Why Growth Mindset Matters at Work

In fast-growing organisations, especially in tech and innovation-led industries, there’s a common challenge: how do we grow the business without outgrowing the people within it?

At The Culture Equation, we believe the answer lies not just in strategy, but in the mindset of your team. 

Just like AI readiness depends on cultural readiness, the ability to scale well depends on whether your team has a growth mindset or a fixed one.

Proven by research

Dr. Carol Dweck’s research showed that success isn’t determined by innate talent, but by the belief that improvement is always possible. It’s not just a personal trait, but a cultural one that should be ingrained in our teams. 

Teams with a growth mindset don’t shy away from challenges. They seek feedback, collaborate more openly, and treat failure as part of the process.

Compare that with a fixed mindset, which sees ability as static. In fixed cultures, feedback is threatening, mistakes are hidden, and learning slows under pressure. It’s no surprise that innovation stalls.

Signs your team has (or lacks) a growth mindset

The difference shows up in everyday behaviour. Here’s what we see in our work with teams:

In teams with a strong growth mindset, people ask better questions. They take ownership, learn from each other, and recover faster from setbacks. A key differentiator in teams with a growth mindset is their willingness to admit mistakes, and to learn from those mistakes. They’re also more coachable, collaborative, and creative, which makes a huge difference for innovation and progress. 

Common pitfalls: are these things holding your team back?

Even well-meaning leaders can unintentionally create fixed mindset conditions. These are the most common signals we see in our work:

• Over-emphasis on outcomes: When results are rewarded without recognising the learning process, people play it safe.
• Fear of failure: If mistakes are punished or hidden, teams stop experimenting.
• Lack of feedback culture: Feedback that’s vague or infrequent makes growth harder, not easier.
• Comparative success culture: When individuals are pitted against each other, collaboration suffers.

How to start building a growth mindset culture

A growth mindset can be developed, but it has to be modelled, encouraged, and embedded in how teams work. Here’s how:

1. Reward effort, not just results
   Acknowledge learning, curiosity, and persistence. Celebrate the process, not just the polished pitch.
2. Make it safe to fail (and reflect)
   Frame failure as feedback. Build in time to talk about what was learned, not just what went wrong.
3. Normalise feedback
   Make feedback part of everyday conversations, not just formal reviews.
4. Encourage peer learning
   Promote a culture of sharing wins, learnings, and best practices. This is especially valuable across levels and roles in an organisation. 
5. Start at the top
   Leaders who model vulnerability, learning, and curiosity create permission for others to do the same.

The bottom line: 

A growth mindset is the foundation for better performance, more innovation, and real resilience. Employees in a “growth mindset” company are: 47% likelier to say that their colleagues are trustworthy, 34% likelier to feel a strong sense of ownership and commitment to the company, 65% likelier to say that the company supports risk taking, and 49% likelier to say that the company fosters innovation.

If your team needs support in building this mindset, let’s talk. We run practical, human-centred coaching programs designed to build real capability, not just confidence.

Sources:

Harvard Business Review Editors. “How Companies Can Profit from a ‘Growth Mindset’.” Harvard Business Review, Nov. 2014, https://hbr.org/2014/11/how-companies-can-profit-from-a-growth-mindset.

Association for Psychological Science. (2018, February 1). Carol Dweck on how growth mindsets can bear fruit in the classroom. APS Observer. https://www.psychologicalscience.org/observer/dweck-growth-mindsets