Finding the Right People (pt. 1)

“Anything is possible when you have the right people there to support you.”

Misty Copeland

If we do not have the right people around to support all the ups and downs that go along with becoming a person who risks failures and setbacks in order to grow, then I’m not sure anyone will ever be able to become a person who lives on a growth path.

This is one of the few certainties in my life; I am lucky to have a partner and kids and friends who believe in growth and do not react to my limitations with judgment. They have long ago taught me that they do not sit in the cheap seats watching from afar and commentating on my foolishness.

I can be foolish; I think that comes with being human, so I try not to hold it against myself when I am. And that’s point two: it does not matter how many right people are there to support us if we do not agree that we are worth supporting.

This is a very very big point. If we are not careful, we can confuse support with dependence. And that, my friends, NEVER works to build a growth mindset.

So - in review:

1. Find people who support us. This may take awhile, and I suspect along the way we will have to recalibrate our choices as more is revealed about the nature of others.

2. Commit to supporting ourselves. Lean into this idea of failure as a learning experience not a judgment call.

To be continued.