Have you ever looked at a team and wondered why some people seem to skyrocket while others, equally talented on paper, stay stuck? I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about this, not just in others, but in myself. There are moments we feel like we’ve hit a wall, that our abilities are what they are. Then there are other times we feel like we can learn anything, overcome any obstacle. The difference isn't talent; it’s a lens through which we see the world and ourselves. Getting this right is the key to unlocking potential you didn’t even know was there. In this first of two articles, we’ll explore three core concepts to help you identify the powerful, often hidden, quality of a growth mindset. If you have a friend who manages a team or is trying to build a career, they might find this useful. I’ve included a visual summary at the end to help you remember the key takeaways. So, let’s get started.
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1. THE CORE DISTINCTION: GARDENS VS. STATUES
Growth is a decision, not a trait.
What if I told you that the single greatest predictor of success isn’t raw talent or intelligence, but a simple belief? Dr. Carol Dweck’s research presents us with a fundamental choice in how we view our capabilities. On one side, there's the fixed mindset, the belief that our intelligence, skills, and talents are innate, carved in stone from birth. People with this view see challenges as risks, not opportunities, because failure feels like a final judgment on their inherent worth. They might say things like, “I’m just not a math person” or “I’ve never been a good public speaker.” The underlying message? This is who I am, and it cannot be changed.
On the other side is the growth mindset, the belief that abilities are like muscles—they can be developed through dedication, effort, and learning. Failure isn't a verdict; it's valuable feedback. A challenge isn’t a threat; it’s a chance to stretch and grow. Someone with this perspective might say, “I’m struggling with this report, so I need to find a new strategy,” or “Public speaking makes me nervous, so I’m going to practice until I feel more comfortable.” Do you see the profound difference? One view closes doors; the other opens them. It’s the foundational difference between seeing yourself as a finished statue or a living, growing garden.
A fixed mindset is like a perfect, polished marble statue in a museum.
It is beautiful and impressive, but it will never change, grow, or produce anything new. A growth mindset is like a vibrant, community garden. It requires constant work—tilling the soil, planting seeds, watering, and weeding—but it has limitless potential to flourish, adapt to the seasons, and produce a rich harvest.
What It Looks Like In Action
The quarterly projections were a disaster. The team at “Innovate Forward” had missed their target by a wide margin. In the debrief meeting, the tension was thick enough to cut with a knife.
Liam, a senior designer, slumped in his chair. “Look, the strategy was flawed from the start,” he said, crossing his arms. “I’m a designer, not a data analyst. I did my part. There’s not much else I could have done.”
Across the table, Maria, a junior developer, leaned forward, her notebook open. “Okay, so we missed. I’m wondering, where exactly did our process break down? I made some serious errors in my code that slowed down the launch. I’ve already started a list of what I learned from that mistake. Could we walk through the timeline, step by step, to see where we could all improve our workflow for next time?”
The manager, David, felt the energy in the room shift. Liam had delivered his verdict. Maria had delivered an invitation.
Remember:
If people believe their abilities can grow, then they’ll take on challenges—because growth mindset turns effort into possibility.
Do It:
Catch Yourself. When you face a setback, pay close attention to the first thought that enters your mind. Is it a verdict ("I'm a failure") or a question ("What can I learn from this?")? Just noticing the thought is the first step to changing it.
Use 'Yet'. Add the word "yet" to the end of your fixed-mindset statements. "I'm not good at presentations" becomes "I'm not good at presentations, yet." It’s a small word that cracks open the door to future possibility.
Praise Process. When giving feedback to others, like David could with his team, praise the process, not the person. Instead of "You're so smart," try "I was so impressed with the strategy you used to solve that problem." This encourages a focus on effort and learning.
2. THE BEHAVIORAL EVIDENCE: ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER THAN BELIEFS
Mindset reveals itself when the pressure hits.
It’s one thing to say you have a growth mindset, but it's another thing entirely to live it. The true markers aren’t found in self-proclaimed labels but in observable behaviors, especially under pressure. Think about how people react to constructive criticism. Does their body language close off? Do they get defensive, explaining away the feedback as misguided or unfair? That’s the fixed mindset in self-preservation mode, protecting a fragile ego. Or do they lean in, ask clarifying questions, and genuinely thank the person for their perspective? That’s the growth mindset seeing a gift, an opportunity to improve.
Another key indicator is how someone approaches a challenge. Those with a growth mindset are often drawn to tasks just beyond their current reach. They embrace the discomfort of not knowing because they understand that’s where learning happens. Conversely, a fixed mindset leads people to stick to what they know, to repeatedly prove their competence in familiar areas rather than risk looking foolish by trying something new. Pay attention to the language people use. Do they talk about the effort they’re putting in, the strategies they’re trying, and the lessons learned from others? Or do they focus on innate talent and seek validation for their existing intelligence?
Identifying mindset is like being a wildlife photographer in the forest.
You can’t just ask the animals about their habits. You have to sit patiently, observe their behavior in their natural environment, and watch how they respond to the changing seasons, especially the harshness of winter. Their actions—how they forage, build shelters, and interact—tell the real story of their resilience and adaptability.
What It Looks Like In Action
“Alright, Michael, the client loved the overall concept, but they felt the user interface was a bit cluttered. They want a complete redesign of the dashboard,” the project lead explained.
Michael felt a familiar knot in his stomach. It was his first major project, and he’d poured weeks into that dashboard. His first instinct was to defend his work. But he took a breath and remembered his mentor’s advice.
