Speaking Notes:
I did something this year I’ve never done before. I watched the US play in the World Cup.
Yes, we got eliminated. We didn’t play well, and the Netherlands played very well.
If you had told me 5 years ago that I’d be watching soccer (football) on TV and cheering for our team I wouldn’t have believed you.
I’m not a big sports fan. And I thought soccer was boring. I didn’t understand the rules.
But my granddaughters started playing soccer a few years ago. And they are good.
Watching them play, I’ve learned about how the game is played. I understand the excitement and anticipation when you are in scoring position.
My mindset question for you this week: How have you changed your life in the past 3 years?
Carol Dweck is a psychologist who wrote a book talking about the differences between people with fixed mindsets vs those with growth mindsets.
Someone with a growth mindset views intelligence, abilities, and talents as learnable and capable of improvement through effort. On the other hand, someone with a fixed mindset views those same traits as inherently stable and unchangeable over time.
People with fixed mindsets have difficulty changing their life.
My nephew is an example of someone who has a highly fixed mindset.
He avoids doing anything new or different.
Attitude: I might fail, so why should I try?
He finally took a job in food service. He makes salads and prepares ingredients for sandwiches.
He doesn’t particularly like his job.
But when his parents suggest that he find a different job he says, “I don’t know if I’d like doing that.”
Of course: “How will you know unless you try?”
Fixed mindset: “Why should I try if I don’t know for sure?”
My nephew is an extreme example.
Most of us are on a scale somewhere between my nephew and me.
My nephew: Fear of change.
Me: Fear of getting stuck in a rut.
Typical path for mindset: Try new things. Explore what the world has to offer when you are young.
About age 40: settle into familiar routine. Comfortable with what life has to offer. At least comfortable that it is familiar and predictable.
Age 60: Lose interest in learning anything new.
Age 70: Actively resist anything that might make you have to change.
NOT the cast for every person. But this progression is generally true for most people.
If you are like my nephew (glad you’re here). You will have more trouble understanding what I’m about to say.
You can choose what you think!
Napoleon Hill: The greatest gift God has given us.
You can change from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset.
- Decide
- Think differently
The challenge we face – there is a physical challenge to overcome as well as a psychological challenge.
Your mind runs inside your body like software in a computer.
Your body is the hardware.
Wiring in your brain adapts to the thoughts you think.
Neural pathways are like trails through the woods.
When you think new thoughts, it’s like bushwhacking.
I help my clients manage this change.
If you want to change your mindset, you have to work on both the thoughts you think and the physical side of rewiring your brain.
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