Unleashing Innovation: The Power of Growth Mindset Leadership and The Neuroscience
- Dennis Sanchez
- May 12, 2023
- 9 min read
Updated: May 15, 2023
In the rapidly evolving world of business, innovation is not just a luxury, but a necessity for survival and growth. Yet, sparking innovation is not a serendipitous process; it's often the product of an environment and culture nurtured by powerful leadership.
One key characteristic that differentiates these forward-thinking leaders is a "growth mindset." Pioneered by psychologist Carol Dweck, the concept of a growth mindset embraces challenges, sees effort as a path to mastery, and perceives failures as opportunities for learning. This transformative mindset in leadership significantly contributes to fostering an innovative culture.
However, the power of a growth mindset extends beyond mere philosophy; it is rooted in neuroscience. From promoting neuroplasticity to enhancing motivation, building resilience, inviting collaboration, creativity, and developing critical thinking, growth mindset leaders are the architects of innovative environments.
This article delves into the neuroscience behind these dynamics, exploring how leaders with a growth mindset drive innovation and why it is essential to discard fixed mindset behaviors to fully unlock the potential for growth and success.
Innovation by Growth Mindset Leadership and The Neuroscience
Let's explore the innovation of Growth Mindset Leadership and the Neuroscience that backs it up
They Promote Neuroplasticity
Neuroplasticity refers to the brain's ability to change and adapt in response to experiences, learning, and training. Leaders with a growth mindset nurture a culture of learning and continuous improvement, this leads to increased neuroplasticity at both individual and team levels, and facilitated through encouraging novel experiences and cognitive challenges that stimulate the formation of new neural connections in the brain.
They enhance MOMENTUM, Fueled by Motivation and Engagement
John Maxwell emphasis the power of momentum in his book "5 Levels of Leadership" and the neuroscience explanation is the crucial role dopamine plays here. When leaders promote a growth mindset, they inspire an environment where effort and progress are rewarded, stimulating dopamine release. This simple, but key, neural process enhances motivation and engagement among team members, which leads to innovative thinking and problem-solving.
They Build Mental Resilience
A growth mindset encourages viewing failures and setbacks as opportunities for learning and growth, rather than as definitive negative outcomes. This crucial perspective helps regulate the stress response in the brain, avoiding an "Amygdala Hijack", When facing challenges, the brain's amygdala triggers a stress response, but this reaction is tempered by cognitive appraisal processes in the prefrontal cortex. Leaders with a growth mindset can help teams reframe challenges and failures, reducing stress and promoting adaptive responses, which are essential for innovation and emotional transmutation.
They Foster Collaboration and Creativity
Leaders with a growth mindset value and promote collaboration, recognizing that diverse perspectives stimulates creative, innovative solutions, resulting in overall productive revenue generation. This occurs through the release of oxytocin, a hormone that plays a key role in social bonding and trust. This enhanced social connection stimulates the creative and innovative capacities of the team, and amplifies the momentum of productivity.
They Develop Critical Thinking & Executive Functions
A growth mindset encourages the development of executive functions like problem-solving, flexible thinking, and strategic planning. These cognitive processes, overseen by the prefrontal cortex, are crucial for driving innovation. Leaders who promote a growth mindset foster an environment that stimulates the development and application of revenue generating mindset functions.
Fixed Minded Leaders with Growth Mindset Skills and Behaviors?
A fixed mindset suggests that abilities and intelligence are set and unchangeable, while a growth mindset suggests that these traits can be developed with effort and persistence. These mindsets impact how individuals approach challenges, deal with failure, and perceive their own potential for growth.
Therefore, technically, a "fixed-minded leader with growth mindset skills" might seem contradictory at first glance. However, what this refers to is a leader who predominantly operates from a fixed mindset, but who has also DEVELOPED certain skills or behaviors associated with a growth mindset.
For example, a leader may fundamentally believe that their abilities and intelligence are fixed (a characteristic of a fixed mindset), or due to their education and past accomplishments, yet they also recognize the importance of feedback and the value of learning from mistakes (which are growth mindset behaviors).
This is, OBVIOUSLY not the ideal situation, as the underlying fixed mindset still limits the full potential of these growth-oriented behaviors. The leader would still avoid new challenges and feel threatened by the success of others, which are fixed mindset responses that hinder overall effectiveness and business growth.
