Executive PA Australasia April May 2018 | Seite 63

“In times of change, it’s your growth mindset that will
most help you thrive, rather than merely survive”
Identify your mindset
Some people embrace career change readily:
they have a high-risk appetite, love pushing
boundaries and comfortably challenge themselves
to remain stimulated, whilst creating a sense of
purpose and achievement. At the other end of the
scale, those who avoid career change often miss
opportunities for learning and personal growth.
Of course, you may be somewhere in the middle
but, wherever you are, getting more comfortable
with career change starts with building your
resilience and adopting a ‘growth mindset’ so you
are ready to adapt.
The terms ‘fixed’ or a ‘growth’ mindset
were coined by the world-renowned Stanford
academic, Carol Dweck. She found that people
with a fixed mindset see intelligence as static: a
fixed trait. As a result, they want to always look
smart and appear as though they have all the
answers. They believe success is based on talent
alone – not work – and they’re likely to avoid
challenges, and give up more easily. They also
tend to dismiss feedback, seeing it as criticism,
and feel threatened by others’ success.
In contrast, people with a growth mindset
believe that intelligence can be developed through
hard work and effort so are more eager to embrace
learning, take on challenges and persist – despite
setbacks. They love learning, usually display
higher resilience and are more willing to learn
from others and receive feedback. And, in times
of change, it’s your growth mindset that will most
help you thrive, rather than merely survive.
To determine if you’re approaching change
with a growth mindset ask yourself:
w Do I see set-backs as an opportunity to learn?
w Do I believe there’s always more to learn?
w When things go wrong do I accept my role
in the situation and look for ways to improve or
change?
If you answered ‘yes’, then your growth mindset
is already in the driver’s seat – if not, use the
above three questions as an opportunity to alter
your current mindset.
Build your growth mindset
Adopting a growth mindset is a constant practice:
something you work on every day. Consciously
building practices like the below into your daily
life will help you maintain that focus:
w Practice mindfulness – take the time to stop,
breathe, reflect and then respond to an event.
This’ll ensure your actions are more mindful and
less reactive.
w Adopt a gratitude mantra – expressing
gratitude is scientifically proven to help you feel
happier and it works with resilience too.
w Be curious and have an open mind –
investigating issues through multiple lenses helps
you see things from multiple perspectives. This, in
turn, helps you realise that your negative view of
the event may not be the reality.
w Actively manage stress – acknowledge how you
feel and accept those feelings. Use mindfulness
techniques, along with regular exercise, eating
well, meditating and laughing lots.
w Learn from your mistakes – view mistakes as
an opportunity to experiment, learn and grow,
rather than viewing them as a failure.
Focus on relationships and EQ
As reported in previous Chief of Staff articles,
the predictable, routine and process elements
of your role will eventually be fully automated,
but your relational skills and emotional support
you provide for the boss can’t be replicated by a
machine.
It’s critical, therefore, to see the acquisition
of deep self-understanding and emotional
intelligence as important as the technical skills
you use in your work.
Ensure you can pre-empt your exec’s needs, be
alert to the warning signs of stress and help them
manage their workload. Remember, this relies
on you having high levels of self-awareness and
relational awareness, too (and it’s certainly not
something a robot can do!)
Stay invested in your career
Staying current also means setting aside time each
year to critically examine your career – where you
are now, where you want to be, what you need
to do to get there and how much progress you’ve
made. So, as part of this review process, consider
the elements of your plan that may need to alter
to accommodate changes in the EA profession –
and include your value proposition (the value you
offer through the work you do) as what’s valued
may actually be changing.
To be clear on your value proposition, ask
yourself:
w What unique skills, capabilities and
competencies do I bring to my work?
w What am I known for by my boss, work
colleagues and peers?
w Is what I am known for, how I want to be
known?
w If not, what do I need to do to close the gap?
w How may my value proposition need to change
to account for changes in the EA profession? S
THE EXPERT
Michelle Gibbings is
a change leadership
and career expert, plus
founder of Change
Meridian where she
works with global leaders
and teams to help them
accelerate progress. She
is the author of Step
Up: How to Build Your
Influence at Work.
Michellegibbings.com
April/May 2018 | Chief of Staff 63