One of my clients, Jessica, is 20 pounds away from her ideal, healthy weight. She believes that since both her parents were overweight that she will never be able to get to her ideal weight because she believes she’s been handed an “overweight gene”.
Another client, Nicole, is 38 pounds from her ideal healthy weight (almost twice as much as Jessica) and both her parents have been overweight their entire lives. Both are diabetic and Nicole recently got the news that she’s also a diabetic. Nicole, however, believes that if she works hard and is willing to step out of her comfort zone, she can get to her ideal weight.
Which client do you think will reach her goal?
Well … hopefully both, but with the mindset that Nicole has, she’s more likely to reach her goal weight sooner … and continue to maintain it. It’s been proven over and over again that our mindset, or what we believe about something, determines our ability to follow through.
Henry Ford once said “If you think you can do a thing or think you can’t do a thing, you’re right.” Ford was on to something!
Mindset guru, Carol Dweck, says there are two mindsets: the fixed mindset and the growth mindset. Someone with a fixed mindset believes what the talents and abilities they were given in life is “fixed” and can’t be changed.
On the other hand, someone with a growth mindset believes they can build upon what they were given to make it better. Based on many studies noted in Dweck’s book, Mindset, the person with the growth mindset is the person who will be more likely succeed in their endeavors.
From my perspective and from what I’ve seen with my clients, it all comes down to hard work. The person with the fixed mindset doesn’t believe hard work will make a difference. After all, they believe they can’t change the outcome because the outcome has already been handed to them. The person with the growth mindset, however, is willing to work hard to improve all areas of their lives.
Having said this, keep in mind that we don’t just think in terms of one mindset or the other. We generally have a mixture of the two.
We can have a fixed mindset in relationships and believe we shouldn’t have to work hard … that it should come easy if it’s meant to be. And at the same time, we can have a growth mindset in our health, believing that we can achieve our goals regardless of the circumstances we are in … if we work hard enough.
These two different mindsets can be manifested in many areas of our lives. In her book, Dweck applies these two mindsets to intelligence, leadership, sports, relationships, and parenting, among other things. I believe it can be applied to health, wellness, and weight loss as well.
“So Debbie”, you say. “This sounds great, but how can I change from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset when it comes to my weight and health?” Great question. Let’s dive in!
I believe the Number one thing we can do is to realize that hard work is key to making lasting changes. It doesn’t have to be so difficult you won’t follow through. Take small steps and you’ll be amazed at how far you can go. (Check out my free Essential Guide to Jumpstart Your Weight Loss for tips on taking small steps on your weight-loss journey.)
Here are some other things you can do to develop more of a growth mindset.
· Be willing to step out of your comfort zone. You may not be used to drinking more than a few ounces of water a day. But water is so important in weight loss and general health. Since you know this, go ahead and make the decision now to get a little comfortable being uncomfortable.
· Believe you can. Remember what Henry Ford said … “If you think you can do a thing or think you can’t do a thing, you’re right.” Your mindset largely determines whether you will succeed at something. So whether you have 20 pounds to lose or 200, believe you can and you’re half way there!
· Open yourself up to growth. Look for opportunities to change from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset. Exercising a growth mindset is like exercising a muscle. The more you use it, the stronger it gets. Work toward building your “growth-mindset muscle”.
· Commit to doing things even when you don’t want to. I can’t stress this one enough. If what you’re doing now isn’t working, then change up what you are doing. If you don’t want to work out, then go small. Five minutes is ok. Oftentimes, the hardest part is deciding to do something, so make the commitment now. Then take on Nike’s motto and “just do it”! Nothing feeds momentum and growth like momentum and growth.
· Once you notice a fixed thought, reframe it. This has been -- and still is -- important in my journey to a more growth mindset. I catch myself thinking “fixed” thoughts every day. Things like “I’ll never be able to learn this” or “I can’t do a full pushup”. When you find yourself using the word “can’t”, try adding the word “yet” to the end of your sentence. So now I say “I can’t do a full pushup yet.” It’s a much more powerful statement and motivates me to work hard to improve because now I believe I can eventually do a full pushup.
So the bottom line is that we all have a mixture of fixed and growth mindset thoughts and working toward a growth mindset will help you in so many areas of your life.
Be ok with stepping outside your comfort zone and looking for opportunities to change from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset. Commit to doing things even when it’s not comfortable to do so and add the word “yet” to your “can’t” statements.
If you do these things, I believe you’ll notice a difference in your outlook and ability to live that life you’ve always wanted to live.
Let us know in the Facebook comments ways you’ve found to incorporate a growth mindset.
