What’s Your Mindset?

I hope you’re all enjoying a festive week as we roll deep into Fall… and even Winter for some of us. I narrowly escaped the Snowpocalypse in Denver on Monday and have been enjoying a lovely Fall in MI and OH this week. I can’t think of many other places to see the fall leaves change, the temps drop to a crisp chill, and the watching folks shift into their Fall mode as Summer is likely wrapped for 2019. It’s a great time to think about what is your mindset?

Whether you’re out and about in costume today or simply watching the festivities from a distance, Halloween is sure to surface some interesting dynamics among your community. First of all, matters of identity are hyper-charged. For many, the allure of costuming and shifted identity brings about a temporarily inflated immunity or security among others and certainly a dash of creativity. Folks often to use this time to become something they most love or for some, the thing they most fear. Whichever they choose, the temporary shift into another role allots this person a ‘vacation’ from normal societal expectations whereupon they can trod around like a zombie all day, hiss at others exposing vampire teeth and an intent to suck blood, or simply recall the image of a personal pop culture icon; think Brittney Spears 2006, Maverick from the movie Top Gun, or some other random character that recalls a whole host of emotional response for the costumed and their audience.

What I enjoy most about costumes, is what it reveals about a person’s mindset; who they’re choosing to be when they have free license to take on any specific persona. That is the meat of identity phenomena in this ‘spooky’ season because it reveals who or what we choose to be when can do so at liberty and even more importantly…. Without putting the work in. Everyone has free license to shift on a moment’s notice and others accept this change at face value – oh what freedom!

So let’s extend that idea into the lens of our everyday business and personal affairs.

-Are we as apt to engage in identity growth or change when the character is ourselves? Do we accept and encourage others who choose to improve or modify their own skills and abilities or simply try a new look?

Check out this short video on Growth Mindset versus Fixed Mindset: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M1CHPnZfFmU

I like this video because it depicts the divide between stagnation and growth within each of us. Having a growth mindset leads to opportunity, personal development, and constantly allows one to re-assess the path and course correct when necessary to achieve a more optimal state of being. Conversely, a fixed mindset – while offering temporary safety – constricts our ability to grow and often isolates us from the very things that we most desire or want to see developed within ourselves.

So what can we learn from all of this?

I think it’s noteworthy to dig deeper and consider the ‘costumes’ we put on every day when we go to work, the grocery store, or otherwise. How we choose to comprise ourselves – whether we highlight our truest abilities and skills and whether or not we allow ourselves to develop those characteristics further – is ultimately the identity we’re choosing to have.

Consider this…. If there’s an identity you yearn for, don’t wait for a ‘special day’ to exhibit that desire (through the guise of your favorite horror character). Instead, wake up every day, commit to the change you want to see, and nurture others who make it known that they too are working for change. When civilization is at its’ best we’re collaborative, thoughtful, self-aware, and communal. This is really no different than the circles you operate within every day; work, home, and otherwise. These are just micro-civilizations in your immediate life that offer YOU the opportunity to discover opportunities for rich fulfillment for yourself while helping others along the way.

So before you put on that mask and go about your typical day, consider the fact that the best character you can play is the next, best version of yourself.

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