Mindset and Heartset

Is mindset all there is? I recently attended a gathering of senior executives seeking to drive change in their organizations and was struck by how much mindset dominated the conversation. It was all about the assumptions and beliefs of the people in their organizations. They wanted to know what kind of evidence and reasoning would help to change these assumptions and beliefs.

The key assumption in the room was that it was all about the mind. They assumed that our assumptions and beliefs shape what we feel and what we do. In this view of the world, emotions are a distraction, or at best a second order effect, and it’s ultimately all about our mind.

Expanding our view
I would suggest that we’re a lot more complicated than that. Our emotions aren’t just derivative of our assumptions and beliefs. Emotions shape our perceptions, assumptions, thoughts and beliefs as well. If you try to shape assumptions and beliefs without paying attention to the emotions that already exist, good luck.

We need to move beyond mindset and expand our horizons to address our heartset: what are the emotions that filter how we perceive the world, shape what we believe and influence how we act? If we’re really excited about something, do we perceive risks in the same way as someone who is deeply fearful? If we were just deeply hurt emotionally by someone, are we likely to trust that person, even if all the objective data suggests we should? If someone showed us compassion at a time of great need, are we more likely help that person, even if it might mean falling behind on our assigned tasks?

Source: Mindset and Heartset