3 Mindset Swaps to Set a Strong Foundation

A friend’s son just began his first full-time job after college, and it quickly started going sideways. He’s a straight arrow, solid citizen kind of guy, but several coworkers are determined to have a summer filled with Bare Minimum Mondays.

He asked his high-performing, high-profile parents if he was doing it wrong. But their advice to him was to stay the course and stick to his excellent standards.

Setting standards is critical. However, let’s be honest: They can be hard to define, often falling into the category of, “I’ll know it when I see it.” And like my young friend, they get even more complicated, ambiguous, and tense when your day-to-day environment seems to be at odds with the high-minded principles you hold so dear.

But here’s the good news: Setting attainable benchmarks you’ll be motivated to meet is possible. And those benchmarks can apply whether you’ve recently graduated from college or you’re reinventing your career. So, in the June series, Set the Standard, we’ll meet inspiring people who set a new standard for themselves after overcoming difficult circumstances. Like them, you can decide to make quality part of the equation.

First, let’s meet someone who discovered smashing success didn’t make for a firm foundation.

A Strong Character is Essential for Business Success

Toms’ founder, Blake Mycoskie, seemed to have it all. Toms shoes instantly became a roaring consumer business, but the silver lining was its philanthropy arm. By 2020, Toms had donated over 100 million pairs.

Mycoskie decided to sell part of the company in 2014. The 50% sale made him independently wealthy. However, within two years, he was adrift. In a Harvard Business Review op-ed, he wrote, “I had lost my connection to many of the executives who were running daily operations. What had once been my reason for being now felt like a job.”

Blake finally found the cornerstone to a new foundation at a men’s retreat. To his surprise, it wasn’t a rah-rah exercise like other business events.

Guess what they discussed instead of stock prices and balance sheets? People skills. Conversations centered around qualities that would have taken a backseat in traditional business settings: Emotional intelligence, relational leadership, and personal integrity.

He remarked, “We each brought up an example in our life where [conflict] would happen. It gave us a real model that we can use both in work and leadership, with coworkers, employees, and boards of directors.”

Kickstart Finding Your Purpose

UCLA basketball coach John Wooden once stated, “It’s the things you learn after you know it all that count.” That’s also a key takeaway from the case study.

The old way of bossing up was to define yourself by a pinnacle of commercial success. However, your life is bigger than a fleeting title or your current bank balance. Think about it this way: Worksplits and everyday tasks are temporary scaffolding. By comparison, purpose is the forever foundation.

So, when you’re setting a standard for your professional life, build it on a foundation of traits that are a testament to your character. Choose qualities like ethical judgment, trustworthiness, resilience, and understanding what drives people. Those standards are evergreen — they’re valuable in every company and industry. And the bonus is that the same practical wisdom works for your most personal relationships: The ones you have after-hours with friends, family, and community groups.

Here are three mindset swaps to kickstart your thinking and create building blocks for a strong foundation (and be sure to make up your own):

You have critical knowledge and hard-won experience, whether you’ve just graduated or are ready for a reboot. So, evolve your career by using those insights as the basis to set new standards. Exchange temporary achievements — like willing yourself into a success mindset — with discovering your purpose.