Rishad Tobaccowala: Mindset Architecture

In rapidly changing and chaotic times an agile mindset can be critical to success While there are many personal trainers to help sculpt our bodies into somewhat supple forms there is a scarcity in those who can show us how to exercise our minds to be as flexible as they need to beThe ability to change oneamp8217s mindset and see feel and think differently about an issue is often the key differentiator between those who succeed and those who do notHere are some perspectives on how we can sculpt our minds to thrive in a transforming world1 Accept human realityLife is a journey through reality and time in search of meaningWe seek meaning within the constraints of realityThe potential of who we want to be and where we want to go constrained by what is and what will beWhen you live your life are there some underlying beliefs and truths that drive you or you measure yourself against If we are to grow where are we trying to goCompetition it is not with other people but to get better every day and to get closer to what you believe or your ideals Your success is not housed in other peopleamp8217s minds what they think of you but in their hearts what they feel about you and in your mind what you think of yourselfAt its essence life is about loss love and learningLoss is central to the human experience in three ways The first is we often lose in our attempts to succeed We lose pitches Clients jobs and opportunities Many times we win Some people win little and others win a lot But we all lose But these losses are not the big ones The second bigger losses are the losses we will face of loved ones and friends either because relationships end or death comes and our final loss is that of our livesHow we live amidst this loss defines a large part of lifeThe joy we make is because time is precious and this moment of victory may not last forever Given that loss is part of human existence it pays to be kind and to think about how to help those in loss for do not ask for whom the bell tolls since it tolls for usA big part of what makes life worth living despite the guarantee of loss is the hope of love and joy of learning Love of people of work of art of culture Love may not compute but computers do not love There is a great deal of progress made over generations on who one can love the ability to do things one loves and because of modern technology to be exposed to new worlds horizons and things to loveAnd learning is particularly joyous Learning in its first form is building knowledge With great knowledge and practice we build skills and craftsmanship Learning to see things from other perspectives gives us understanding Sometimes if we are lucky we can graduate from knowledge skills and understanding to wisdom2amp160 Align with the force Yoda wishes that the force be with us But what is this force that we need to align with Tangible reality would be a great place to start Besides human reality that we will all die but others will be born there will be loss but there will also be gains and life cares about the species and not the individual sorry but that is how evolution works Science matters Gravity does not care whether you accept it Jump out of a tall building and you will die Gravity did not care and did not know you existed In addition to science there are some harsh business realities Three in particular Globalization Digitization MarketsOne can fantasize as much as one wants but these three forces are unstoppable and now the Internet quotConnection Enginequot acts like Viagra on them where each force connects to and rejuvenates the otherIf you wish to thrive and make a living accept and prepare yourself for increased digitization globalization and market forces markets are why China and India have risen more than anything else over the past two decades They will be impacting every single industry and crevice of lifeAll the fretting complaining and hoping that these three realities go away is a complete and total waste of timeamp160They just are and they will be Let us use our energy to learn new digital skills find ways to expose ourselves to different global experiences and learn a little economics3 Optimism matters In the novel quotGravityamp8217s Rainbowquot by Thomas Pynchon a character is described as one whose quotmood collapsed the roomquotWhile misery may love company nobody likes being in the company of miserable people Optimism is not just an essential component of innovators but a trait that you must have if you wish to inspire folks to follow you quotWoe is me doomed are usquot works for a few drinks in a bar but at the workplace it saps energy hurts culture and is just a plain downer Pessimism is something we all wallow in but it fails to show the way out If you cannot get yourself positive about what you do or where you do it for a majority of your working days there will always be days from hell where you feel crushed and beaten then do yourself and your company a favor QuitA way to get optimistic is to forget all the legacy nonsense you may have to grapple with and ask that if you had a fresh sheet of paper a subset of the talent in your firm and its assets brands network money what would you do You likely will find you actually are looking forward to what you and your company can do Every day is a new career beginning Tomorrow is where you will spend the rest of your life So buck up4 Recognize the opposite is also true To sell a point of view or a recommendation it is critical to know its weaknesses and the information that you may not know since you are aware of the variables that went into your recommendationI suspect folks who only see one side of a story or position Their minds and positions are not subtle but brittle Brittle cracks at first true oppositionLook at the world through a different lens We can have blind corners in the areas where we are most competent since we often stop needing to look out in those areas Practice building the strongest opposing case The stronger you can build it the more likely your recommendation may be correct if you still choose to make it5 Constant iteration ampamp compound improvement Inside our hard skulls is the most beautiful software But like all software if it is not constantly updated and enhanced it will be irrelevant to the applications and tasks that the modern world requiresWe all need to be students again Apprentices this time since only by doing can we enhance our craft Iteration happens by doing testing incorporating rejecting and being active Do not over think Every day try to learn one new thing or one new feature or try one new experiment of some sort Incorporate what works learn from what does notThis way your software keeps improving and you signal that you are willing to learn new things and see things in new ways and are not some ossified stuck in the mud slug of a carbon life form Computers that cannot run new software are junked regardless of how pioneering famous and awesome they once wereThree ways on how you might start this very minute begin to embrace Compounding Improvementa Discipline equals freedom This is the title of a bookamp160by Jocko Willink a Navy Seal Basically if you want to get a grip on the world get a grip on yourselfb Expose your mind to new and different stimuli Innovation and change is often about connecting the dots in new ways To do so one must be aware and familiar with a lot of dots and not just the dots at workThe world is changing so fast that many of our skills and expertise and mindsets need continuous upgrading While many of us set aside time to exercise to maintain our physical operating system we need to also feed and exercise our minds The power of this habit is that at the end of a year you will have spent 365 hours learning new things by just doing one hour a day You will gain compound returns to thoughtc Deliberate Practice Professor Anders Ericcson who died a few month ago wrote a book called quotPeakquot which is the best study of deliberate practice which entails immediate feedback clear goals and focus on technique According to his research the lack of deliberate practice explained why so many people reach only basic proficiency at something whether it be a sport pastime or profession without ever attaining elite status A great resource for deliberate practice is here6 Improvisation and fluidityWe are living in a jazz age and not a classical oneIn classical music amp8212particularly orchestral musicamp8212there is a conductor that musicians follow sheet music one sticks too and a hushed auditorium one sits inJazz on the other hand is a mix of classical swing blues and much more but at its heart itamp8217s about improvisation It is about playing off each other There is no conductor Rare is there a hushed auditorium but more likely a noisy club or the anguish of a lonely saxophone in a subway stationToday we are living in a diverse global and connected world where we have to work together we have to fuse our different cultures and beliefs and constantly adapt and improviseWe need to shape shift we need to flow and we need to adjustWater over rockRock against rock leads to small pieces of rockFlowWater flows above and below and around rock and moves onwardSoon the rock erodesWater over rockClick the social buttons to share this story with colleagues and friendsThe opinions expressed here are the author39s views and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNetamp160

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Rishad Tobaccowala: Mindset Architecture

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