Revision Required: Turning Setbacks into Mastery

Revisions are not setbacks but essential steps toward mastery. By adopting a growth mindset and utilizing the R.E.V.I.S.E. framework, you can transform the process of revision from a source of frustration to a rewarding journey of continuous improvement. Each revision brings you closer to excellence, reinforcing that true mastery is achieved through persistent effort and a willingness to learn and adapt.

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Be careful not to mistake "Revision Required" for it's over, time to quit, you can't do it... it's just time to revise, adapt. It's feedback for your journey to excellence.

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Transcript

juli: 0:59

Welcome back to another week of defaulting to yes to your extraordinary self. My name is Julie Reynolds and I'm your host on the journey with you this week. I want to talk about a process that I actually had some big experience with this week. In fact it triggered some of the things in me, and I actually lost sleep over it. So I had to pull myself back and really work the framework I'm going to share with you today so that I could get a handle on what I was doing. I was making this mean and what was coming up for me, I will say that in every thing that we do from academic writing to artistic pursuits, that might be even remodeling a home, painting a room, writing a paper, giving a talk, organizing an event, throwing a party. There, I can't even List all the things that we do and all of the pursuits that we take on this process is revision. it's just a part of achieving the excellence that we want from ourselves and for those that we serve. And it's often. Comes with a lot of frustration and self doubt understanding the science behind the mindset and adopting a structured approach to revision can transform these challenges into really opportunities for growth. So I want to talk a little bit about that, about revision required. This is a. Actually in the subject line of emails that some of the nurses that I am mentoring got this week in their process. So they had applied for an advancement and put in a lot of work on that collecting data, backing up their work with research and with evidence and putting together, getting creative and telling their story. And they packaged all of this up and sent it on and they got messages back that said revision required this the, I think the message of revision required got missed and what we made it mean or what. It took a lot on a life of its own. And it was all that frustration that comes forward when you do something and you put a lot of work into it and it's not received the way that you want, or the outcome is not what you wanted it to be. There's some science behind this and in the psychologist, Carol Dweck's research on mindsets really sheds light on how our beliefs about our abilities impact our responses to failure. I don't want to even label this as, I even hate to use that word failure in this case, because really, again, the subject line was revision required. And they got some really good feedback on their work and some high praise for their work as well. But just the the reviewers wanted to see some more data or wanted to add some questions, get some questions answered. So Going back to Carol Dweck's work on the growth mindset, on her own mindset of growth, that she identifies two primary mindsets, fixed and growth. And you're probably familiar with those. Basically means that in a fixed mindset, we believe that our talents and abilities are static, leading them, leading us to view failures as reflections of those inherent limitations. In contrast, those with growth mindset, we see our abilities as malleable and we interpret failures as opportunities to learn and improve and to get what we really want and to move closer to the outcome that we desired. Now when we are faced with that need for revision, if we take on the growth mindset, we're more likely to embrace that challenge and understand that mastery. It's a journey, it's not a destination. And this gets missed in outcome or not. Sometimes it can be a little humiliating or embarrassing to some people to fall short of the goal. And it really shouldn't be that way. This perspective is crucial because encourages resilience and perseverance. And we throw that word resilience around, but it is really still really important for us to build that and that perseverance. Those essential traits are essential traits for achieving long term success. I took on a research project years ago and I had a mentor in the process and I ran into him maybe four or five. It might've been seven years into the process. I was still working on it long after he moved on to different areas of focus and he made the comment you're nothing if not persistent, right? So I have a lot of experience with revision required. To effectively manage revision process, I've come up with a framework and it's going to be along the lines of revise. It's a structured approach to design and transform those setbacks, turning those setbacks into stepping stones. And this has been a process that I have used over the years and still using. And I blend it with that just practicality of what mastery is. And with with the mindset and with the, I guess the coaching mindset, some of the things, the questions that I've learned to ask myself along the way. So number one, reflect. So when you get the message revision required, and maybe this is even, you paint a room and you look at it, you put all that work into it, and it's just not exactly what you wanted. We could live with it, maybe learn to like it, maybe. Or we could always be agitated by that it's just off the mark. It's not exactly what we wanted. Or you do a talk and somebody says, I think you could have been more engaging. Or I totally missed that you meant to say that this was your main point. Whatever that feedback is, we can take that and reflect on it to get the outcome that we want. We don't have to make it mean anything. Begin by reflecting on the feedback received. You definitely also can consider the source, right? So if it's not a source that is credible to you or some, or that you, it's just an offhand comment, you want to sort that. So whether it's an instructor's comment on a paper, audience feedback on a talk, or the realization