Growth Mindset in 60 Seconds
Plus: How to Unlock Phone Productivity
In this letter:
🧠 Learn to apply growth mindset in 60 seconds.
📱 Check out these power-packed tips on phone productivity.
📖 Enjoy the latest posts from the LinkedIn Career Content Library.
📅 Grab a pre-built learning plan for the week.Down, But Not Out
Life’s full of setbacks.
Moments that knock you down. Moments that throw a monstrous barrier between you and your goals.
Losing a job
Fumbling a project
Struggling to pick up a new topic
In these moments, you can fold.
Or you can power through using what Stanford Psychologist, Carol Dweck, calls a “growth mindset.”
Simply put, growth mindset is:
A belief you can overcome difficulty.
An embrace of challenging situations.
A value placed on hard work and tenacity.
You can’t control when or where setbacks appear.
But you can control how you approach them.
Growth Mindset: Applied
By now, you’ve probably heard of growth mindset.
But knowing about a mindset and putting it to work are two separate steps. For many, application is the hard part.
👉 So let’s apply.
In the sections below, I’m going to present four common mindset scenarios. Then, I’ll lay out how, for each, you can lean into a growth mindset in 60 seconds.
Scenarios:
1. I'm in planning mode
2. I received feedback
3. I just failed
4. I feel stalled outLet’s dive in.
I’m in planning mode
Fixed mindset:
- "There's no way I can achieve this."
- "I'll just play it safe."
Growth mindset:
- "I can achieve this with the right effort."
- "I'm going to set a stretch goal."Planning out your week, month, or year?
This is the perfect time to take on a growth mindset. Back yourself for future success and set the kind of goals that will energize and inspire you.
Invest 60 seconds in the following mindset steps:
Take ownership of your future success. Say, “I can achieve any goal with enough practice and learning.”
Alongside your goals, write down the actions you’ll take to achieve them and the most common challenges you’ll encounter along the way.
Set a stretch goal—a goal that pulls you outside your comfort zone and requires you to level-up to accomplish it.
I received feedback
Fixed mindset:
- "What's wrong with me?"
- "They made that up."
Growth mindset:
- "Feedback is an opportunity to learn and improve."
- "I appreciate constructive criticism."Your manager or peer just laid out some feedback.
Now what?
For most folks, the minutes that follow include either (1) anger toward the person who gave you feedback, or (2) shame for needing to receive the feedback.
Instead of these negative responses, invest 60 seconds here:
Frame feedback as an opportunity, not a setback. Say, “Everyone has areas of improvement. I need feedback to recognize and address mine.”
Write down the feedback. Then, schedule time the next day (when emotions aren’t as strong) to give it serious consideration.
Thank the person who provided feedback. Recognize it takes courage to share feedback with someone else.
I just failed
Fixed mindset:
- "I'll never be able to succeed."
- "Everyone thinks I'm a failure."
Growth mindset:
- "Failure is a natural part of growth."
- "My peers and loved ones want to support me."You dropped the egg.
And it cracked.
We’ve all been there. We’ve all failed projects, received bad performance reviews, and scored an “F” on an assignment.
You can let these moments flatten you. Or you can rise above.
Invest 60 seconds in this failure-busting approach:
Move “failure” into the positive bucket. Say, “Everyone who’s ever accomplished something great failed along the way.”
Reach out to those you love and trust for support. They’ll want to be there for you.
Schedule time to deeply analyze your failure. Why did it happen? What can I do better next time?
At a low point?
Consider this quote from basketball legend Michael Jordan:
I’ve missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. Twenty-six times I’ve been trusted to take the game-winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.
I feel stalled out
Fixed mindset:
- "There's nothing I can do."
- "I'm never going to get anywhere."
Growth mindset:
- "What small action can I take?"
- "I'm on an upward trajectory."Career plateaus happen all the time.
Maybe you’ve:
Outgrown your current position
Gotten tired of your daily routine
Suffered under stress and anxiety
Regardless, you want a change. To find work that’s meaningful and productive. To feel like you’re contributing more.
In these moments, invest 60 seconds in this stall-proof process:
Don’t boil the ocean. Say, “Small actions open the door for bigger progress. What’s the simplest step I can take forward?”
Set aside any excuses for not moving forward. If it’s helpful, write them down on a sheet of paper then cross each one out.
Hop in a mental time machine. Consider how far you’ve come in your life and career. Use this as fuel to set your next steps.
Growth mindset study list
Lastly, if you’re building your growth mindset muscle, consider these resources:
📚 Book: Mindset by Carol Dweck
📚 Book: Grit by Angela Duckworth
📚 Book: Atomic Habits by James Clear
📝 Article: What Having a “Growth Mindset” Actually Means
📝 Article: 18 Best Growth Mindset Activities, Worksheets, and Questions
📝 Article: Carol Dweck: A Summary of Growth and Fixed Mindsets
How to Unlock Phone Productivity
Let’s be real:
Most people’s productivity gets steamrolled by their phone habits.