“Thank you for letting me know,” Michael said, his voice steady. “This is tough to hear, but I appreciate the direct feedback. Can you walk me through their specific concerns? I want to make sure I fully understand what’s not working before I start on V2.”
His colleague, who had overheard, later remarked, “Wow, you took that really well. I would have been crushed.”
Michael shrugged, a small smile playing on his lips. “Oh, it stings a little. But it’s better to know now so I can make it right. The first version was just a draft, anyway. The real learning starts now.”
Remember:
If someone seeks feedback and embraces difficulty, then they likely have a growth mindset—because real beliefs show up under stress.
Do It:
Seek Feedback. Actively ask for constructive criticism on a small, recent project. Approach someone you trust and say, "I'm trying to get better at [skill]. Could you give me one or two specific things I could improve in this work?" Like Michael, focus on understanding, not defending.
Embrace 'Hard'. The next time a task feels difficult and overwhelming, reframe the feeling. Instead of thinking "This is too hard," tell yourself, "This is challenging, which means my brain is building new connections." The feeling of effort is the feeling of growth.
Study Others. Observe how leaders or colleagues you admire handle setbacks or receive feedback. Don't just watch; analyze their specific language and body language. What questions do they ask? How do they maintain a constructive tone?
3. THE ART OF THE REVEAL: INTERVIEWING FOR MINDSET
If you want to know who someone is, ask what they’ve learned.
If you’re in a position to hire someone, how can you peek behind their polished interview facade to see their true mindset? You must become a detective of their past behavior. Resumes list successes, but a person’s mindset is revealed in how they process their struggles. This means shifting away from hypothetical questions (“How would you handle…?”) and towards behavioral ones (“Tell me about a time when you…”). The goal is to elicit stories, and within those stories are the clues you’re looking for.
Ask about a time they failed on a project. Ask about a time they received difficult feedback from a boss. Ask about a time they had to learn a complex new skill quickly. Then, listen carefully to the story they tell. Does the story have a hero (them) and a villain (an incompetent boss, bad luck, a flawed system)? Or does the story feature a protagonist who took ownership, learned a lesson, and changed their approach as a result? A fixed-mindset answer is full of blame and justification. A growth-mindset answer is full of ownership and learning. They don’t just tell you what happened; they tell you what they learned from it and how it changed them.
Interviewing for mindset is like being an archaeologist excavating a site.
You aren’t just looking for shiny, perfect artifacts on the surface. You are carefully digging through the layers of dirt and debris—the struggles, the mistakes, the broken pieces—because that’s where the real story of the civilization lies. The way the pieces fit together and the repairs that were made tell you more than any single, pristine object ever could.
What It Looks Like In Action
Jasmine was interviewing two final candidates for a marketing lead position. Both had stellar resumes.
She started with the first candidate. “Tell me about a marketing campaign you worked on that didn't meet its goals. What went wrong?”
The candidate shifted uncomfortably. “Well, it was a tough quarter. The sales team didn’t follow up on the leads properly, and the initial budget we were given was frankly insufficient for the target audience. We did the best we could under the circumstances.”
Later, she asked the same question to the second candidate, Kenji.
Kenji nodded, a look of reflection on his face. “That’s a great question. About a year ago, we launched a campaign that completely missed the mark. The metrics were terrible. My initial assumption about the target demographic’s online habits was just plain wrong. It was a humbling experience. Afterwards, I led a post-mortem where we discovered our data was outdated. It forced me to learn a new analytics platform, and now I never launch a campaign without cross-referencing at least three different data sources. It was a painful lesson, but my process is so much stronger for it.”
Jasmine made a note. One answer was a dead end. The other was a story of growth.
Remember:
If a person learns from failure, they’ll tell you how they changed—because growth-oriented people frame mistakes as turning points.
Do It:
Ask 'Why'. During your next significant conversation or interview, after you get an answer to a "what happened" question, follow up with, "Why do you think that happened?" and "What did you learn from it?" This pushes past the surface-level narrative.
Tell Your Story. Rehearse your own failure story. Frame it not as a list of excuses, but as a journey: "Here was the situation, here was my role in the failure, here is the specific lesson I learned, and here is how I've applied that lesson since." Having this ready, as Kenji did, is powerful.
Listen for Pronouns. Pay attention to "I" vs. "they." Does the person take ownership with "I made a mistake," or do they deflect with "They didn't deliver" or "The situation was impossible"? It's a small but incredibly telling linguistic clue.
TYING IT TOGETHER
Potential hides in patterns, not résumés.
Recognizing a growth mindset is like learning to see in a new color. At first, you have to consciously look for it, but soon you start seeing it everywhere. It begins with understanding the core difference between a garden and a statue—the belief in the potential for growth versus the finality of what is (The Core Distinction). From there, you learn to spot the real-world evidence, not in what people say they believe, but in how they act when challenged (The Behavioral Evidence). Finally, you learn how to actively probe for that history of growth, using interviews to excavate the stories of resilience and learning that lie beneath the surface of a resume (The Art of the Reveal).
These three concepts are your lens. I encourage you to pick just one of the "Do It" actions this week and give it a try. How did it feel? What did you notice? Drop a comment below and share your experience. And when you're ready to move from identifying this quality to actively building a system that attracts and hires for it, look out for Part 2 of this series. We'll explore how to go beyond interviews with assessments and work samples, how to weave mindset into your entire hiring process, and how to weigh the incredible benefits against the potential pitfalls.
Remember: If you want to spot potential, observe how people interpret and respond to challenges.
For now, scroll down for a handy infographic summarizing what we've covered today.
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