that you've chosen a color that isn't right. Take time to understand that the critique. Ask yourself what specific aspects need to be improved. What improvement is needed and why is that important? This step is really crucial for gaining clarity and setting that positive tone for the revision process and ask yourself https: otter. ai The meaning that you were assigning to the situation, you can gain a lot of insight into your perceptions and beliefs. This, that self awareness really will empower you to challenge any negative or limiting interpretations and choose to view things a more positive and constructive perspective. Remember that your thoughts shape your reality. So choose them wisely. And also remember. You can't always believe what you're thinking. This single question has changed everything for me. Often it's what I need to stop myself from going down that road of, she doesn't apply herself, she could have done it better. She doesn't pay attention to details. What you did was a waste of time. Stop pretending that you are capable of more. These are all old soundtracks that play for me, and Honestly, some of this, because I'm their mentor, was playing for me in the background and I needed to make it stop. I needed to stop the process, that I need to stop that inner critic, that stop that voice, and back up to what are you making it mean? I originally went into this and took on this role because I really believe in the, in, These nurses that I'm mentoring, I believe that they are worth the reward. I believe they deserve some acknowledgement and I want to see them soar. That's why I took it on. I didn't take it on because I think that I, that there's something in me that can contribute to this process. I just wanted to inspire them to walk alongside them and believe in them and to just see. Again, see them sore. So stop all the voices and go back to reflecting on that feedback that we've received and go after what we need to change. So that's revised to evaluate. Next, we're going to evaluate the original work objectively, identify those strengths and weaknesses and compare them with feedback. This step We'll also involve a critical assessment of what worked well and what didn't. And by doing this, you can maintain that balance perspective, acknowledge the achievements while recognizing the area of growth. This is a lot. Why when they submitted their work, we celebrated, or at least I encouraged them to celebrate because that was a win. Without any feedback, without the outcome in mind, just the hope and the honoring of how, who they are and how they show up in all of their work and their effort that was worth the celebration. And so we celebrated that and we can recognize all along the way. Now, part of this is steps of the concept of mastery and according to George Leonard mastery is achieved through consistent practice, dedication, and a willingness to embrace the process. There are several key steps in reaching mastery in any skill or anything that you take on. The first step is to surrender to the journey of growth and improvement. Understand that it's a lifelong process. This journey that these nurses are on and that I'm on with them is not really about me. It's not really about what it's about, I guess it's a process and it's something that contributes to the way we show up in the world. And next Leonard emphasizes the importance of practice and focusing on deliberate and focused efforts to refine our abilities and that needs for patience and resilience in the face of setbacks and challenges. He encourages Individuals to view obstacles as opportunities for growth and rather than roadblocks to success. Such a key thing to keep in the front of our minds. And we also should not overlook the significance of seeking guidance and feedback from mentors and teachers who can offer valuable insights and support along the path to mastery. That was the answer for me is I got on the phone with a mentor of my own and spent a couple hours just picking apart some of the feedback so that I could have a better understanding of some of the intricacies of the process so that I could take it back to the to my group and share that with them. And so that we can pick some of these things so that revision requested could, we could get at the mastery of this process and get the win. So this is what I love about coaching too, is that my intention is always to hold space for exploring and clarifying, for imagining the possibilities to see that we are capable of clearing the obstacles. We are capable of transformation. We don't need to do it alone. In fact, it's really hard sometimes to. To know our own minds, know our own hearts and to see those blind spots, to be objective. I can't even tell you how many times I've had a conversation where I asked one question and just stayed silent long enough for my client to answer that question and think about it. And it transformed everything. Those things that we are thinking and the things that are coming up that are standing in our way, sometimes we don't even recognize them until somebody else asks, because. They were in our blind spot. so for those of us who are striving to achieve excellence in whatever we choose to pursue, we're getting up every day to default to extraordinary. And that includes the values of persistence and dedication and growth. A growth mindset is essential for that. All right, third is visualize. V for visualize. Visualize the end goal of your revisions. what does that improved version look like? How will changes enhance the overall quality of the work? Visualization will help set clear objectives and motivate you to work towards the refined outcome. It also aids us in maintaining that focus during the revision process, just keeping your mind on why did you start this in the first place, and what does it look like to move forward as who, you are knowing that you were truly capable of deserving of worthy of without the voice of the past or that inner critic, or the judges who have their, maybe their own agendas, all of those voices in your head, do it for you, do it for your extraordinary self and visualize what that looks like and what it feels like to get to that. To that outcome that you want. Now fourth is implement. This is an action phase where you can make those necessary changes. Break down the revision into manageable tasks and tackle