April 12, 2023
Have you ever had the experience of moving to a new company/city/school and are suddenly catapulted into a rapid state of growth?
I remember being 16 years old when I moved to a little mountain town in the Sierra Nevada mountains with my parents. I had always been a pretty quiet introvert, but somehow this new environment gave me the space I needed to become an entirely different person.
I noticed that because there seemed to be no one around who knew me before that I could be whoever I wanted! And that allowed me to present myself in an entirely new fashion – and one that was more true to who I had become over the years.
But what about when your environment DOESN’T change? What if you are consistently around the same people for years on end? Maybe it’s your spouse and kids, maybe it’s being at the same job, maybe it’s longtime friendships that just aren't growing with you?
We’ve all had that experience where you try to do something a little different than usual… start a new habit, change one little thing in your life… and you’re suddenly confronted by those who know you best with, “Why are you trying to be better than us?”
Or maybe it’s just me. Maybe it’s just the mental battle of assuming that those around me are going to be threatened by me or question why I’m trying something new.
The beauty of a growth mindset is that you’re constantly in a state of flux. And the longer you remain in this state of flux, the more the people around you will learn to accept that you are constantly changing and growing. This state of change becomes the authentic you.
Roy Bennett says this:
“Don't let the expectations and opinions of other people affect your decisions. It's your life, not theirs. Do what matters most to you; do what makes you feel alive and happy. Don't let the expectations and ideas of others limit who you are. If you let others tell you who you are, you are living their reality — not yours.”