The average American:
📱 Spends 5 hours and 24 minutes per day on their smartphone.
📱 Checks their phone 96 times per day.
📱 Feel uneasy leaving the house without their phone (74%).
With so much time, energy, and focus devoted to smartphone usage, it’s essential to study phone productivity. Ways to minimize distractions. Ways to free up time for deep work and productivity.
Here are 3 helpful places to start.
—
📝 Article: How to Stop Doomscrolling—With Psychology
Kenneth R. Rosen provides a helpful, research-backed system for tackling doomscrolling (“spinning continuously through bad news despite its disheartening and depressing effects”). Read for tips on how to embrace your feelings, stay informed, and set healthy boundaries.
Key Takeaway: Doomscrolling is often a byproduct of powerful, unresolved emotions. By recognizing and living in the emotions, we can limit this destructive habit.—
📝 Article: 6 Apps That Take the Grind out of Your Workday
Lydia Horne and Reece Rogers share a powerful list of apps. With gems like Otter, Headspace, and Actions, this list can help you be more productive with the hours you’re investing in your phone.
Key Takeaway: Your smartphone is packed with power. And the right app can help you unlock it. Spend time trying out productivity apps to get more done in less time.—
💡LinkedIn Post: Use This Framework to Waste Less Time Online
This week on LinkedIn, I shared the “Interesting-Useful Framework.” My personal system for limiting online distraction. The Internet can be an empowering tool. It can also be a time drain. Use this framework to keep yourself on track.
Key Takeaway: Focus on content at the intersection of interesting and useful. Interesting content engages your mind, while useful content helps you grow and thrive. 
Top line:
If you let it, your phone will drain every useful hour from the day.
It will cost you time that could be used to:
Develop daily
Pursue a promotion or job change
Invest in your family and friends
So, be strategic with your phone use.
Map out what you need to accomplish and how your phone can help you get more done. Then, design a system for limiting distractions.
What are your thoughts?
Update: The LinkedIn Career Content Library
This week, the library added 5 new posts. There are now 320 career-boosting posts available anytime.
Here’s what is new:
Matt Gray offers a must-read list of free websites. Each site, from Dribble for design inspiration to Typeshare for writing tips, can help you level-up. PLUS: Check out the comments section (nearly 300 strong) for a growing list of sites.
Matt Schnuck spotlights World Mental Health Day with this empowering post. In it, Matt looks at the famed child actress, Emma Watson, and her journaling routine. This routine helps Emma stay grounded—and it can help you too.
Jill Avey spent 6 years researching best practices for this major career step. In her post, Jill breaks down each step—with tips like “know your genius” and “embrace taking risks.” See the full list (and start your journey to VP) here.
Colleen Paulson tackles a major topic in this post: career setback. Dealing with a choppy resume after a layoff, for example, can be a huge hurdle. In this post, Colleen breaks down how to stay positive and chart your way forward.
Simon Sinek, bestselling author and speaker, connected with the CEO of the purpose-driven company Thrive Causemetics. In this interview, Karissa Bodnar shares her thoughts on building a strong company and leading future generations. Click through to watch the 52-second video here.
Friendly reminder. As a Develop Daily subscriber, you have free lifetime access to The LinkedIn Career Content Library. My gift to you.
Develop Daily w/ This Learning Plan
Sunday:
Pull up your calendar; block 15 minutes for learning each day.
Set a (stretch) goal for the week.
Lay a strong foundation with this growth mindset affirmation:
“Success is inevitable if I am determined enough. And I am.”
Monday:
Visualize a growth mindset scenario or two.
Invest 15 minutes in walking through how to bring a growth mindset to challenging situations.
Make a note of your approach.
Tuesday:
Spend 15 minutes reading and considering your phone habits.
Think through any doomscrolling triggers.
Wednesday:
Now read through Use This Framework to Waste Less Time Online.
Ask yourself: “Where do I waste time online?”
Practice using the Interesting-Useful Framework on your favorite website.
Thursday:
Revisit growth mindset.
Think through any challenging moments in the week. Did you approach the challenge with a fixed or growth mindset?
Write down next steps for continuing your growth mindset journey.
Friday:
Share your takeaways from the week with a friend or colleague.
Strike up a 15-minute discussion on a key topic.
Seek out 1-2 resources that argue the opposite point.
Saturday:
Explore freely.
Pull up LinkedIn, your favorite newsletter, or head to the library.
Spend 15 minutes learning something new.
Impact: By the end of the week, you'll have (1) a 60-second growth mindset routine, and (2) stronger productivity when using your phone. You'll also have some new apps to try and topics for conversation.
Total Investment: <2 hours