People with a growth mindset, when faced with a challenge – and these days we face many – believe that through hard work and passion we can learn and do better.

March  2020.

An experiment of unprecedented scale is taking place in China. As a result of the high degree of contagiousness of Covid19， China implemented stringent quarantine measures that limit mobility in hopes of containing the spread of the nasty new coronavirus which emerged from a wildlife market in Wuhan. These medieval-era measures are now coexisting with a social experiment, first of its kind: the essential adoption of “distance working” or teleworking for millions of employees in China.

While government, tech companies and educational institutions have taken this opportunity to showcase the advancement of diverse platforms like WeChat Work or Alibaba’s Dingtalk to connect teleworkers, teachers, and medical practitioners – there are challenges facing this new normal in China. 

The capability to work remotely (telework) at this moment is a critical component to maintain levels of productivity in sectors that can function with this modality (not all sectors can do this). As the “work from home” became a measure to prevent contagion, flatten the curve of those infected, and keep the economy breathing, some managers were reportedly worried that without supervision, there is no way to guarantee that the employees working from home are being productive or efficient. This is a very carrot and stick (fixed) mindset. 

On the other end of the spectrum, there is the growth mindset,  a term first coined by Dr. Carol Dweck, an American psychologist and pioneer in human motivation. I will use her two mindsets framework to discuss the challenges and opportunities of shifting a management culture from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset. 

How could you possibly adapt to rapid and unexpected events of a crisis if you think that  intelligence levels are carved in stone, and that learning and abilities are static? How different would you adapt or thrive if you believe, instead, that intelligence can be developed, and you are eager and open to learning , even in changing situations?

In the fixed mindset scenario, managers tend to believe that abilities and intelligence are  similar to non-renewable resources, that people are given a specific “stock” and you cannot change these levels. According to Dweck’s research, a fixed mindset leads people to avoid challenges, focus on results (not on effort or process), consider feedback as negative criticism and feel threatened by others’ success. 

Dweck’s research also sheds light on the growth mindset scenario: no matter how much intelligence you have, you can always change it, develop it. You can further develop and improve abilities, learning and intelligence with hard work and passion. People with a growth mindset embrace challenges and the opportunities where they can learn (even if they fail in the process). Managers or leaders with growth mindset persist through setbacks and consider criticism as something valuable. Furthermore, they find inspiration in successful stories from others.

In times of crisis and change, enterprises value resilient workforce. People with a growth mindset, when faced with a challenge – and these days we face many – believe that they can learn and do better.

Growth-mindset oriented people assume that is possible to learn and get smarter when they are given the right opportunities and support. Growth-mindset managers will pay attention and reward progress in process. Fixed-minded supervisors, will focus only on expected results (penalizing failure).

If China and other countries wish to sustain and capitalize on the launching pad in connectivity and technology connections now in place both to contain the spread of Covid19 and to reactivate the economy, then  governments and enterprises alike need not only the digital and technological infrastructure – they need a shift in the mentality that only rewards results through a carrot or stick approach.

This will prove challenging, but it is not impossible.  Today more and more Chinese in management positions have had opportunities to study and work abroad. MNC based in China value the experience of Chinese working or studying abroad, paired with the knowledge of the land.  In this new social experiment of teleworking at the scale that the government mandates to win the war on the coronavirus, we see this as an important opportunity for growth, if the Chinese enterprise leaders, managers and supervisors choose to use a growth mindset approach instead of a fixed mindset. The purpose is very clear: win the war on coronavirus and do not let the economy free-fall in peril.

Now, other countries are beginning with the same experiment and same conundrum.

Someone with fixed or traditional mindset will no doubt focus on short-term results, this is tempting particularly when the country needs some wins to keep morale. However, the real sustainable advancement will come from a shift of mindset。 If companies value resilience, they need to build  their capacity to trust that employees working from home have a shared goal to bring their country back on its feet. 

Some may say that whatever advancements happen now, will retrench once the coronavirus crisis is under control. I do not agree with this premise. It would be a waste in admirable initiative and innovation that crisis such as this one will spark.

It would also be a waste of awareness in one of the most positive outcomes of this crisis: the awareness of shared and common humanity. We are ALL in this together.