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Reset Your Leadership Mindset

November 2, 2019 by Gill Thackray Leave a Comment

Self awareness is key for effective leadership. Knowing who you are enables you to respond effectively under pressure. Great leaders are defined by how they react in tough situations. Your mindset shapes your world and how you respond to it. What’s more, it’s a skill that you can learn, but how do you implement mindset change? Here’s how to reset your leadership mindset.

You Can Reset Your Mindset

Your leadership mindset isn’t fixed. Mindset is a skill, like any other. Just like you go to the gym to train your body, with a little focus, you can rest your leadership mindset. With a few minor tweaks to your daily routine, a leadership reset is possible. A growth mindset will take your leadership from good to great.

Growth vs Fixed

Stanford Professor, Carol Dweck’s research has demonstrated the critical differences between a fixed and a growth mindset. Leadership mindset is a key differentiator in business, but why?

Fixed Mindset Leaders

Fixed mindset leaders see failure as all defining. Believing that failure reflects negatively on them, they avoid it, shutting down valuable learning opportunities. Their concern with looking good in the eyes of others prevents them from moving forwards. What’s more, it limits their performance, stunting their growth. These leaders react emotionally when they are under stress. Those emotions negatively affect their clarity of thinking, impeding effective decision making. The fixed mindset effect doesn’t stop with them. Their mindset will trickle down to the rest of their organisation. What comes next is a culture of blame, sacrifice syndrome, burnout and lack of innovation.

If something doesn’t come easily to them, they withdraw and admit defeat. Innovation ceases, new ideas stagnate for fear of failure, blame and looking stupid. They believe that potential is fixed and there’s nothing you can do to change that. They couldn’t be more wrong.

Growth Mindset Leaders

Growth mindset leaders recognise that failure presents an opportunity to learn, to develop and most importantly, grow. These leaders believe that their people can change and develop their abilities and talents. A growth mindset is a foundational skill for effective leadership. It embraces black box thinking along with a no blame culture. They recognise that success comes from examining mistakes in order to push through obstacles.

Your Brain Is Malleable

Dweck’s research has demonstrated that the human brain is malleable. That’s great news for your performance, along with your ability to manage stress. Embracing growth mindset strategies will increase your neuroplasticity. Each time we take a growth mindset approach, our brain changes, creating new neural networks, building resilience and sustainable performance.

Reset Your Leadership Mindset

Become your own coach to reset your leadership mindset by building these 8 behaviours into your day. Mindset starts with you. Whether you’re leading an organisation with thousands of employees or taking your first steps as a start up. Once you begin to cultivate a growth mindset, your organisational culture will follow.

Consciously develop your awareness and recognise your fixed mindset bias
Practice self awareness by using mindfulness to develop clearer thinking under pressure. It needn’t take up a huge chunk of time, check out our mindful leader hacks by following the link.
Observe the situation without judgement. See if it’s possible to pause rather than jumping in with reactive decision making. Breaking knee jerk habitual thinking is possible with practice.
Focus on the learning process. Gather as much information as you can. Analyse it, learn from it and use it next time.
Remain flexible. Examine your thoughts and ideas without becoming attached to them. Keep an open mind to the opinions and ideas of others.
Develop opportunities to learn and develop by setting yourself stretching goals
Constantly challenge yourself to look for the learning information in failure
Reflect on your performance

Great leaders leverage peak performance with a growth mindset culture. If you’d like to find out more about mindset, take a look at our free resources along with our Growth Mindset Toolkit

We work with thousands of individuals and Fortune 100 companies to develop growth mindset workplaces, high performing teams and individuals. We deliver growth mindset coaching and leadership training using evidence based strategies from positive psychology, neuroscience and performance psychology Get in touch, we’d love to hear from you.

Growth Mindset and the Boeing 737 Max

October 25, 2019 by Viv Thackray Leave a Comment

Did a Fixed Mindset Compromise Safety?

Between October 2018 and March 2019, 346 people died in two Boeing airplane accidents. Scrutiny followed. The plane at the centre of each crash was Boeing’s fastest-selling airplane, the 737 Max. How did Boeing’s mindset around production of the 737 Max contribute to events leading to these accidents? Let’s focus on three crucial areas that can typify a fixed mindset business culture:

A willingness to cut corners under pressure
The value of counterpoint in business
Minimising, negating and ignoring critical feedback

Setting the scene: Boeing playing catch up

Boeing’s 737 and the Airbus A320 have long been rivals. Each company hoping that their new generation of aircraft will outperform the other and take the lead as the best selling aircraft in the commercial market. The 737 Max was in direct competition with the newest offering from Airbus, the A320 neo. Frustratingly for Boeing, Lufthansa took delivery of the first A320 neo in January 2016, more than a year ahead of the first 737 Max delivery to its launch company.

When the 737 Max entered the market it was heralded as offering “the greatest flexibility, reliability and efficiency in the single-aisle market”. With almost 5000 orders from 100 customers around the world, demand was high. The Malaysian airline, Malindo, were the first to take delivery of the plane, it entered service on 22 May 2017. Less than two years later the 737 Max was grounded worldwide.

