Welcome to Volume 1, Issue 1 of The Root.

In order to support our growth, we require a strong network of roots.  They anchor us, and serve as a conduit for nutrients to help us develop and deliver on our goals.

At  Aspire to Grow, our core belief is the concept of a Growth Mindset, a state of mind of continual learning and growing.  The Root seemed like a fitting newsletter name.  We are huge fans of  nature, organizational psychology, gardening, individual and organizational learning, and mindfulness.  Each month, our aim is to share book highlights & podcast summaries related to management practices and individual development.  In addition, we will share moments to reset and be mindful for self-care.

Thank you for following along our journey to Aspire to Grow.

Check us out at www.aspiretogrow.co <the .com domain was taken, but I like to think of iit as “.co” for co-create>.

Off the Shelf – August Book Pick

What is a Growth Mindset?  Carol Dweck is pretty much an social and developmental psychology Rock Star. Her research on mindset growth (detailed in her book Mindset) is core to many aspects of life. According to Dr. Dweck, everyone can change and grow through experience and application. It’s the idea that intelligence and practical knowledge can be learned through experience.  Her work is one of the key foundations of individual and organizational learning.

When we are learning and growing, it’s normal to be uncomfortable.  That specific discomfort is a sign of doing something new.  Hint – when it feels tough, remember you are learning – so don’t give up. Remember, you are growing new skills. It will be uncomfortable for a while. 

Dweck reminds us that we don’t just arrive with this mindset, it’s a journey.  It includes accepting mistakes as part of learning.  It’s the idea of reflecting on mistakes or lost opportunities to say, “what did I learn from this” and “what could I do differently next time”.  This also works really well with parenting!

As leaders, we can help foster Growth Mindsets for our teams and employees.  By building in group reflection as After Action Review or Lessons Learned after key milestones, teams can reflect, learn and iterate for future projects.  Do this in real time.  This process helps teams build confidence and collaborate to learn and innovate.  You might even build in a fun team building activity to create social connection. 

Dweck reminds us that we have both Growth and Fixed Mindsets.  The key is identifying the triggers that may keep us in the Fixed Mindset at the wrong time.  Are we too concerned with meeting a deadline?  Are we afraid of hearing a different point of view?  Are we afraid to fail?  Dweck calls this our Fixed Mindset “persona”.  Identify the triggers in your persona that could get you stuck in a Fixed Mindset when you might need to be considering change or growth. 

Lastly, if you reflect on the things that happened in your day – perhaps include a question of “what opportunities for learning and growth” did I have today?  Did I have an “a-ha” moment.   Grow on!

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Stream On – August Podcast Pick

Microsoft’s Culture “Building the Future” From the May 24, 2002 episode of WorkLife with Adam Grant, Satya Nadella, the Microsoft Chairman and CEO speaks to how the internal culture changed from competition to collaboration. 

Satya brought in Carol Dweck’s Growth Mindset to help them 
“build a culture to aspire to” (I know right?).  By doing so, they assessed the internal systems, processes and behaviors they wanted to reinforce to be successful. Part of this was the model for management they built, including 3 key pillars:

• Model

• Coach

• Care

The direct manager is key to this model.  They would model good behavior and practices, coach employees to deliver success and learn and care.  These together create an environment of psychological safety and “safe zones”, to be vulnerable and admit mistakes.  Nadella calls psychological safety is being a “first class thing” of successful companies.  When we talk about world class or first class organizations – rarely do we assume the organizational learning component. (I was literally cheering in my car!)

He acknowledges, that not everyone feels represented to speak up safely and in these cases, the direct managers play a key role in creating the safety (“care”) to build those behaviors and safe zones. This is so important for inclusion of diverse thoughts and employees. It’s hard to acknowledge a Growth Mindset all the time – as many of us work in productivity based environments.  But, do take time to reflect, listen and consider other points of view.  It may save time in the long run. 

Check out the transcript of their interview. 

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Mindful Moments – Forest Bathing

Mindfulness in Nature. Part of growth is spiritual.  Self care includes “down time” for meditation or mindfulness.  For me, it was important to quiet my mind and to build in time where I was purposefully not productive. It is a time to allow our brains to wander (without a scheduled meeting, check list completion, social media scrolling or email responding) … I admit, I do still check it off my to do list. 

In Japan, they have a practice known as shinrin-yoku (or forest bathing).  It’s a practice of being in the forest and experiencing it with all senses.  A few simple steps to help you be fully present:

• Turn off your mobile device (it’s tough, but you can do it )

• No music — you will want to experience the sounds of nature (birds, wind, water flowing)

• No talking, no Peloton coach, just silence

You may find that you observe flowers or trees you had not seen before.  You may see different flowers bloom throughout the season.  You might even hear the sound of a red winged black bird (a sound you may not have heard in years). 

Over time, the process can help lower blood pressure, heart rate and cortisol levels.  And, you might just walk away with a few new a-ha moments. 🌲