Growth Mindset- Why you should have it?

If you have ever wondered why some people continue growing in their job/business and some stagnate- this is perhaps the post for you.

The concept of Growth Mindset was first introduced in the book Mindset: The new Psychology of Success by Carol Dweck .

The Stanford professor in an article in HBR talks about what the Growth Mindset shouldn’t be confused with:

  • People confuse it with being flexible or open minded
  • Is about praising and rewarding the effort
  • Good things will happen if you have a growth mindset
So, what is a Growth mindset?

“Growth Mindset thrives on challenges and sees failure not as evidence of unintelligence but as a heartening spring board for growth and for stretching existing abilities.”

Read more here 

The questions is- how can a simple belief have the power to transform your psychology and as a result your life? The Growth mindset creates a passion for learning rather than a hunger for approval.

So, how can you implement the growth mindset in your life?

Being aware of the two mindsets and knowing that the Growth Mindset requires taking risks and wandering off into unknown territories where you might not succeed but that is okay- because you will learn out of it.


Don’t get motivated because you don’t know much about a job profile/interest/hobby and you are terrified of failing. Not everyone fails and you have to take the first step.

This leads to believing in yourself :
1.Create a positive environment
2.Affirm your beliefs
3.Don’t hangout with naysayers- take their perspectives and improve on it
4.Celebrate learning’s





               So, if you are a newbie the mindset will be a game changer for you. Now you can go back at think about your mentor and realize why they have been doing so well- am sure they have a growth mindset too.

              You can read more about Growth Mindset here:


              (Pic courtesy: Google Images)

              October Wrap Up

              Oct 31, 2017 | | 0 comments |
              Happy Halloween!

              This month I thought I would share something fun- so the decors and gadgets to keep around at work for better productivity and happiness.                                     

                                                                       
              So, if you are into cleaning up your space and getting into the right Fall mood, here are some links for you:

              Reading this month for me was limited to Amy Cuddy’s book -Presence, rest was mostly work related research. 

              I also did a wellness journey via Instagram  and yes I posted for a month everyday.

              November will be busy month with fun projects and upcoming travel in December. 

              How was your October?

              (pic courtesy: Soma Bhattacharya)

              Scrum Master: 5 Kinds

              Whether you are in an organization that follows Agile or not chances are you already have pre-determined notions about Scrum Masters- their roles and responsibilities.

              In my experience of working within the Agile domain in India, there are five kinds of Scrum Masters I have come across:

              • Managers- This specially happens when the organization is moving into Agile initially. Reasons are often genuine and till a scrum master is identified in a team, the team manager in some cases will volunteer for the role. Also, managers who like to know what exactly is happening in the team so they step up into this role which always might not be a very good sign.
                  • Pros- Understanding the role will eventually help the manager better appreciate the role. Boosts positive communication within the team and change in process.
                  • Cons- it shouldn’t be the case where micro management is the agenda and so why not take up the role and still be the decision maker instead of allowing the team to self-organize
              • Tech Leads- Some organization focus on having adequate experience required for the role of the Scrum Master, the focus is on people who have considerable domain knowledge and its mostly been in the industry ten years or more.  
                  • Pros-The vast experience of a lead could help the team manage the domain and deliver work with better quality. 
                  • Cons-It shouldn’t end up being a practice that others don’t speak up because the lead is always right. 
              • Project Manager- The team project manager takes up the role as natural transition in a lot of cases. While the project will definitely be delivered with this one in charge, being a servant leader might not be something that will be easy to adopt to; where team calls the shots.
                  • Pros- Communication, delivery and milestones will always be in check.
                  • Cons- unless the right mindset has been achieved, you don’t want to encourage/continue with the command and control situation.
              • Functional Team Members- This happens commonly as a core team member is either assigned or volunteers to take on the role. This means a split of hours for being a Scrum Master and performing the core competency work.
                  • Pros- Buy in within team is easier
                  • Cons- Time management during deadlines; the time split doesn’t mean when extra hours are required you drop the scrum master responsibility and take in more hours to finish for example testing.
              • Full Time Scrum Master- Very few organizations will go ahead and hire full time members into this role. When it does happen one Scrum Master is assigned to at least two teams and the unit is very confident of the them working within Agile methodologies. 
                  • Pros- Someone available and accountable to ensure the process is in places and problems are looked into and resolved immediately.
                  • Cons- Dedicated scrum masters don’t mean they are administrators for the team, filling out details (like in the agile tool) that should be done by everyone themselves. Also, lack of discussion on what the role is about and the responsibilities are by management can create misunderstanding within team members. 

              What have you experienced or observed?

              (Pic courtesy: Google images)

              September- Wrap Up

              I am wrapping up the last month  and hope that's okay with you with some great reads and videos. 
              Image result for septemberSeptember personally has been a challenging month with sickness (bad weather) and festivals.

              Nonetheless the blog goes on, while I haven’t been able to read much ( a new book) this month, I had to make sure I still felt inspired everyday. 


              For me, small tiny changes sometimes make huge impact so I created Happiness corners with string lights http://amzn.to/2fDIxM7  and my favorite books.

              These are some of the reads I found very interesting:


              (Pic courtesy: Google Images)