Powerful Questions Podcast: What is your mindset?
I have first faced the importance of mindset in the company I started working in after University. It was actually in a job interview before I joined the company, where the HR person conducting the interview told me that their approach is to “hire for attitude and train for skills”. I was surprised at that time that such a renowned company would rather focus on mindset in recruiting, rather than hiring a person with a perfect skillset.
But with time, I started to realize how right they were. Mindset means so much to how the person works, how they interact with others, what is their impact in the organization.
So what is mindset?
Simply said, mindset is the way you think about the world. It is a set of your beliefs, attitudes and thought patterns. And your mindset is a big deal, because it sets the stage for how you act in the world and also how you interpret whatever happens to you. Remember the famous quote? “Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it.”
In the second episode of the podcast I have already talked about growth mindset vs. fixed mindset. And I really love this concept – if you didn’t listen to this episode, you definitely should. However, this is just one way of looking at your mindset, one dimension. Your mindset is as unique as you, it is a piece of art that was created by life itself.
Consider everything that has happened to you so far – all events that occurred in your life, all people you have met, everyone who had impact on you, what successes and failures you had, what have you learned and what you keep learning. All of this shaped your mindset, and the other way around – how you see all that has happened to you is shaped by your mindset.
So how to understand what your mindset is?
Start with the good old reflection, start thinking for yourself what defines your “frame of mind”.
What do you believe in in life?
What are the moments in your life where you had to make difficult decisions, and how do your decisions in the end reflect your mindset?
What are the stories in your life that shaped who you are?
Who are the people who influenced you significantly and what did you learn from them?
How do you think of people in general?
How do you think about yourself?
Do you think the glass is half full or half empty?
What are your favorite quotes?
What is your life motto?
Ask yourself these questions and really take time to answer them. Dig deep trying to remember stories and important situations in your life. What you will get is puzzle pieces that you can start putting together. It will take time to find some coherency, create a bigger picture and map out your mindset.
When you have gotten your bigger picture, have a closer look: is it the mindset you want to have? How is it impacting your life? Some of the beliefs you hold about yourself or the world might just be unhelpful to you. For example, if you believe that most of other people are better than you and deserve more that you, this will have a huge impact on your life, and not in a good way. And it is up to you to decide, in this moment, what you would like to believe.
Really challenge your beliefs. They are influencing your life so much, that I would advise you to dedicate time, find time to have a closer look at everything you have defined as part of your mindset. And you can by all means decide on new things to take on as part of your mindset – it is up to you! It will take some time to train your thought patterns according to the new beliefs you would like to adopt, but it is absolutely possible.
And don’t just put your mindset somewhere in the corner and never touch it again – you always have a chance to reflect what is happening in your daily life and how it corresponds to your defined mindset. You might discover something new for yourself, or you might decide that some things no longer belong into your mindset. Either way, change your mindset whenever you need to – it is your free choice to select how you want to live your life, and how you want to think about your life!