Being BOLD: The Framework for Nurturing Your Growth Mindset What would it mean to you if you radically prioritized your joy and became focused on impactful strategic results? The framework can help define the steps.
By Leigh Burgess Edited by Chelsea Brown
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What does being bold mean to you?
I had spent most of my life thinking it was the world's job to understand me, when really the job was for me to learn who I was first and truly understand who I am, which then enabled me to understand the essential steps to navigating the world around me. It also enables me to feel joy in the moments I am in, which leads me to embrace challenges, continue forward even when there are setbacks and learn more about my definition of leveling up.
What does this have to do with business? Everything.
Being bold is the base of my growth mindset. When we nurture this piece of our mindset, and minimize and quiet the fixed mindset, we can define how to personally and professionally examine how to evolve, create new forums for increased safe space for communication and fuel opportunities for innovation and creative solutioning.
Related: How to Create a Growth Mindset as an Entrepreneur
Driven by my passion for learning, innovation, agility, design and creativity, I have created a framework and process for others to utilize to unlock their boldness, growth and mindset. Professionally, it might mean making an impactful decision, even if it's unpopular, or switching careers to a field in which you're less experienced or confident but more passionate about. It may be using your passion for innovation or creativity and trusting you can make a living by doing the things that bring you joy. What would it mean to you if you radically prioritized your joy and became focused on impactful strategic results? The framework can help define the steps.
My goal has always been to make a positive lasting difference. I have now defined the approach — a bold and brave way. My intention in my work is to help leaders solve problems for good. For good — meaning they have less opportunity to occur or resurface and for good — to create a better world for others through the accomplishments of the work and its outcomes.
The B.O.L.D. Framework is the runway for freeing the boldness and focusing on strategies that matter. Being B.O.L.D. has the following components, with each step building on the previous one and taking you closer to living the life you want and seeing the outcomes that matter most!
B: Believe (Believe in yourself, trust your decision, identify your shadows, release the fear)
O: Own (Own your happiness, your goals, your path and your accomplishments)
L: Learn (Learn from all actions and outcomes, they all teach us something if we pay attention)
D: Design (Design your path and define the steps to curate your best life)
By believing in your goals and in yourself, you can own your choices and learn from the rights and wrongs, enabling you to design the life you have only imagined. Owning your greatness and knowing you are the one to drive the changes needed, define the path and create the map for your dreams, is a key element of the B.O.L.D. Framework.
Learning is an element to everyone's experience, as well as being sure we notice the successes and the failures, which, in turn, help us learn the primary elements to our success. Design, a common element of the four businesses I have created, is the final element of the B.O.L.D. Framework. You have the "paintbrush" to your life's canvas, now paint it by creating the vision you want to feel and see in your life. There is an interesting juxtaposition between the Principles of Design and life. I use the some Principles of Design (i.e. balance, unity, contrast, variety, movement, harmony, proportion and rhythm) within the framework to define the map forward for your goals and accomplishments.
Related: To Survive and Thrive, You Need a Growth Mindset
One of the boldest moments in my professional career came in 2020, when I started my S-Corp, Bold Industries Group, of four businesses and realized I was an entrepreneur. Shifting from being an executive in health care to being an entrepreneur was a big decision that felt uneasy at first. Fast-forward a year after that pivotal moment, and here I am — happy, successful, joy-filled and most importantly, making a positive and lasting impact with my work. Starting this business has been one of the most fulfilling decisions I have ever made. The B.O.L.D. Framework is used throughout the businesses, including High Road Strategy Consulting and The Desig9ed Studio.
I believe in pursuing new opportunities to free your bravery and boldness. Being happy, valuing self-care and trying something with no guarantees is vital for living a life with no regrets. Mind-body boldness — claiming the life you deserve to live. I launched not only several new services but also the The Bold Retreat, which is a working wellness retreat focused on the intersectionality of strategy, mindset and well-being with the outcomes including a think-tank on strategy and a personal set of strategic outcomes set by each participant to complete while at the retreat. It also focuses on wellness with required activities to de-stress, disconnect, have fun and be well. Ultimately, it is not about finding your boldness; it is about freeing it.
Related: How Hidden Mindset Issues Affect Your Career Growth
