Opportunities to Focus on a Growth Mindset
Do you ever think about your mindset? Have you ever thought to teach your kids about how powerful their mindset is? Our mindset literally affects everything we do and how we see the world. We have an abundance of opportunities in our daily lives to focus on a growth mindset if we choose to.
There is a famous quote by Dr. Wayne Dyer, “When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.” This is such a powerful quote because it highlights exactly how our mindset affects everything and how we truly have the ability to shift everything with the power of our minds.
What is something in your life that is currently bothering you? Have you attempted to look at it from a different perspective? Even things that seem really hard we can choose to look at as an opportunity to learn and grow. When I was getting divorced, almost any time I would tell someone I was divorced there immediate response was, “oh I am sorry.” My response was always, “I am not.” Then, I would go on to explain how it was a conscious choice to make a better life for my child and I. That it was an opportunity for me to learn and grow and an opportunity for me to ensure that my child had a home filled with love. I had no control over what happened at the other home but at least I could control the love, time and commitment in the walls that I provided. Which then would always shift the person’s response to me to be, “wow, good for you.” I could have chosen to dwell on a failed marriage and be bitter or I could choose to learn and grow. I chose to learn and grow. I think many people in that same situation are also choosing that same path of growth and inner work even if they cannot express it.
It also gave me the opportunity to write a book, which I never would have had the knowledge to write. One of my student teachers looked at the books I had written to that point, she told me that one of the things she noticed in her practicums was the large numbers of children with separated and divorced parents. She pointed out, you are divorced and building a positive life for you and your child, why don’t you write a book about divorce to help kids and parents in a similar situation. So that is exactly what I did, I wrote and illustrated, “Divorce is a D-Word: Sometimes Two homes are Better Than One.” So, as you can see something that generally causes others to feel sorry for you or that they would look at from a negative perspective can actually turn into your strength and power, if you choose to view it as that. Like Wayne Dyer says, it is all about how you choose to look at things.
This week I want you to take notice of how you are viewing your current life situation. Are there things that you wish were different? Do you dwell on those things? Or do you look at them as an opportunity to learn and grow? I bet there are things that surface each day that you could choose to look at differently. Try to be conscious of it all week. Notice if you shift your perspective how you feel and react to the situation.
