Article at a glance:
- The corporate ladder is a widely accepted paradigm, but it doesn’t lead to real fulfillment. The Upward Spiral model creates true success.
- The abundance mindset helps us see that there’s enough success to go around.
- An infinite mindset keeps us focused on the big picture and connected to something greater than ourselves.
- A win-win mentality helps us explore possibilities instead of settling on compromises that leave everyone disappointed.
- When we collaborate and bring all our unique contributions together, we create synergy.
Time to read - 4.5 minutes
Redmond’s mission is to elevate the human experience and create a workplace where we can thrive, where we can bring our whole selves to work, and where we don’t have to choose between loving our jobs and making a good living.
You may have heard us talk about the Upward Spiral before as opposed to the corporate ladder. The Upward Spiral is a model of success that allows everyone to succeed, not just a few at the top.
We use this model at Redmond because our goal isn’t just to succeed financially in the short term, but to make a positive impact in the long term. Our mission is to elevate the human experience for our associates, customers, and partners, and the Spiral helps us do this by creating a model where everyone can find success and fulfillment.
While that’s a big departure from the norm in itself, this idea challenges several paradigms we often don’t even realize we have.
4 Paradigm Shifts for Real Success
What’s a paradigm, anyway?
A paradigm is simply your mindset. It’s a belief, model, or lens through which you view the world. And this lens affects EVERYTHING you see. Society is full of paradigms, some helpful and some not.
Here are some unhelpful paradigms we’re shifting away from at Redmond to create our vision of success.
Paradigm Shift #1: The Finite vs Infinite Mindset
We love this idea and borrowed it from Simon Sinek’s work.
Many organizations operate with a finite mindset, meaning they have a clear objective and a plan for getting there. They think of business like a football game, and they want to win.
This mindset allowed the ladder to gain popularity because the ladder does provide those short-term gains that allow a company (or person) to win in the short term.
But this ONLY works for the short term. After you win one game, then what? You have to keep competing to keep winning.
And eventually, you’re going to lose.
At Redmond, we try to have an infinite mindset. Our goal isn’t to win in the short term, but to stay in the game as long as possible because we believe we have something valuable to contribute to the world.
This means we focus on lasting, long-term success, which requires a completely different approach. We don’t motivate associates with carrots and sticks here. Instead, we let everyone be driven by their own desire to make their unique contribution, and do our best to provide the tools and business model to allow for that.
We value momentum over manipulation. Real, lasting success over short-term gains. That’s how you stay in the game for the long haul.
Paradigm Shift #2: Abundance vs Scarcity
You’ve probably heard of a scarcity mindset vs an abundance mindset.
Getting away from the corporate ladder and onto the spiral requires a shift from a paradigm of scarcity to one of abundance. After all, if you don’t believe there’s enough for everyone, you’re going to really struggle with the idea of collaboration vs competition.
Here are some signs that you have a scarcity mentality:
Scarcity Mentality
- You believe success, money, recognition, and resources are scarce.
- You don’t think there’s enough to go around, and you have to fight to get what’s yours. (Or that it’s not even worth trying to get what you want.)
- You believe that the size of the pie doesn't change and you need to beat others out to get a bigger slice.
- You’re afraid to collaborate because you’re worried you won’t get your share of the pie.
- You feel that life is a competition and that there have to be winners and losers.
And here are some signs that you have an abundance mentality:
Abundance Mentality
- You know the pie can get bigger, and you want to collaborate to figure out how.
- You know there are endless ideas, options, and opportunities available to us.
- You truly believe we can all succeed at the same time.
- You know that someone else succeeding and becoming who they are in no way takes away from your success and becoming.
- Your primary concern is finding a role where you can best contribute, and where you have a lot to give.
None of us has an abundance mindset 100% of the time. The idea here is just to generally move in that direction and improve over time!
Paradigm Shift #3: The Win-Win Mentality
So often, when two or more people want something different, we think the best we can do is compromise.
But does a compromise really make anyone happy? Usually, everyone walks away feeling at least a little bummed out.
Win-win solutions really are possible. In most cases, it’s possible to find solutions that not only make EVERYONE happy, but are better than any one party originally had in mind. But it requires time, willingness, understanding, and openness. (Occhiolism and Ubuntu really come in handy here!)
A win-win mindset is essential for understanding the Upward Spiral, and the Spiral allows us to find ways to make the pie bigger. It’s a virtuous cycle!
Paradigm Shift #4: Collaboration vs Hierarchy
You might roll your eyes when you hear the word “synergy” because it’s been used and misused in corporate settings for a long time.
Remember: Synergy happens when two or more entities combine their creative power to generate more than the sum of their parts. It’s a feeling of true collaboration where we create ideas and solutions that neither of us had thought of before. It’s not your idea or my idea, but something that’s better than what either of us could have thought of alone.
True synergy (not the overused, empty corporate buzzword version) benefits everyone. You can’t make the pie bigger or find a win-win solution without synergy.
Synergy is about continuous learning and fulfillment. Personal fulfillment is a huge part of success. After all, when you’re climbing that corporate ladder and seeking money and accolades, aren’t you really just seeking fulfillment?
Challenging Paradigms Together
These are just a few common mindsets we’re shifting away from at Redmond, both as a group and as individuals.
This is a great chance to evaluate the paradigms and mindsets that are no longer serving you and start shifting them!
