
What is mindset?
A mindset is a set of beliefs, attitudes, and assumptions that shape the way a person perceives and responds to the world.
Many things can shape a person’s mindset, including personal experiences, cultural background, education, and social environment. Because mindsets are a set of beliefs, and beliefs are learned, this means new mindsets can be learned.
A personal example…
Even though I grew up in a well-off home, my father had grown up poor and his scarcity mindset never left him, even in his late 60s. In my childhood, he would often tell me that we were going to run out of money even though that reality never came close. The emotional offloading caused a great deal of dread and anxiety within me and also wired in a pattern of fear when it came to matters about money. He also reinforced cliches that ‘money doesn’t grow on trees’ and that ‘you have to work really hard to get by’. I had very poor financial habits until I turned 31. It took numerous self-help books, podcasts and enrolling in a $3000 course that really turned it around for me. Since then, I have been able to mould my life and spend my time how I would like, being able to work just 3 days a week and earning as much as I would in a full-time job to free up time to focus on other pursuits. I had to decondition my mind to unlearn scarcity beliefs, as well as feed my mind with examples of others living abundantly and adopt a more abundant mindset. Just as it takes time to learn new concepts, it takes time to unlearn old habits and beliefs.
This leads me onto explain two popular mindsets you may have heard about:
Growth Mindset: individuals with a growth mindset believe that abilities can be developed through dedication, effort, and learning. They see challenges as opportunities to learn, embrace effort as a path to mastery, learn from criticism, and find lessons and inspiration in the success of others. This mindset is associated with resilience and a love for learning.
Fixed Mindset: Individuals with a fixed mindset tend to believe that their abilities, intelligence, and talents are fixed traits. They may avoid challenges to avoid failure, believe that effort is fruitless, are sensitive to criticism, can feel threatened by the success of others and are generally harder on themselves. This mindset can limit personal and intellectual growth.
Mindsets also have a lot to do with mental health.
There are many studies that have researched the effects of growth vs. fixed mindsets.
One study showed ‘young people with fixed mindsets were found to be more likely to have mental health problems (see a review, Schleider et al., 2015), while another reported people with fixed mindsets have more self-reported symptoms of psychological disease (Tao et al., 2022). Zhu and Wong (2022) also found that ‘Participants with stronger fixed mindsets were more likely to have SI suicidal ideation than those with only depressive symptoms.’
There is a link between fixed mindsets, low self-esteem and learned hopelessness. Learned hopelessness is also linked to suicidal ideation and suicide. There is a lot to unpack with why and how a person has developed a fixed mindset. What’s troubling is when someone has grown to develop a fixed mindset, not realising or noticing what an impact the mindset has: mentally, emotionally, the opportunities they pursue, the new skills or hobbies they want to try but don’t try. When it’s all someone has known, they may not always question their way of being, thinking this is just how they are, which is also a trait of having a fixed mindset - that traits are fixed.
The first step is awareness. The next is what you choose to do with it.
Having a growth mindset is like having a buffer for hard times and can move you towards your potential instead of staying small. The beauty of neuroplasticity shows us that the brain, thoughts and nerve pathways can change.
If you ever feel called to work with someone professionally to move through limiting beliefs and blocks, please feel free to reach out. Even if it's for a casual chat to get some tips, recommendations, or be pointed in another direction, I would love to help get you started.
Take care.
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