High Performance Mindset | Learn from World-Class Leaders, Consultants, Athletes & Coaches about Mindset - 587: Challenge vs. Threat Mindset

Episode Date: December 20, 2023

High performers see stressful situations as a challenge they can overcome instead of a threat to their performance or confidence. This improves their health and their performance. They talk to themselves powerfully when experiencing stress – reminding themselves they can handle anything. They consciously choose their response.  Power Phrase this Week: “I can handle anything that comes my way. I choose a challenge mindset today!”   Quote of the Week: “With a challenge mindset, challenges are exciting rather than threatening. So rather than thinking, oh, I’m going to reveal my weaknesses, you say, wow, here’s a chance to grow.” - Carol Dweck 

Hi friends, my name is Dr. Sindra Kampoff, a national leader in the field of sport and performance psychology. Every week I'm on the local radio sharing my top tips on exactly how to develop the mindset of the world's best, so you can accomplish all your dreams. Get ready for a jammed, packed episode focused on practical tips to help you get after your goals and step out of your comfort zone. Let's go. We are checking in with Cinder Kampoff this morning, and we're talking about the challenge versus the threat mindset. And Cinder, start us off with a quote. I like this quote by Carol Dweck. She said, with a challenge mindset, challenges are exciting rather than threatening. Rather than

thinking, oh, I'm going to reveal my weaknesses, you say, wow, here's a chance to grow. So what exactly are we talking about today? Well, today we're talking about how we see situations through a specific lens. And many times this lens is by default because it's what we're used to. You know, perhaps it's what we're conditioned to see. Maybe it's our parents viewpoint growing up or, you know, what others we hang around and how, you know, what they see. And instead of that lens being by default, because it's what we're used to, we want to consciously choose our response. And so every situation can be seen by different lenses and the key is to consciously choose that

lens. And this lens is what we're talking about today, either having a challenge or a threat mindset. And why does that all matter? Well, this matters because stress is actually one of the leading causes of death in the United States and our perception impacts our stress level. So say when we're talking about a challenge mindset, when we feel like we're challenged by something, we want to go for it, we want to conquer it, we might feel fired up with a good amount of energy and adrenaline. And we're confident we can, you know, take over and overcome that challenging situation. So the key is, is that our perception,

what we're talking about today is our lens does impact our stress and our longevity. And so what exactly is a challenge mindset? So for example, when we're accepting and using a challenge mindset, we're choosing a viewpoint of a specific situation. Let's think of like a difficulty you're experiencing right now. And you adopt some of these five principles. You say things like, you know, hey, we can do this together. We believe that discomfort is part of growth, that growing and getting uncomfortable is part of how we get better. We third believe that discomfort is part of growth, that growing and getting uncomfortable is part of how we get better. We third believe that we have the resources within us and we have

the resources within our team to get through it. We believe that change is a positive part of life and that change is good. And then the last one is we focus on what we can control. And these five things helps us adapt more of a challenge mindset so we can conquer the difficulty. Well, Cinder, how is that different than a threat mindset then? Yeah, well, the threat mindset is pretty opposite, right? We're saying things like, you heard this a lot during the pandemic, like life will never be the same. You know, discomfort is suffering. We don't really want to be uncomfortable because we believe that's bad, right? We believe we don't have the resources within us or on our team to accomplish this task or get through this

challenge. We reject and we don't like change. And then the last one, we focus on a lot of things we can't control. And depending on the situation, you know, everything outside of us is out of our control. We might be making complaints or really focusing on that and spinning about things we can't control. So which one of these five principles is the most important one? Oh, that is a really good question. You know, when we started, we were talking about consciously choosing to see, you know, consciously choosing, instead of by default, consciously choosing our viewpoint. And I think one of the most important things is to believe that you have enough resources to cope with the situation. And so when we're facing a challenge mindset, we believe we have the resources.

When we are choosing a threat mindset, we believe we don we have the resources. When we are choosing a threat mindset, we believe we don't have the resources. And when we feel like the situation is too demanding, it exceeds our resources, that becomes a threat. So, you know, Lisa, I would say the key is to talk to yourself powerfully about when you're experiencing a difficulty, use statements like, I have the resources within me to handle this, and stay confident. Say things like, I can handle anything that comes my way. And, Cinder, is there a final point today? Yeah, my final point would just be that the challenge versus threat idea is all in your

mind, and it's not really about the reality of the situation, but rather how you perceive it. And how about a summary of today for us? I'd say high performers see stressful situations as a challenge that they can overcome instead of a threat that undermines their performance or confidence. And this improves our performance and our health. And they talk to themselves powerfully when experiencing stress, you know, reminding themselves that they can handle anything that comes their way and that they can consciously choose their response. All right. What is the power phrase you're going to leave us with this week? It's a good one. It goes like this. I can handle anything that comes my way,

and I choose a challenge mindset today. Cinder, if people want to follow along with your work, read more about this, maybe listen to the podcast, what's the best way to follow you? You can head over to Dr. Sindra, so D-R-P-I-N-D-R-A.com, and you can find out all about the podcast and my books, Beyond Grit and Beyond Grit for Business over there. Way to go for finishing another episode of the High Performance Mindset. I'm giving you a virtual fist pump. Holy cow, did that go by way too fast for anyone else? If you want more, remember to subscribe and you can head over to Dr. Sindra for show notes and to join my exclusive community for high performers

where you get access to videos about mindset each week. So again, you can head over to Dr. Sindra. That's D-R-C-I-N-D-R-A.com. See you next week.