Growing up I have always been considered fast. It started in 5th grade when I beat all of the girls, and even most of the boys in a sprint time trial.
My speed wasn’t a skill that I considered developing until 7th grade. My friend Sophie convinced me to go out for the track team because, “We don’t do anything and get to hang out with the boys.” Hanging out with the boys didn’t last long though. I was moved up to the varsity team once my 400-meter time trial demonstrated a time that was as fast at the top varsity runners.
Each track season I got a little bit faster, but my progress was slow. I continued to run high/mid 60 second races for several years. The thing is, I was hoping to break the school record of 60 seconds by my talent alone. I did not want to work harder and thought that my natural talent would be able to make it happen.
Boy was I wrong. “Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.”
This was my mantra for my final season. I approached my coach and told him I was finally ready to try lifting. Since 8th grade he was trying to get me to lift and I avoided it like the plague. I believed in the false stereotype that lifting would make me bulky and manly looking. Finally though I decided to push my self-image concerns aside that year to take track seriously and started lifting twice a week with my coach after practice.
My first track meet I opened up with a mid 60 second 400-meter run. I was already running my lifetime PR! I focused on the process and continued to tell myself that I could develop the speed and endurance needed to break 60 seconds.
I bet you can predict how my season ended.
My ended my season running a 57.76. Talk about dropping time and smashing a school record! For a thin and weak runner I was able to believe that if I worked hard enough I could improve my abilities and develop the strength I needed to break the school record. What I actually developed that year though was being able to foster a growth mindset instead of my former fixed mindset.
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You might be asking yourself, what is a growth and fixed mindset? Carol Dweck created these terms based on two different mindsets that we possess.
A growth mindset is simply a belief that abilities and skills can improve with practice. This kind of mindset believes that successful people became successful because they worked hard and put in the effort. A fixed mindset is the opposite and is a belief that abilities are born, and therefore cannot be improved. They believe that successful people became successful because of the abilities they were born with and did not “achieve.”
In everything we do, we will become more successful, determined, and resilient with a growth mindset. Since performance and the world of sport require losses, setbacks, and feedback it is important to understand how to build a growth mindset in order to improve our abilities. It is something that can be developed with a few strategies.
5 ways to develop a growth mindset:1. Focus on effort.
If you are a coach, parent, or athlete praise the amount of effort that is being put in. If we can change our focus to effort instead of the outcome such as a grade on a test, how heavy you lifted, how fast you ran, or comparing yourself to how others do we can fuel ourselves from our IMPROVEMENTS. Remember, “hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.” Trust that if you consistently put in your best effort the end results will come. Change your mentality from, “I’m not strong because I only lifted this much..” to, “I warmed up properly and gave my best effort on that set. With continued practice I will be able to lift more over time.”2.Become process-focused.
Focus on the process over the outcome. One way to do this is by creating goals that are process-focused rather than outcome-focused. Once you’ve identified your outcome goal you need to create and focus on process goals that will direct you to where you want to go. Once you are able to meet the process goals the outcome goal will be met naturally at times. It is like going on a road trip. We might know WHERE we want to go but we have to figure out and focus on the turns we need to make to GET there. Keep your focus on the process over the outcome/destination.
3. View setbacks as comebacks.
Keep persisting and overcome challenges. Understand and accept that the world of sport is going to bring along obstacles and setbacks. It might be an injury, a losing record, a slow start to the season, or being out of shape. Instead of focusing on the negatives and giving up, buckle down and keep working at it. Continue to give the best effort you can and remind yourself that whatever setback you are experiencing is a chance to make a major comeback. Use the setbacks as motivation and become more determined to keep moving forward.
4.Fail forward
Learn from your mistakes and failures. Understand that the only way we can learn to achieve success and meet our goals is to experience failure. Use failures as teaching moments and take away something from that experience that you can apply in the future. Each time you fail, you are one step closer to achieving. In every game or performance there will always be a winner and a loser, and we need to understand that we can’t win all the time. We have to learn how to lose, how to learn from it, and how to keep pushing to be better and stronger next time.
