See Challenge as Opportunity
Let’s start with this: How often are you in meetings where a team member offers an idea, only to hear some other team member answer back, “We tried that already and it didn’t work.” How soul crushing it is to hear this answer? If that’s the typical response, this can all too often make people think twice about sharing ideas. How can you expect people in your organization to handle change and be excited for opportunities if you’re shutting them down like this?
We get it. Sometimes the effort required to say yes to an idea you’re not 100% behind is too much and we know change isn’t easy. It’s not always comfortable. In fact, it can be downright painful. When we won’t adapt to a change, whether it’s a simple approach we take or reorganizing an entire department, everyone suffers. New challenges are beneficial opportunities that serve as the gateway to learning and achieving goals. Giving your employees the space to take on challenges requires patience. Focus on the process instead of the result, and you’ll see some positive movement.
Humility and Grit
Have you fostered a culture where it’s safe for someone to say, “I don’t know, I’ll have to get back to you” and then you let them explore to learn the answer or new skill. And what about when team members gives you feedback? Are you open to giving and receiving constructive criticism? Nobody likes a “know-it-all” …When you confidently show curiosity and eagerness to learn something new, you’re giving the green light for others to do the same and building an environment where learning and thinking outside the box is highly encouraged. Demonstrating humility encourages team growth by letting teams teach fellow members. Humility can increase grit – which plays a crucial role in employee retention. Building a team that has grit helps persist through failures and persevere until you reach a positive outcome.
Fostering a growth mindset leads to higher achievement and a happy, fulfilled workforce! While staying in a fixed mindset, with fixed processes and communication styles, can inadvertently hold your organization back from reaching its full potential. In 2019 and beyond, it’s all about growing and opening to new possibilities and approaches to make your organization the best it can be. We’d love to help your team get in a growth mindset. Contact us to get started.
