Roger Federer lost to Tsonga in yesterday's Roger's tennis cup final. As always, his critics have been quick to write him off, yet again. Why not quit while at the top, and leave in the blaze of glory? Why put yourself and your fans through those humiliating moments, when your strokes are a shadow of your hey days, and when younger and gutsier players beat you regularly? But then, that's not how Federer thinks about tennis. Carol Dweck in her book "Mindset", talks about the difference between the fixed mindset and the growth mindset, and the importance of the latter for sustained success. Those with a fixed mindset consider ability as static, and judge themselves and others by "results" or peak performance. Therefore, they avoid challenges which may tarnish their impeccable performance record, get defensive when faced with obstacles, don't believe that effort can enhance their already considerable talents, cannot handle negative feedback and feel threatened by the success of others.
Those with a growth mindset on the other hand, believe that ability can be developed, constantly embrace challenges, persist in the face of setbacks, see effort as a condition to mastery, learn from criticism and from the success of others, and thus reach ever-higher levels of achievement (Mindset, by Carol Dweck, page 245). Dweck makes an important and interesting distinction between leaders with a fixed mindset and a growth mindset. The fixed mindset leaders may be high individual performers and stars, but do not prepare their firms to survive in their absence. Here is where the mighty Iacocca fails; Chrysler didn't survive after his departure, while it can be argued that Apple continues to buzz away, albeit in a lower key, even after Steve Jobs' passing. Back to Roger Federer. It is evident that he does not have to prove anything to anyone but himself. Why does he continue with his grueling tour and training schedule despite his ever growing family? What motivates him despite not winning a major since 2012? His love for the game has to be the top reason, but how does he cope with not winning titles, and near misses, after his undisputed reign at the top for many years?
Federer definitely is a supreme example of a growth mindset. He is no fool to continue playing while his skills are waning across the board. As the grand old man of tennis at thirty three - an age when improving one's game seems improbable,- Federer's serve has actually improved and is the strength of his game today. He continues to train with his long term physio-whiz, Paganini, who is angered at the talk of people wanting Federer to quit, because he knows Federer is still capable of a shot at the big titles. One mustn't forget that he is still the number three in the world. Admittedly, even the unflappable Federer has gone through some -coming to terms- moments of being defensive, or even worse -crying- when he loses. But thankfully the growth mindset has truly established its presence now. No doubt winning titles is his ultimate goal, but not the only goal.
Using Dweck's criteria of a true growth minded leader, will Federer leave tennis a better place than it was since his arrival? The answer is a resounding YES. His seventeen grand slam titles don't seem so out of reach now for Nadal, or even Djokovic. But Federer, as even his rivals admit, has raised tennis to new heights, not just with his sublime talent, but with his global appeal, approachability and above all his growth mindset work ethic: an inspiration to all aspiring players. As his coach the great Stefan Edberg remarks "If Roger is in the game, it is great for tennis".
Another great man with an insatiable growth mindset -Tiger Woods- is now lying low, undoubtedly working hard on recouping his physical and mental prowess. His detractors too have already written him off as incapable of winning another major, but sooner than later Tiger is bound to prove his critics wrong.
The growth mind set is after all about running the marathon rather than the sprint.
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