A willingness to cut corners?

Unethical behaviour characterises a fixed mindset business culture. A fixed mindset culture can lead to a readiness to cut corners and be less than candid about procedures, processes and performance in order to gain a lead on competitors.

Even before the ill fated Ethiopian Airline Flight 302 crashed in March 2019, concerns had been raised by pilots about the handling of the plane and aviation insiders were questioning the rigour with which Boeing had tested and signed off on a number of safety issues.

The Federal Aviation Administration (the FAA – responsible for certificating the design and components of aircraft used in civil aviation) has long worked with companies to exchange information to improve safety. This type of certification is reliant on companies providing scrupulously accurate data. It is also reliant on the FAA possessing and applying sufficient checks and balances. Rigorously examining and cross checking information, enables bodies like the FAA to isolate and address possible risk factors.

It was reported that Boeing pressured the FAA to move through the certification process quickly. Dominic Gates, aerospace reporter for the Seattle Times, interviewed engineers and staff at Boeing and the FAA and reported that,

“several FAA technical experts said in interviews that as certification proceeded, managers prodded them to speed the process. Development of the MAX was lagging nine months behind the rival Airbus A320neo. Time was of the essence for Boeing.”

“There was constant pressure to re-evaluate our initial decisions,” one former engineer said. “And even after we had reassessed it … there was continued discussion by management about delegating even more items down to the Boeing Company.”

“There wasn’t a complete and proper review of the documents,” the former engineer added. “Review was rushed to reach certain certification dates.”

Ignoring Critical Feedback

When things go wrong, a fixed mindset approach towards the problem will see a company quickly looking to apportion blame. There have been multiple reports that pilots raised concerns about the handling of the 737 Max and that this critical feedback was initially ignored by Boeing. Minimising, negating and ignoring critical feedback is another example of a fixed mindset response when problems occur.

VW’s Dieselgate scandal provided a textbook example of this fixed mindset hallmark when back in 2015, VW’s US CEO, Michael Horn, explained to a US House subcommittee hearing about the emmisions -test cheating software,

“This was a couple of software engineers who put this in for whatever reason…To my understanding, this was not a corporate decision. This was something individuals did.”

The imprisonment of VWs former Engineering Executive, Oliver Schmidt in the US and indictment for fraud of former CEO Martin Winterkorn along with several other senior executives tells a different story.

The value of counterpoint for a growth mindset business

New flight control system MCAS (Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System). Aerospace reporter, Dominic Gates, reported in The Seattle Times that the safety data that Boeing submitted to the FAA was flawed:

In order to avoid the 737 Max stalling, the MCAS was designed to move the vertical tail to push the nose down. In reality the power used to move the tail was 4 x the force that had been stated in the safety document.
hadn’t considered the impact of the system resetting itself following the pilots response and what effect this repetition of pushing the nose down might have.
activation of the “hazardous” danger level was triggered by a single sensor on the outside of the plane.

The Seattle Times journalist spoke to Boeing and FAA engineers to gain this information and shared his findings with Boeing and the FAA before the second crash of Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302.

The final air accident investigation report into the Lion Air crash is now available. When you consider Boeing’s approach to the development and launch of the 737 Max, you can make your own mind up about

A willingness to cut corners under pressure
The value of counterpoint in business
Minimising, negating and ignoring critical feedback

Want strategies, tips and tools to take your performance to the next level? We help big and small companies deep dive into growth mindset, enabling you to develop great performing people and teams, maximise innovation and excel your business goals. To find out more start the conversation here.

Why Mindset Drives Leader Performance

October 13, 2019 by Gill Thackray Leave a Comment

Leaders need charisma. Leaders are born, not made. Effective leaders need grit. The world of leadership is riddled with myths and misconceptions. The truth is that mindset is a key differentiator when it comes to outstanding leadership. Here’s why mindset drives leader performance.

Mindset Leaders are Unique

There’s no point in pretending that there’s a cookie cutter formula for the perfect leader. There isn’t. Authenticity is key to successful leadership. Growth mindset leaders are constantly learning, developing themselves, acquiring new skills. Attempting to define them in binary terms is pointless. They’re constantly changing because they recognise that learning is the key to transformation and business growth. What’s more, they encourage development in their teams. They’re not threatened by the success of others.

Mindset Leaders Banish Perfectionism

It might sound tautological but growth mindset leaders embrace failure. They recognise that perfectionism combined with a blame culture when things go wrong will destroy innovation. Continuous improvement can only take place when you’re able to look at what isn’t working openly and honestly.

This means embracing risk and becoming comfortable with uncertainty. Consider companies that have deliberately failed in order to innovate, making it culturally ok to fail. Think James Dyson, Momofuku Ando – the creator of instant noodles, Akio Morita and Sony’s first rice cooker that ended up burning rice instead of cooking it, yes, we said burned it and one of our favourites, as Thrive Global Authors, Arianna Huffington whose second book was rejected by 36 publishers.

Failure is the only way to learn and truly grow. The research into growth mindset and neuroplasticity is impressive. As Dweck says, keep those neutrons firing.

