Sam arrives at the first meeting he’s been invited to by his mentor, Mr. Smith, who is the CEO of a large corporation. At first Sam thought the idea of having a mentor at age 30 was silly, but was later convinced it would bring him many benefits and he felt very fortunate to have Mr. Smith as his mentor as he had heard so many good things about his amazing leadership skills and ability to turn companies around. In one of their meetings, Mr. Smith suggested that Sam attend a few of Mr. Smith’s staff meetings, which brought him to this point. The meeting got kicked off and it quickly got off to a rough start. Sam couldn’t comprehend much of what was going on, but words like “big mistake was made” and “this could cost of millions” were mentioned. Sam turned over to observe Mr. Smith’s reaction and to his surprise he didn’t find a look of disappointment, frustration, or anger, but rather a look of what almost appears to be excitement. Mr. Smith spent most of the meeting time listening to everyone’s comments, then after everyone had a chance to speak, he began talking. Not long after that the entire mood of the room changed from panic to intense interest. The meeting ends with everyone going over the actions they were assigned and Mr. Smith going over the overall plan to get back on track.

After the meeting Sam asked Mr. Smith, “I couldn’t help but notice you were not shaken by what seemed to be a big disaster, in fact you almost looked excited about what was transpiring.”. Mr. Smith responded, “Sam, I live for those moments, moments when I am challenged. This gives me an opportunity to grow. I am who I am today because of all the challenges I’ve faced. If every day was easy, then I probably wouldn’t have much to offer you as a mentor.”.

According to Carol Dweck, author of Mindset: The New Psychology of Success and Lewis and Virginia Eaton Professor of Psychology at Stanford University, a growth mindset is when people understand that their abilities can be developed. People with a growth mindset see challenges as opportunity to develop their abilities. When you have a growth mindset, it creates a love of learning and allows you to embrace those challenges that will inevitably come up. You will no longer be getting out of bed hoping to have an “easy” day, but rather you will look forward to what the day will bring that will give you the opportunity to become better than yesterday.

So do you have a growth mindset? If you’re not sure, ask yourself how you view a difficult day or learning something new. If you don’t, what’s keeping you from making the shift?