them systematically. For example, if you're revising a paper, start with structural changes or if you've gotten feedback, list out the feedback, attack the, tackle them one at a time. If you're on a timeline, adjust those. There are a lot of different steps and you are smart enough to figure out how you can make this manageable. So instead of taking it all at one time, implement, take that action phase and deliberate and break it down into manageable tasks. One thing at a time over your chosen timeline. So whatever it is. Do it for you. Do it because you are worth the effort and do it because what you get out of it will be beyond what you can think or imagine. Fifth is solicit. After making the revision, solicit additional feedback. Share that revised work with your peers, with mentors, with a coach. Give them feedback. Get experts and gain some fresh perspective. I guarantee you will learn things that you didn't think that you even wanted to know, and it will make life better or easier in that process. and this step is vital to helping us ensure that changes align with the intended improvements and that, and we can identify any remaining issues that might have been overlooked. So maybe this just makes it better and a more joyful process. And this is what I mean as you get. More out of it beyond what you can think and or imagine when you apply this process and you're open to connecting with others and get in soliciting that support. Sixth, enhance. So finally we're going to enhance the work by incorporating our feedback and polishing those finer details. Whatever it might be. translate that into your context, whether it be a home project, a work project, a major life goal, a talk, a paper anything that you were doing may involve multiple iterations. And Each cycle will bring you closer to mastery. Now remember, excellence is achieved through continuous refinement and dedication, and no one gets excellence on the first try. Even when it appears that way, trust me when I say there was work put in. I talk to clients all of the time that seem to just get things right the first time. When you really find out what they're doing, they're studying. They're learning they have a coach, and they're investing a lot in their process so that when they do step out or when they do complete, which is complete a task, which is usually when we see it, it looks pretty good, right? we can put this in the context of health goals as well, the people that we see really reaching their health goals, they've got their meal planning and their diet down. They feel great. They're out there at the gym all the time. they're moving their body, they're nourishing and now they're teaching others how to do that. It's because they put the work in. It's because they failed. Time and time again, and they just got back up and try it again until they found something that worked until they got into the groove and that was not easy. They make it look easy now, but it wasn't easy always. And it's probably not easy now either, but they've got a handle on things. They're ahead of us in where we want to be. And it might look impossible at times. It really isn't, but we have to put the work in. We have to be willing to revise our process. now if you're a nurse, and I know a lot of my listeners are nurses, this is. The nursing process. You use it every day. Systematically assessing, diagnosing, planning, implementing, and evaluating the care that you provide to ensure that each patient receives personalized care that meets their unique needs. If you're not a nurse, did you know your nurses do that? It's just the way we think. We are advocating, and it may not be visible to you, and it may not work the way we want it to, but know that nurses are always, that's always running in the background. We're always revising that process. We're always running that, that process and advocating for the needs of our patients. So there's a little, there's a little behind the scenes of nursing and if nurses grab onto that process and acknowledge that because it's a powerful tool. So you know this, you've got this, learn to trust yourself and show yourself some compassion along the way. Apply this framework to any scenario. The revised framework can be applied to writing a paper, giving a talk, choosing a paint color, a home project, organizing an event, anything that you do can be, if you embrace this path to mastery, you can get there and you can show up in the world in the way that you really want to. All right. If you enjoyed this episode, share it with your friends. That would mean the world to me. If you think that you may be dealing with perfectionism yourself, and it's becoming frustrating and maybe bringing on a little procrastination and paralysis, take the quiz. It's in the link below and let's design a personal strategy for embracing That gift so that instead of getting in your way, it becomes a springboard to getting everything that you want and to revising your process until next time. Let's keep it in mind that every endeavor from academic writing papers to artistic pursuits, to home projects, the process of revision is. crucial to achieving excellence. True. The need for revision is often accompanied by frustration and self doubt. It has been said that anything worth doing is worth doing well. It is also been said that anything worth doing is worth doing badly. Perfectionism can be a a mean task master for those it does not drive into flurries of striving. It often paralyzes. It can make us quit when all that is required is a little revision. So certainly set those goals and strive towards excellence, but to live a life full of joy, you need to embrace whatever you do, regardless of your skill level. Don't be afraid of failure. In fact, say it out loud. I'm not afraid to fail. I'm not afraid to fail. Embrace that word as, and find out what you make it mean, because it doesn't mean what you think it does. If something is worth doing, it's worth doing badly. If something's worth doing, it's worth revising and doing well. By understanding the science behind the mindset and adopting that structured approach to revision, try our revised framework. We can transform these challenges into opportunities for experiencing the joy that comes with the growth and the pursuit of excellence as you get up every day and default to yes, your extraordinary self.