101 The hidden mindset trap keeping you stuck (and how to build resilience to break free)

No. 101 – 22 Dec 2024

Welcome to the 101st edition of the True Progress Newsletter, a weekly newsletter on conquering fear, upgrading resilience, and becoming unstoppable.

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Insights

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It’s not just about starting strong and being gritty—it’s about weathering the storms, adapting to the unexpected, and staying the course when things falter.

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If you want to be successful, fail often and use the data to reiterate. If you want to quit early, bank on your talent to save you. You need callouses through failure and reiteration, not talent.

Less failure = low resilience

Low resilience = quitting early

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“Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.”

— Confucius

Challenge

Turn self-awareness into action.

Step 1: Identify a fear: Reflect on a recent situation where fear held you back—speaking up in a meeting, pursuing a client, or pitching an idea.

Step 2: Name your fixed mindset: Give this limiting belief a name to distance yourself from it.

Step 3: Rewrite the story: Imagine you had a growth mindset instead. Write a new narrative about how you could approach the situation with confidence and resilience.

Step 4: Take one action: Choose one small action that aligns with your growth mindset, and commit to doing it within 48 hours.

Use this roadmap to go from reactive to proactive.

Systems

Key performance indicators: measure and manage progress

To manage your goals, you need measurable milestones—key performance indicators (KPIs). Here’s a streamlined approach to track progress:

1. Set clear KPIs

Define measurable targets for each goal, like achieving specific sales numbers, scheduling X meetings, generating X leads, winning cases, or planning 3 date nights per month.

2. Review regularly

Schedule monthly KPI reviews. Even better, habit-stack it with your monthly review.

3. Rate progress

Use simple categories: no progress, minimal, some but insufficient, good, or amazing progress. Record exact results alongside ratings.

4. Reflect and adjust

Ask:

• Are you meeting or exceeding your KPIs?

• What challenges or obstacles exist?

• Do priorities or external factors need reassessment?

5. Take action

Continue, increase effort, remove obstacles, or adjust goals as needed.

When you regularly check in and fine-tune your efforts, you’ll stay on track with your goals and keep making real progress. That's how you build inner control.

Till next week,
— Carlos & Stef