As a leader, your mindset is contagious. It impacts and influences those around you and can have lasting impacts on the culture of your organization.
It’s much easier to have the right mindset when things are going smoothly and when roadblocks are minimal. But the rubber really meets the road when you face difficulties and unexpected challenges.
What happens when you lose multiple top-performing employees in a short period of time? How do you handle being forced to do more with less? What do you do when you have to rethink your entire business model because of a global pandemic?
Obstacles are something that each of us face. But the mindset you choose to meet those obstacles can strongly influence, or even dictate, success.
That’s right – your success is largely predicated on your mindset.
Fortunately, with a little discipline and intentionality, you can control your mindset in a way that attracts success for you and your organization.
There are 2 prevailing mindsets that you can choose to adopt – the scarcity mindset or the abundant mindset.
The Goal Chaser highlights key attributes of both:
The Scarcity Mindset
- Focuses on the limitations of a situation, quick to point out the negatives
- There is “only so much to go around” mindset, leading to greed, jealousy, and skepticism
- Goals are just to fix problems. They require hard work, take a long time, and motivation quickly wanes
- Focuses on things outside of their control, leading to worry, fear, stress, and inaction
- Focuses on what is lacking and gets stuck there
The Abundance Mindset
- Focuses on the opportunities of a situation, seeing the potential for growth and improvement
- There are more than enough resources to go around, leading to sharing, encouraging others, and openness
- Goals are simply add-ons to an already fortunate situation. The possibilities are endless, and motivation is effortless
- Focuses on what is within their control, leading to inspired action, calm, and confidence
- Looks at life through a lens of gratitude, positively impacting everything they think, feel, say, and do
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Ways to Develop an Abundant Mindset
It’s important to have the right mindset as a leader. The scarcity and abundance mindsets, while polar opposites, both present their own challenges to those who adopt them. However, an abundant mindset is more likely going to provide better outcomes for you and your business in the long run. Here are some ways you can develop a positive and productive abundance mindset:
1. Be opportunistic
Rather than focusing on the problems and limitations of any given circumstance, train yourself to think about the opportunities. Consistently ask yourself, “How can I flip my perspective to see this as an opportunity instead of a setback?”
2. Practice gratitude
There are several benefits of gratitude on a physical, emotional, and mental level. Gratitude releases toxic emotions, reduces pain, improves sleep quality, and aids in stress regulation. Practicing gratitude can enable you to show up as a better leader and a better version of yourself. So, say “thank you”, verbalize your gratitude, focus on what you do have, and find appreciation even in your challenges.
3. Know your average
Most of us have heard, “You are the average of the 5 people closest to you.” This means that the people around you, for better or worse, have a profound impact on your behaviors and your mindset. Take inventory of your close relationships and contemplate how abundant or scarce their mindsets are. Don’t be afraid to surround yourself with people that have a more abundant mindset.
4. Control the ‘controllable.’ Let everything else go
Even as a leader, there is a lot more that is outside of your realm of control than there is within it. And you must establish a certain level of comfort with that. Focus on what you can control and the outcomes you can influence and manage to the best of your abilities.
Have an awareness of everything but be willing to let it go. Ensure that your energy and attention are not scattered around things you can’t control.
Be a Leader with an Abundant Mindset
The two mindsets of scarcity and abundance are opposites, but both present challenges for the people who adopt them. However, an abundant mindset is more likely to provide better outcomes in the long run.
To develop a positive and productive abundance mindset, start slow and continue to add on techniques to grow your mindset.
Look at life through a lens of gratitude. Be opportunistic instead of focusing on limitations or problems. Know your average: surround yourself with people that have an abundant mindset as opposed to those who think negatively all the time. And lastly, it’s control what you can control; let go of everything else so that they don’t become distractions.
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