Principle 5

As you are no doubt aware, some people feel that who they are—their competence, their character, and their virtues, for example—are unchangeable.  They do not feel they can modify these qualities.  So, they tend to perceive feedback not as insights they can utilise to grow but as threats to their perception of themselves.

In contrast, many other people feel their competence, character, and virtues are malleable. They feel that, with consistent practice and dedicated effort, they can enhance these qualities, called a growth mindset. So, they tend to perceive feedback, even strident criticisms, as insights they can utilise to grow. Because they embrace feedback, these individuals tend to be humble rather than defensive.  They tend to develop extensive skills and fulfill lofty goals. 

When leaders also believe that people can enhance their qualities, they are not only more receptive to feedback but are also more effective leaders.  Somehow,

• their belief that people can grow manifests, often subtly and inadvertently, in their choices, actions, and words,
• their staff, consequently, feel more confident they can grow,
• and this confidence inspires staff to persist in their pursuit of change, despite the obstacles and challenges they may experience, called the Pygmalion effect. 

Therefore, you might assume that leaders, typically aware that a growth mindset is often beneficial, would attempt to foster this belief that people can modify their competence, their character, and their virtues.  But instead, although typically unintended, organisations and governments introduce policies and practices that shape the assumption that people cannot change these qualities.  To illustrate,

• in many organisations, staff need to complete measures that label their personality, strengths, or weaknesses,
• staff might be assigned a label such as an ENTJ, a influencer, and observer, and so forth,
• these labels, although interesting, may imply that such characteristics tend to be enduring,
• therefore, these practices tend to diminish the extent to which people are receptive to feedback, dampening their humility.

So, to counteract this concern, how can organisations and governments, instead, introduce policies and practices that imply that competence or character are modifiable?  First, organisations need to reconsider the degree to which they invest in training and development over recruitment and selection.  Obviously, both training and development as well as recruitment and selection are both vital to the success of organisations. But,

• over time, organisations should, iteratively and gradually, uncover opportunities to increase the budget they dedicate to training and development over recruitment and selection,
• this gradual shift towards training and development reinforces the assumption that people can change markedly over time,
• indeed, as research shows, staff tend to be satisfied and engaged in organisations that prioritise training and development.   

Governments also need to introduce policies and practices that imply that competence or character are modifiable.  For example, to manage juvenile offenders,

• governments should invest more heavily in initiatives that are designed to foster the skills and relationships of these offenders—such as counselling and boot camps,
• governments should also enable these offenders to be located closer to home—closer to significant people in their life.  

These measures imply these offenders can improve their qualities and have also been shown to reduce the likelihood of recidivism.  Some of the transformative practices that Norway pioneered in their prisons, in which offenders participate in family discussions, education opportunities, and other activities that typify daily life outside prisons, epitomise this perspective and have been generally successful.  

In short, practices in workplaces or communities that imply that people can grow help people grow.

A report, published in 2025 from the Grattan Institute, revealed how the mathematical ability of students varies considerably across nations (see Hunter et al., 2025).  To illustrate, the percentage of Year 8 students who excel in mathematics, according to the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study, is

• 46% in Singapore,
• 37% in Japan,
• 15% in England,
• 11% in Australia, and
• 8% in the US.

Limited skills in mathematics can significantly diminish the productivity and wellbeing of individuals.  To illustrate

• individuals who have not developed proficiency in mathematics and numeracy are more likely to be unemployed later in life (e.g., Bynner & Parsons, 2001; Litster, 2013),
• because mathematics and numeracy are vital to many work tasks and enhance productivity, a 5% increase in the mathematical ability of our students, as gauged by PISA or the Programme for International Student Assessment, is likely to increase Australian GDP by 0.7% or $19 billion (Deloitte Access Economics, 2016).

The Grattan Institute recommended a range of strategies that could enhance the mathematics skills of students in Australia as well as many other nations.  Many of these recommendations, at least subtly, underscore the degree to which both the capacity to learn mathematics and the capacity to teach mathematics are more modifiable than commonly assumed.  Here are some examples

• Many existing teaching approaches disregard limitations in working memory.  When teachers learn techniques that circumvent this problem, students who initially seemed unable to learn mathematics can develop these skills readily.  Thus, deficits in mathematics can often be ascribed to rectifiable problems in teaching instead of enduring limitations in students.
• Similarly, governments should conduct more research to accrue a repository of resources and techniques that facilitate mathematics teaching.  For example, when pupils utilised the onebillion maths app for half an hour a day, across 12 weeks, these students progressed three months faster than students who had not utilised this app (Nunes et al., 2019).  The promotion of these tools also underscores the modifiability of mathematical skills.
• The Government should introduce and encourage master teacher roles in primary schools around mathematics—similar to specialist teachers in PE, art, and language. These teachers would complete micro-credentials and develop advanced skills on how to teach mathematics, before applying these skills to multiple classes across their school. A specialist model reinforces the notion that teaching ability is modifiable.
• Likewise, schools that thrive in teaching mathematics could receive a grant to impart their practices and skills to other schools in the region—provided these skills comply with national guidelines on best practice. England has introduced a similar program, called Maths Hubs. that people can grow help people grow.