11 Ways to Build Capacity and Never Stop Growing

I am passionate about growth. So when Julie Woodard (@woodard_julie) asked me about collaborating on the visual featured in this post, I was all in. She's the amazing artist, folks. I'm just glad to think about a topic that matters to me. So here goes. 

It's so important to always continue to grow and build capacity, both in yourself and in others. Of course, as educators, we want our students to always be growing. I'll be curious to know your thoughts. I rattled off this list in a very short time. Ask Julie. So it probably could use some further thinking. Your thinking is one thing that makes me stronger and keeps me growing. So thanks!

Here's the list: 11 Ways to Build Capacity and Never Stop Growing

1. Take Risks

You can only grow if you step forward into the unknown. It requires a leap of faith. Sure, you must establish a secure foundation, but you must be willing to go out on a limb to be able to truly grow. Okay, so maybe I just mixed my metaphors terribly. That's a risk I'm willing to take.

2. Ask Questions

Questions are essential to learning and growth. Physicist and Laureate Richard Feynman said, "There is no learning without having to pose a question." We must constantly ask questions if we want to learn. We must question ourselves and question others. We should strive to consistently have the perspective of a curious learner. 

3. Help Others

When you help others, you will grow. If there are two things that go together like peanut butter and jelly, it's giving and growing. When you give, you grow. And when you are growing, you are better able to give. Helping others is a wonderful reason to never stop growing.

4. Learn From Mistakes

You should never be afraid to make a mistake. We learn by making mistakes. You should just strive to not repeat them. You should always strive to learn from them. Everything worthwhile is challenging. There will be mistakes. There will be difficulties. There will be impossible situations. But these are incredible opportunities to grow.

5. Embrace Change

To grow, you have to willing to grow. You have to be willing to change. You have to want to be better tomorrow than you are today. You have to be willing to challenge your assumptions and be open to another way. 

6. Be Future Driven

We cannot grow by clinging to the past. In fact, many people are stuck where they are because of things that happened yesterday. The choices you make today will shape your future. Being future driven is having a vision for a better tomorrow and then growing into that vision. Of course, this one is also a nod to my soon-to-be-released book, Future Driven.

7. Generate Positive Energy

Growth can be difficult. There will be obstacles and doubters. There are people who will try to bring you down. The only way to press forward is to choose a positive attitude. It gives you the energy to never give up.

8. Practice Reflective Thinking

Reflective thinking is how we learn from the experiences of our life. We test our thinking. We consider what went well and what didn't go well. The ability to honestly and accurately reflect is critical to your growth. We need feedback to grow. But we will only learn from the feedback if we reflect on it and act on it. Feedback is dust in the wind without reflection.

9. Get Out of Your Comfort Zone

If you want to grow, you have to get comfortable being uncomfortable. This week in meetings with students I showed the video below. I let them know we are going to push them. We are going to have very high expectations. Sometimes, it might make them uncomfortable. But know we are doing it because we care. We want you to grow. You will only grow with some discomfort. Sometimes it feels hard. Sometimes it feels a little frightening. Watch the video and you'll see what I mean. But in the end, when we push through the discomfort, we will accomplish great things.

10. Feel Affirmed and Supported

These last two are related to how you feel about growing. It's great to have someone in your life who is speaking words of affirmation and support into your efforts to grow. But even if you don't have those positive voices from the outside, you can be your own source of encouragement. You choose the conversation going on in your head. You choose your thoughts. If you discipline yourself to choose the words that build you up and keep you moving forward, you can overcome even the negative voices in your environment. What are you going to listen to?

11. Be Challenged to Grow

Again, it's great if you have someone in your life who is challenging you to grow. It's great to have someone who believes in you, pushing you, leading you, and helping you along the way. So try to bring those people into your life. But even if you don't, you can challenge yourself. You can choose thoughts that are challenging. You can push yourself. Just keep in mind, you won't be great by small thinking. You will only be great when you go after the big challenges. Be bold. 

So what are your thoughts? How could this list be improved? How are you challenging yourself and others to grow? I want to hear from you. Leave a comment below or respond on or .