The Key to Change and Learning New Things

“’Cause when you try hard, that’s when you die hard.” -Kanye West, Can’t Tell Me Nothing

Learning new things is vital to your survival as a working professional in 2019. My own career is a good example. I spent years researching in an academic environment, then became a military officer. Now, I host a podcast. As David Epstein and I discussed in this video interview, it’s crucial to make career changes in pursuit of “match quality.” Professionals who can make changes to improve match quality tend to excel.

If you read Dr. Carol Dweck’s research about the Growth Mindset and the Fixed Mindset, you know how to make changes. For those who are unfamiliar, Carol Dweck is a motivational psychologist at Stanford University. Here’s a quick synopsis of her main ideas.

There are two mindsets. The growth mindset and the fixed mindset will produce drastically different outcomes over time. This effect has been demonstrated in case studies of elite performers, controlled research on preschool children, and many groups in between.

The fixed mindset believes that I am God’s gift to my field. When you have a fixed mindset you don’t need practice, because your abilities are fixed. Either you get it or you don’t. Everything is about winning and losing. It’s a hallmark of the fixed mindset to emphasize winning with minimal effort, such as, “Hey I got an A on that test and barely studied.” The fixed mindset can also believe that success is impossible. When you fail, it must be due to a predetermined lack of ability. The fixed mindset doesn’t believe that they could overcome through deliberate practice.

The growth mindset believes that I am a learner. When you have a growth mindset, practice is everything, because your abilities depend on your preparation. Either you’re prepared or you aren’t. Everything is about learning. The growth mindset doesn’t care how much work it took to achieve something, as long as success comes in the end. Kobe Bryant didn’t care if he put in more practice than everyone else, he was ready to sacrifice to be the best. The growth mindset also sees failure through the lens of practice. A loss is a sign that your opponent was better prepared. But, there is always the opportunity to prepare and get them next time.

Don’t be Kanye West. Kanye says, “I’m… way more fresher, with way less effort. ’Cause when you try hard, that’s when you die hard.” This is the fixed mindset and an extremely fragile worldview. What if Kanye’s next album flops? Now he’s not way more fresher. What if he decides to put in long hours in the studio to get to the top of his game? Now he’s not getting by with way less effort. Any attempt to better himself tears down his facade of effortlessness. This boxes him into a crippling commitment to complacency.

Be a hydra. A hydra is a mythological beast that is nearly unbeatable. Every time you cut off a hydra’s head, two more grow back. This is the growth mindset. It is antifragile. Every time you fail, you can learn from it. Every mistake is a learning experience that becomes a new tool in your toolkit. If you put in more hours than your opponents, that means you are more experienced. Everything works in your favor.

To learn how to make growth minded changes in your career, check out my full video interview with David Epstein.