In order to fully benefit from the growth mindset skills, it's imperative that leaders work on shifting their underlying beliefs through various strategies, such as learning more about the brain's potential for growth and change (neuroplasticity), reflecting on their past growth and learning experiences, and consciously practicing growth mindset responses to challenges and setbacks. In addition to, healing any stored fear that could be strengthening their Fixed-Mindset and weakening their Growth Mindset potential, and the potential of their team.
So, while it's possible for a leader to exhibit growth mindset behaviors while maintaining underlying fixed mindset beliefs, effectiveness and potential for growth is limited, or even a liability. The best approach would be to work towards fully embracing a growth mindset, which involves both demonstrating growth-oriented behaviors and holding growth-oriented beliefs about abilities and potential.
The Misunderstanding Between Emotional Transmutation and an Amygdala Hijack
Emotional transmutation refers to the process of transforming one type of emotion into another. It is a cognitive and conscious process, often used as a coping mechanism, where negative or distressing emotions are transformed into more positive or beneficial ones. It's a technique often used in therapies, like cognitive behavioral therapy, and mindfulness practices. Depending on the emotional transmutation skills of each individual the results could vary (i.e. elite athletic performance)
The Role of Prefrontal Cortex in Emotional Transmutation
From a neuroscience perspective, the prefrontal cortex plays a crucial role in emotional transmutation. This part of the brain is responsible for executive functions such as decision-making, problem-solving, and emotional regulation. When an individual consciously decides to transform a negative emotion into a positive one, they are engaging their prefrontal cortex to regulate their emotional response.
The Role of Neuroplasticity in Emotional Transmutation
Neuroplasticity is another crucial element in emotional transmutation. It refers to the brain's ability to rewire and create new neural connections based on experiences and behaviors. With consistent practice of emotional transmutation, new neural pathways are created that support this process, making it easier to transform negative emotions into positive ones over time. So the more the leader practices a Growth Mindset in themselves and inspires a Growth Mindset in their team the stronger the effect and consistency of emotional transmutation.
On the other hand, an amygdala hijack is an immediate, disproportionate emotional response to a perceived threat. It is an automatic and unconscious response triggered by the amygdala, part of the brain's limbic system responsible for processing fear, emotions and survival instincts.
The Role of Amygdala in Amygdala Hijack
The amygdala acts as an alarm system in the brain. When it perceives a threat, it can trigger a fear emotional response before the rational brain, represented by the prefrontal cortex, has a chance to react. This is the amygdala hijack, where the emotional response 'hijacks' the thinking brain.
The Role of Neural Pathways in Amygdala Hijack
An amygdala hijack can also be influenced by the established neural pathways. If an individual has repeatedly experienced a certain situation as threatening, either at work or in their home environment, the neural pathway associated with this perception becomes stronger, making an amygdala hijack more likely.
Understanding the Distinction
So, while both emotional transmutation and an amygdala hijack involve emotions and the brain's responses, they are polar opposites. Emotional transmutation is a conscious and cognitive process of transforming emotions, involving the prefrontal cortex and neuroplasticity. An amygdala hijack is an unconscious and automatic emotional response to a perceived threat, involving the amygdala and established neural pathways.
Consequences and Liabilities of An "Amygdala Hijack"
Threat Perception
Daniel Goleman, in his book "Emotional Intelligence", is who coined the phrase "Amygdala Hijack".
Fixed-minded leaders often see errors or failures as threats to their competence or the team's performance. When they express disappointment or criticism without fostering an environment of learning or growth, their team members may perceive these reactions as threats. The amygdala, which plays a key role in processing emotional responses and fear, interprets this threat, causing the individual to react with a fight, flight, or freeze response.
Lack of Psychological Safety
Fixed-minded leaders do not foster a psychologically safe environment, which is crucial for team members to feel secure in taking risks, voicing opinions, or admitting mistakes. The lack of psychological safety creates a constant sense of fear or anxiety, which can trigger the amygdala and lead to an emotional hijack. This state of mind reduces team collaboration and innovation.
Negative Feedback
In a fixed mindset culture, feedback is often focused on shortcomings rather than opportunities for growth. Receiving negative feedback is a deeply emotional experience, causing the amygdala to initiate a hijack to those unskilled in cognitive appraisal and emotional transmutation. The fear response then inhibits the rational processing capabilities of the prefrontal cortex, making it difficult for team members to respond effectively to the feedback.
