Do you like the Process or the Product?
I love sewing. I’ve been a sewist for over 50 years. (By the way, “sewist” is what we sewing fans call ourselves. A “seamstress” is a one who sews professionally. A “sewer” is where dirty water goes. I’m neither of those.)
I get lost in the process of sewing. But by the time I’m done with a project, whether it’s a dress or a pillow or jammies for my kids, I’m kinda tired of what I’m sewing and I want to move on to another project. I love the process more than the product. But then, there are others who love the product more than the process.
Interestingly, this somewhat parallels intelligence and learning theory as described by Stanford University Professor and Psychologist Carol Dweck. According to her, there are two intelligence models, fixed and growth, on the continuum of implicit beliefs or mindset. People with a fixed mindset (also called “entity theory”) believe that success is based on innate ability and a fixed, unchangeable intelligence. People with a growth mindset (also called “incremental theory”) believe success is based on effort, learning and disciplined commitment to improvement. Fixed mindset emphasizes outcome and performance over effort. Growth mindset rewards effort and discipline. Process vs product.
Interestingly, this somewhat parallels intelligence and learning theory as described by Stanford University Professor and Psychologist Carol Dweck. According to her, there are two intelligence models, fixed and growth, on the continuum of implicit beliefs or mindset. People with a fixed mindset (also called “entity theory”) believe that success is based on innate ability and a fixed, unchangeable intelligence.
People with a growth mindset (also called “incremental theory”) believe success is based on effort, learning and disciplined commitment to improvement. Fixed mindset emphasizes outcome and performance over effort. Growth mindset rewards effort and discipline. Process vs product.
At first glance both seem noble with their own benefits. Fixed mindset folks can develop specialized proficiency and talents. They stick to what’s easy and what they’re good at, leading them to be consistent and reliable. They may develop a strong sense of security and stability because of predictable outcomes. They develop effective shortcuts to be more productive. They reduce the risk of failure because they maintain more control over their work, tasks and outcome. They tend to set and measure their worth with outcome (product) goals.
Growth mindset folks also flourish, but in different ways. They see challenges as growth opportunies. Resilience is their hallmark. They are motivated by growth, take more risks, and are champions of innovation. They often are more optimistic and devoid of anxiety. They value lifelong learning and self-improvement and strive to make positive changes in their personal and professional life. They embrace the statement “success is a journey, not a destination.” They tend to set and measure their worth with process goals.
Growth mindset folks also flourish, but in different ways. They see challenges as growth opportunies. Resilience is their hallmark. They are motivated by growth, take more risks, and are champions of innovation. They often are more optimistic and devoid of anxiety. They value lifelong learning and self-improvement and strive to make positive changes in their personal and professional life. They embrace the statement “success is a journey, not a destination.”
They tend to set and measure their worth with process goals.However, both fixed and growth mindsets have dark sides, showing up in maladaptive behaviors. Growth mindset people may be more overconfident or arrogant, willing to take on challenges for which they are truly not prepared. Sometimes their resilience is short lived, and fades in the face of extended challenges. Their continuous learning and improving can sometime mask procrastination which delays actually taking action. Their strong focus on self-improvement and drive for perfection can backfire or get out of balance and actually create situations like burnout, disappointment and soured relationships.
The dark side of the fixed mindset is just as shady. These people will tend to avoid challenges or changes, which will limit opportunities for growth. They not only fear failure, they believe they lack the ability to learn something new, so they won’t even try. They see negative feedback as personal criticism, so they’ll often rejecct coaching, mentoring, training or advice. Interestingly they are their own worst critic, filled with harsh self-talk and negative self-image, especially when surrounded by people they perceive to be more talented or successful. Because they lack resilience, a setback leads them to give up quickly. They limit learning because to them it lacks value, which leads to stagnation and low achievements. In their relationships, they often struggle with communication and conflict resolution because they believe personality traits are unchanging and it’s fruitless to overcome the differences.
Mindset pendulum
Neither growth nor fixed mindset is better than the other, but it’s the extremes that can cause problems. Stubborn refusal to learn a new skill because of a belief in their own limited intelligence could be a significant roadblock. For example, when the COVID shutdown started, college professors found themselves in an extremely challenging situation when they had to pivot to online classes. Not only did they have to restructure their entire syllabus, they had to learn virtual technology, online presentation skills, strategies to keep students engaged, learning management systems (LMS), and how to mimic the more organic community that is normally fostered on campus.
Data confirmed this was a huge struggle. In April 2020, Cengage conducted a survey across 641 US higher education institutions about their priorities during the COVID shutdown. The results revealed that 97% of institutions used faculty with no prior online teaching experience. Almost half of the faculty surveyed wanted more information about how to transition to online learning. Almost 60% wanted webinars for their students to learn how to succeed with online learning, indicating that the faculty themselves were not equipped to prepare their students as well as they would like. Almost half the faculty (48%) lowered their expectations about the amount of work students would be able to do, and almost as many (46%) dropped some exams or assignments.