Growth Mindset Leaders Possess Laser Like Situational Awareness

Mindset leaders possess self awareness. They’re able to recognise their own emotions and master them. They self regulate and are able to drill down and focus on the detail whilst maintaining an open awareness of the bigger picture. This enables them to build effective relationships with colleagues. To listen with emotional intelligence and encourage dialogue. They’re honest about their own mistakes and make it clear that when things don’t go to plan it’s an opportunity for growth.

Great leaders leverage peak performance with a growth mindset culture. If you’d like to find out more about mindset, take a look at our free resources along with our Growth Mindset Toolkit

What you can Learn About Mindfulness from the Marines

November 3, 2018 by Gill Thackray Leave a Comment

It seems like an unlikely match. Marines and meditation aren’t two words that you’d ordinarily find together in the same sentence. The US marines have embraced mindfulness with impressive results. Whilst it might seem incongruous, here’s what you can learn about mindfulness from the marines.

[Read more…]

What Does Your Personality Test Reveal?

May 31, 2017 by Gill Thackray Leave a Comment

Perhaps you’ve taken a personality psychometric prior to a job interview? Or you’ve been asked to complete one within a team that you’re part of? Maybe you’re curious about the entire field of psychometrics and find yourself asking; What do personality questionnaires really reveal? [Read more…]

Finding Your Flow: Using Positive Psychology for long term impact

May 25, 2016 by Gill Thackray Leave a Comment

Flow, the model of performance introduced to Positive Psychology by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi is big news both in the workplace and outside of it. But what is it? Think of a time when you’ve been completely immersed in a task, when distractions were minimized and you lost sense of time and space. Got it? Well that’s flow. If you can answer ‘Yes’ to the following questions whilst undertaking a task, you’ve probably found yourself in flow;

You’re doing it because you’re motivated
You’re completely focused on the task
You lose sense of time, hours feel like minutes
You’re not worrying
You have a sense of control
You forget yourself
You feel inspired
You don’t really notice your surroundings
You’re enjoying it and feel good as you get on with the task, you’re on a roll!
You feel as though you’re achieving something

Csikszentmihalyi narrows it down to two characteristics that must be present for flow to occur:

We should know what to do moment by moment whilst participating in the activity or task and utilise feedback instantly
The abilities of the person undertaking the task match the opportunities for action

Put more simply, he describes it as “being completely involved in an activity for its own sake. The ego falls away. Time flies. Every action, movement, and thought follows inevitably from your previous one, like playing jazz. Your whole being is involved, and you’re using your skills to the utmost”

Or, as Lyubmirsky describes it, “being involved in life” rather than being on autopilot.

Surprisingly, adults often report experiencing more flow in the workplace than in their personal life outside of work. This might have something to do with the parameters and guidelines around work, which you’ll see below, are a necessary part of creating more flow in life. But rest easy, flow is an essential element of happiness whether you’re at work or not and can be applied to friendships, relationships, projects, hobbies and sports.

Why does it matter?

Research suggests that people who feel flow experience greater levels of wellbeing. This doesn’t mean that each time you participate in a task you’ll feel euphoric and instant happiness (if only). Instead, studies suggest that after the task has been completed, people feel a sense of accomplishment, a greater subjective sense of wellbeing along with purpose and meaning. All ingredients of happiness and flourishing according to Martin Seligman, the ‘father’ of Positive Psychology. Csikszentmihalyi says it’s one of the secrets to finding happiness in life. In our book that makes creating flow worth a go.

To introduce more flow experiences into your day to day activities, Csikszentmihalyi recommends the following in his book, ‘Finding Flow”.

Seek out situations where you’re fully involved in the challenge. It’s not too easy for you and there is some ‘stretch’ involved in the task for you, you’re pushing yourself outside of a comfortable level of performance.
The activity has a set of goals and requires certain actions. The rules help you get into flow because you’re not wondering how to do something. It’s clear.
Learn to focus your attention. Train yourself to focus on moment to moment awareness so you’re able to concentrate fully. Try practicing mindfulness to hone this skill.
Apply flow to routine tasks. Lyubmirsky suggests ‘microflow’ experiences created by applying goals and rules to everyday tasks. See how you can apply these to something you do every day, for example, creating a personal best time for completing your administrative tasks or seeing if you can bring your full attention to a conversation.
Aim for superflow. This is when you’re in maximum flow with the volume turned up. You’ll get there with practice, from small microflow projects, to practicing your moment-to-moment awareness on a regular basis. That’s you rewiring your brain and honing your skills until you’re able to move into superflow with ease.

With a little bit of practice and effort, flow is something that, when cultivated will pay dividends in your wellbeing and happiness. Want to find out more about flow? Here’s the man himself at TedX Monterey, California https://www.ted.com/talks/mihaly_csikszentmihalyi_on_flow?language=en

We love to talk about all things positive psychology at Positive Change Guru. Check out our forthcoming events or get in touch to find out more about our suite of courses and discuss bespoke positive psychology training for your organisation.