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In the business world, a “growth mindset” is often prized for its ability to motivate employees and drive them toward success. Leaders and employees who pursue growth and improvement every day tend to give their all so that they can evolve as professionals and as people in general.
As prominent leaders in their respective fields, the members of Rolling Stone Culture Council understand how important it is to encourage and inspire employees to grow. Doing so shows them you are dedicated to elevating their careers and helping them improve professionally.
Here, 11 members share some of the ways in which any business leader can inspire their employees to develop and maintain a growth mindset — and how doing so can help improve your business in the long run.
Hire Team Members With Drive
Whenever I interview a potential hire, I pay close attention to how they respond to the question, “Where do you see yourself in three years?” I want to hear that someone has a clear path toward a senior- or executive-level position and isn’t shy about it. That tells me they’re aware they’ve got a ladder to climb and are willing to take every step. – Kathy Schenfelt, MISSMANAGED
Give Employees the Opportunity to Improve
A growth mindset is often associated with persistence and hard work. To encourage employees to have a growth mindset, managers should provide them with feedback on their performance and opportunities for professional development, as well as encourage them to take risks. This will help them feel heard and valued. – Kristin Marquet, Marquet Media, LLC
Encourage Ownership
I empower my employees to act as owners in everything they do. I tell them that they need to be willing to be convinced and to accept that their ideas may not always be the best ideas. This encourages growth for everybody and helps avoid “smartest person in the room” syndrome. We are all the smartest people in the room and can learn immensely from each other. – Jayson Sawyer, JABM Enterprises
Include the Team in Big Decisions
For someone to have a growth mindset, they have to feel included. When making bigger company decisions, we discuss potential next steps during our team meetings and cover what they mean for everyone. It’s also important that everyone has the space to think creatively about their futures, so we really try our best to leave space within their working hours for brainstorming about the long term. – Cynthia Parkhurst, Teammate
The Rolling Stone Culture Council is an invitation-only community for Influencers, Innovators and Creatives. Do I qualify?
Make Learning A Company Value
Make learning inside and outside of the organization an important value the company holds. By doing so, it signals to employees that you believe they can improve, get smarter and grow. They then put in more time and effort that, in turn, we business leaders support and promote. This mindset can lead to greater success and accomplishment. – Stephanie Dillon, Stephanie Dillon Art
Praise the Process, Not Just the Outcome
Encouraging a growth mindset is all about praising growth and the hard work that leads to success, not just the success itself. Praising the work rather than the outcome not only reinforces a growth mindset in employees, but it also imbues a growth mindset in the company culture. The successful outcome is the end result of a growth-oriented process. – Dan Giuliani, Volt Athletics
Align the Company Vision With Individual Ambitions
A growth mindset is cultivated by encouraging individuals to develop their own identity within a brand. When individual ambitions align with the company vision, the two work together. I use Maslow’s hierarchy of human needs to help articulate the stages of growth in self and brand for a cohesive interplay of company and component goal setting. – Erik Oberholtzer, Cohere
Encourage Employees to Speak Up and Share Their Thoughts
Help them find their voice, form their own opinions and share their ideas on what matters most to them in a company where they envision themselves thriving in the long term. Always support speaking up, asking the tough questions and embracing mistakes as a learning experience. This will lead to true professional development. – Mike Weinberger, Unity Rd.
Celebrate Their Accomplishments
Celebrate the accomplishments of others. Learn what norms they are challenging, their approach and their outcomes. Share your insights with the team so that you can recognize patterns to help apply similar thinking from within and outside of the industry. – Rahul Raj, 5&Vine
Share How Employees Contribute to Company Goals
A growth mindset can be cultivated in employees when you share your company’s goals and how each person plays a part in those goals. It encourages personal investment in the forward trajectory of the company. Give employees the opportunity to share ideas on how they or their department play a role in reaching those goals. Your success becomes their success and vice versa. – Sheila Dedenbach, Heavenly Sweet
Be Comfortable Adapting to Change
A growth mindset comes from being willing to adapt one’s thinking in the face of new experiences or evidence. Not all of us are comfortable with this, but it has to come from the top in any organization and be widely evident in actions, not just lip service. Teams need proof that it’s OK to question and try new paths toward success. An openness to being educated goes far. None of us know it all. – Cate Rubenstein
