Yesterday was the first day of Q2. For many people, this may have been scary, for some it may have been exciting.
Too often, people enter Q2 already feeling defeated from Q1… and it's only the 4th month of the year! These people spend so much time focusing on what they DIDN'T accomplish, that they hardly recognize the things they did. In our company book club this month, we're reading Mindset: The New Psychology of Success by Carol Dweck. I am only about 25% through this book, and have already praised it on various social media platforms (no, this is not an ad). That should be a true testament to how much I have resonated with this book, and with the change of the fiscal quarter, I found it really applicable at this time.
The book discusses two different types of mindsets and how they are reflected in your business. The first, is a growth mindset. People with this frame of mind tend to push themselves further. They recognize their accomplishments, and welcome challenges. When these people feel a task is especially ambitious, they tackle it with excitement, ready for a new learning experience. This is the mindset we all should strive for, as it allows for the most advancement.
The second frame of mind is the fixed mindset. This is one that I'm sure on some level, many if not most people can resonate with. A fixed mindset is your comfort zone. It is your need for perfection taking over. You know what you are good at, and you live within those boundaries, feeling proud of your work everyday because you know you did it well, but you never truly pushing beyond your current abilities.
This is can be a systemic issue. In business, if a manager has a growth mindset, and an employee has fixed, the employee might not shine in comparison to their peers. If the employee has a growth mindset and the manager has fixed, that individual may appear as pushy, and argumentative toward their superiors. This is where a lot of frustration stems.
If you did not reach all of your Q1 goals, take a moment to reflect on why. Sure, maybe it was the market, maybe it's due to factors that are out of your control. But maybe if you took that one step outside of your comfort zone, found new mechanisms for motivation and organization, new methods for staying on track… maybe you would have reached those goals.
See beyond your current state. If a positive opportunity presents itself to you, accept it without fear of failure. If you're in a position of management, learn from your team, encourage new ideas and address them unbiasedly.
In Q2, watch your company grow in ways that Q1 never expected.
Learn more at operationsagency.com/class.
See you on the inside.
