Virtuous Cycle of Learning and Performance

What is a “virtuous cycle” and why should you care?

That intriguing term holds an important key to growing and developing leaders: If you can help more leaders experience a virtuous cycle of learning and performance they will see their development accelerate and their performance increase significantly. The terms “virtuous cycle” and “vicious cycle” refer to “complex chains of events that reinforce themselves through a feedback loop.”[1] A virtuous cycle generates favorable, or positive, results, while a vicious cycle produces detrimental results. How does this work with development of leaders? It’s all related to having a “learning mindset.”

A Learning Mindset creates a virtuous cycle of learning and performance because it enables leaders to learn more from their experiences, which in turn results in leaders being more resilient and performing better in VUCA[1] conditions. This leads to achievement of better results and reinforces the importance and value of the Learning Mindset.

In research conducted at the University of Virginia, “Managers with a ‘learning mindset’ are characterized by a continuous sense of ongoing learning and transformation and receive the highest job performance ratings of all those studied.”[2] And, in an article published by Harvard Business Review online, Gottfredson and Reina point out that “A learning mindset involves being motivated toward increasing one’s competence and mastering something new…. Leaders with a learning mindset, compared to those with a performance mindset, are more mentally primed to increase their competence, engage in deep-level learning strategies, seek out feedback, and exert more of an effort. They are also persistent, adaptable, willing to cooperate, and tend to perform at a higher level.”[3]

Our own research has led us to conclude that leaders who have a Learning Mindset demonstrate an attitude or stance toward learning that embodies openness to experience; are motivated, willing, and desire to learn; are highly curious about others and how they do what they do; possess an attitude of discovery and exploration; and show an intention and willingness to gain something positive from experience. As a result of this powerful constellation of learning-related attributes, these leaders experience more growth and development than leaders who do not have this attitude toward learning. This is a hugely consequential outcome, because growth and development leads to increased performance and result!

Have you experienced this virtuous cycle of learning and performance? Do you want to? Nurture your own Learning Mindset and strengthen your skill at using Learning Practices so that you constantly learn from experience in every situation, and naturally apply what you learn in new, emerging experiences.

For expert assistance. . .

. . . in developing your own Learning Mindset, or others', contact me at steve@aspireconsulting.net. To learn more about Learning Mindset, read our book Learning Mindset for Leaders, available at Amazon (tinyurl.com/LearningMindset4Leaders).

[1] Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, Ambiguous

[2] L.A. Isabella and T. Forbes, “Managerial Mindsets Research Project: Executive Summary,” Darden Graduate School of Business Administration, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, April 1994; and interview with the authors, 13 June 1994.

[3] Ryan Gottfredson and Chris Reina, “To Be a Great Leader, You Need the Right Mindset.” Harvard Business Review digital article, January 17, 2020.

[1] Virtuous circle and vicious circle. Wikipedia, sourced January 30, 2020. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virtuous_circle_and_vicious_circle