I saw this from the front row. In 2020, I had two kids in college, and a brother teaching college math. My daughter was frustrated with a professor who didn’t adapt to online very well. My son’s physics lab classes were simply cancelled, and he had to be bold and resilient in the face of that disappointment and setback. My brother who admits to disliking most technology, committed to learning it to give his students the best online experience possible. Do these data and anecdotal situations reflect fixed vs growth mindsets of all higher education students, faculty and administrators? Of course not. But it does show how the extremes can have lasting impact.
Mindset changeability
A growth and fixed mindset can exist simultaneously in the same person. You may have a growth mindset about learning a new language, but a fixed mindset about your golfing ability. Mindset is affected by external circumstances, such as our companions, the type of feedback we get, and even a room’s ambient. Work environment and relationships can shape mindset. A supportive encouraging environment can foster growth, collaboration, innovation. A critical, competitive environment can cultivate risk-aversion, fear of failure, and compare-and-despair vibe. Focusing on outcome over effort, where checking a box is more important than the journey of becoming something great will create a pecking order of carrot-stick mentality that stifles innovation and fosters murmuring and complaining.
Mindset can also shift over time. Age and life experiences may significantly influence mindset. Younger individuals often have more malleable mindsets because they are in formative stages of development, exposed to new ideas and experiences. They might be more open to adopting a growth mindset if they are encouraged to learn, take risks, and view failures as opportunities for growth.Older people, influenced by life experiences, successes, and failures might hold more entrenched beliefs about their abilities and potential. However, this doesn’t mean that a growth mindset can’t be developed later in life. With conscious effort, reflection, and the right environment, people of any age can shift towards a growth mindset.
What does this have to do with impostor syndrome?
There are several parallels between mindset concepts and the impostor syndrome. Fixed mindset and impostor syndrome both manifest as self-doubt, sensitivity to feedback and a fear of failure. Growth mindset can be an effective repellent that promotes resilience, healthy response to feedback and more openness to challenges.
You’d think that people with growth mindsets would not struggle with impostor syndrome because it sounds so….mature, so…growth-y. Surely they don’t struggle with impostor syndrome, right?
And you’d think that fixed mindset people would struggle with it more. Someone who believes that their intelligence cannot change is likely to explain a success as luck or timing. They will feel out of place when surrounded by people with more education or experience or talent. They won’t ask for help, thinking they must do things on their own. So, surely the fixed mindset folks feel more impostor syndrome, right?
Yes and no.
While impostor syndrome is a heavily researched and documented subject, research around the relationship between this self-doubt and intelligence theory (mindset) is sadly both lacking and contradictory. Some studies confirm a positive correlation between growth mindset and higher impostor feelings. Some don’t.
However, it’s true that the maladaptive behaviors of the dark sides of both the growth and fixed mindset can easily emphasize one’s impostor syndrome experiences. Consider these comparison examples:
- A person with fixed mindset believes their abilities are static, or “I have it or I don’t”, leading to a false conclusion that any shortcoming or failure reflects a lack of ability. This can lead them to “feel fraudulent” in the face of success, especially if they attribute their success to luck or timing, instead of inherent ability.
- A fixed mindset person sees feedback as a personal attack, not an opportunity for growth, just as a person with Impostor Syndrome interprets negative feedback as a confirmation of their own perceived inadequacies.
- A fixed mindset person pursues a perfect outcome; a person with impostor syndrome also pursues perfection, but their standard of success are so unrealistically high they never can truly enjoy the result because they always think “It could have been better.”
- A growth mindset person likes learning new things, but if impostor syndrome is present, they may find that learning something new is harder than they expect, and they’ll think, “Why is this so hard? There must be something wrong with me.”
- A growth mindset person who embraces effort and persistence may be a person who starts a zillion projects but finishes none, leading them to feeling like a failure or a fraud.
- A person with growth mindset who is overly focused on continually improving may feel constant pressure to prove their worth with evidence of continual growth. This can lead to feelings of inadequacy or failure if growth goals are missed.
What does this mean to you as a leader?
It’s tempting to say “I want my team to have a growth mindset!” because it seems so favored over a fixed mindset. Who wouldn’t want a team of resilient, high-achieving, lovers of learning?
However, having a balanced approach that recognizes the strengths (and dark sides) of each mindset and leverages both in the right situation is smart. The question to ask yourself is, “How do I lead people, regardless of mindset, to reach corporate goals, maximize my team’s potential, and cultivate a robust organization?” That’s a lot. Because going back to the sewing analogy, do you favor the product or the process in your organization? And how does that impact how you lead?
Leaders lead through their Influence. Your influence is seen in your commitment to understand the difference between fixed and growth mindset, which will be reflected in your leadership strategies. You’ll understand better how to motivate, give feedback, encourage innovation, and build resilience, regardless of whether your people are process-focused or outcome-focused.