Books to Improve Your Mindset and Leadership
Lack of Autonomy
Fixed-minded leaders often control decision-making and don't encourage autonomy. Feeling powerless or controlled provokes an emotional response that triggers the amygdala. This response diminishes the sense of ownership, motivation, and creativity in team members, limiting their potential contributions to the team's goals and innovation.
In general, a fixed-minded leader can inadvertently trigger an amygdala hijack in team members through their leadership style and behaviors. This emotional response hinders rational thought, collaboration, and innovation, negatively impacting team performance and morale
Understanding the distinction between emotional transmutation and an amygdala hijack is crucial in managing emotions effectively and responding to stress. While both involve emotions and the brain's responses, they are different concepts. Many Fixed Minded 'leaders' with Growth Mindset skills, are unaware of their emotional transmutation skills and abide by the myth that concealing emotions is how they achieve success, not realizing they are using cognitive reappraisal instead of concealing emotions.
Abiding religiously by this myth, believing "it's what drives success", they rule, instead of lead, assuming that their team should have the same emotional transmutation skills and abilities. This false belief triggers an Amygdala Hijack instead of the favorable emotional transmutation effect.
Liabilities of Fixed Minded 'Leaders'
Inhibiting Neuroplasticity & Triggering Reverse Neuroplasticity, aka Negative or Maladaptive Neuroplasticity
Leaders with a fixed mindset inhibit neuroplasticity, OFTEN discourage learning and continuous improvement, leading to diminished neuroplasticity at both individual and team levels. Resulting in fewer opportunities for new neural connections, which impedes adaptability and innovative problem-solving.
Negative neuroplasticity leads to harmful changes, such as the strengthening of maladaptive neural pathways, increasing the chances of triggering an "Amygdala Hijack", decreased cognitive function, or increased sensitivity to stress or fear.
Diminishing Motivation and Engagement
A fixed mindset in leadership impacts the release of dopamine. Leaders with a fixed mindset VALUE OUTCOMES over effort and progress, which undermines motivation and engagement among team members. The diminished dopamine response dampens enthusiasm, curiosity, and drive for innovative thinking and problem-solving.
Inhibiting Collaboration and Creativity
Fixed-mindset leaders often undervalue collaboration and diversity, and prefer negative feedback, hampering the creation of innovative solutions. The diminished social connection and trust in such environments results in lower levels of oxytocin, a hormone that plays a crucial role in social bonding. This lack of social connection stifles creative and innovative capacities within the team, stunting overall productivity, revenue growth, and increased recruiting costs.
Impairing Executive Functions
A fixed mindset in leadership impedes the development and application of executive functions like problem-solving, flexible thinking, and strategic planning. These cognitive processes, crucial for driving innovation, are overseen by the prefrontal cortex. In an environment where a fixed mindset is prevalent, these executive functions are not stimulated or utilized effectively, hampering the team's capacity for innovative thinking and problem-solving.
Direct Financial Liabilities of Fixed-Minded 'Leaders'
Organizations worldwide spend roughly $356 billion on leadership development. Yet, the BrandonHall Group, a human capital research and analyst firm that surveyed 329 organizations in 2013, found that 75% of the organizations rated their leadership development programs as not very effective.
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250% of Annual Pay Turnover Costs
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$3,600 Absenteeism Costs Per Hourly Employee
Poor leadership turns away good employees. Sub-par employees turn away good customers. The cost of finding a new customer is five times that of keeping a current customer.
Strong leadership minimizes costs…
37% lower absenteeism
25% less turnover
48% fewer safety incidents
41% quality issues
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21% higher productivity
22% higher profits
10% higher customer metrics
In conclusion
Fostering a growth mindset in leadership is a powerful catalyst for innovation, enhancing neuroplasticity, momentum, resilience, collaboration, creativity, and critical thinking.
However, it is not enough for a leader to simply exhibit growth mindset BEHAVIORS; they must also shift their underlying beliefs to fully unlock the potential for growth and innovation.
The neuroscience behind these concepts is clear: the brain's inherent capacities, including emotional transmutation and the regulation of stress responses, are essential for achieving peak performance and productivity. As such, leaders should seek to fully embrace and embody a growth mindset, helping to drive their teams toward innovative thinking and problem-solving, and ultimately toward greater success, through increased revenue and minimization of massive hidden costs of fixed-minded poor leadership.
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