know that a big part of my willingness to take up the nightly yoga routine was really the unwillingness to continue not doing any exercise, and an unwillingness to continue feeling crappy. There is a great Anais Nin quote that says, “And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.”

We are continuously growing and evolving. Every day, every interaction and experience we have expands us and helps change us. Little by little, over time, it all adds up, until one day we make a different choice and it feels completely natural. Since our cells are continually regenerating as well, we could say we are literally not the same person today as we were last month.

The choices we make today may not be the same ones we make tomorrow, but they are what serve us at this moment in time. So, tonight it will be yoga, but who knows? By next month, I may be signing up for cross-fit class again. I know I am open to possibilities and that I do not need to have it all figured out. Wherever this fitness journey takes me is exactly where I am meant to go.

Michelle Despault is Director of Communications at the OECTA Provincial Office.