5.Be open to feedback
Make sure that you are asking for feedback from your coaches and teammates. Understand that whatever feedback they give you is for your BENEFIT and it is not to upset you or make you feel less than. Those with a fixed mindset have a difficult time receiving feedback and become frustrated compared to those with a growth mindset who strive for constant improvement. People with a growth mindset understand that there is no such thing as “perfection” and that there’s always room for improvement. They seek out ways to improve by asking others for their opinions, advice, and feedback to increase their abilities. Trust the people around you and take the time to listen and apply what they are telling you.
Put it into practice!
One great way to develop a growth mindset is to seek out new challenges and try new things that you are not naturally good at. This way you will be more likely to experience setbacks and failures and practice the skills necessary to develop a growth mindset. Use this experience towards skills and abilities you have not yet developed and enjoy the improvements, not matter how small. Trust the process and know that with continued effort you CAN and WILL develop the skills and abilities you are working towards.
Want to learn more about Carol Dweck and her work on mindset? Click to watch her Ted Talk, or read about it here.
Comments, questions, feedback? Let me hear it! As always I appreciate you for taking the time to read this and would love to hear your thoughts.
5 ways to develop a growth mindset: 1. Focus on effort. If you are a coach, parent, or athlete praise the amount of effort that is being put in. If we can change our focus to effort instead of the outcome such as a grade on a test, how heavy you lifted, how fast you ran, or comparing yourself to how others do we can fuel ourselves from our IMPROVEMENTS. Remember, “hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.” Trust that if you consistently put in your best effort the end results will come. Change your mentality from, “I’m not strong because I only lifted this much..” to, “I warmed up properly and gave my best effort on that set. With continued practice I will be able to lift more over time.” 2.Become process-focused. Focus on the process over the outcome. One way to do this is by creating goals that are process-focused rather than outcome-focused. Once you’ve identified your outcome goal you need to create and focus on process goals that will direct you to where you want to go. Once you are able to meet the process goals the outcome goal will be met naturally at times. It is like going on a road trip. We might know WHERE we want to go but we have to figure out and focus on the turns we need to make to GET there. Keep your focus on the process over the outcome/destination. 3. View setbacks as comebacks. Keep persisting and overcome challenges. Understand and accept that the world of sport is going to bring along obstacles and setbacks. It might be an injury, a losing record, a slow start to the season, or being out of shape. Instead of focusing on the negatives and giving up, buckle down and keep working at it. Continue to give the best effort you can and remind yourself that whatever setback you are experiencing is a chance to make a major comeback. Use the setbacks as motivation and become more determined to keep moving forward. 4.Fail forward Learn from your mistakes and failures. Understand that the only way we can learn to achieve success and meet our goals is to experience failure. Use failures as teaching moments and take away something from that experience that you can apply in the future. Each time you fail, you are one step closer to achieving. In every game or performance there will always be a winner and a loser, and we need to understand that we can’t win all the time. We have to learn how to lose, how to learn from it, and how to keep pushing to be better and stronger next time. 5.Be open to feedback Make sure that you are asking for feedback from your coaches and teammates. Understand that whatever feedback they give you is for your BENEFIT and it is not to upset you or make you feel less than. Those with a fixed mindset have a difficult time receiving feedback and become frustrated compared to those with a growth mindset who strive for constant improvement. People with a growth mindset understand that there is no such thing as “perfection” and that there’s always room for improvement. They seek out ways to improve by asking others for their opinions, advice, and feedback to increase their abilities. Trust the people around you and take the time to listen and apply what they are telling you. Put it into practice! One great way to develop a growth mindset is to seek out new challenges and try new things that you are not naturally good at. This way you will be more likely to experience setbacks and failures and practice the skills necessary to develop a growth mindset. Use this experience towards skills and abilities you have not yet developed and enjoy the improvements, not matter how small. Trust the process and know that with continued effort you CAN and WILL develop the skills and abilities you are working towards. Want to learn more about Carol Dweck and her work on mindset? Click to watch her Ted Talk, or read about it here. Comments, questions, feedback? Let me hear it! As always I appreciate you for taking the time to read this and would love to hear your thoughts.
