Benefit MindsetSchools GuideStudents using Wellbeing as a Force for Good

“Try not to become a person

of success, but rather try to

become a person of value”

- Albert Einstein

About the Author

Cohere is a social and environmental innovation agency located in

Melbourne, Australia. We catalyse the purposeful potential of people,

organisations and developments. Visit us at cohere.com.au

Paper by Ash Buchanan and Jack Greig. Special thanks to Michelle

Kovacevic, Novi Sutanto, Andrea Downie, Nell Golden, Peggy Kern

and unsplash.com for generously supporting the development of this

paper.

Contents

Introduction

What is a Benefit Mindset?

Why it matters

The Natural Pattern of Wellbeing

Unleashing Student-Led Innovation

Shifting Awareness: From Me to We

Developmental Pathways

Virtual Crash Course

#BenefitMindset Challenge

Everyday Leadership Labs

Case Studies

Final Thoughts

Revised 6th November 2016 | © 2016 by Ash Buchanan

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial

NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. Anyone may read this article or use it for

their own personal or academic purposes.

Introduction

There is a global movement taking place

in education.

In Australia, students are learning how to strengthen their

relationships, enhance personal resilience and explore what it

means to be a global citizen. In Germany, schools run subjects

specifically on happiness and social skills. In Bhutan, young

people learn mindfulness, and how they can best contribute to

their country’s Gross National Happiness.

Around the world, a growing community of teachers and

students are fundamentally rethinking the purpose of education.

At the core of this movement is a simple question: what does

it really mean to be successful in life? Rather than promoting

‘accomplishment for accomplishment’s sake’, this community is

finding there is real value, in being of value - to themselves, to

others, to nature and to the future.

It is a new mindset that is redefining success; from being the

best in the world, to being the best for the world. It is the Benefit

Mindset.

The Benefit Mindset describes society’s everyday leaders who promote

wellbeing on both an individual and a collective level. It builds on Carol

Dweck’s pioneering research, on how beliefs about the nature of intelligence

can profoundly shape our ability to learn and grow. This framework takes her

Fixed and Growth Mindset to the next level - towards a richer definition of

success in school and in life.

What sets everyday leaders apart from their fixed and growth mindset

counterparts is how they aspire to discover their strengths, in order to

meaningfully contribute to causes that are greater than the self. They question

‘why’ they do what they do, and believe in making a meaningful difference.

This evolution in thinking is not to suggest that concepts like the Growth

Mindset are less important. On the contrary, learning how to grow and

differentiate ourselves through deliberate practice is integral to every person’s

development. The difference is, students operating with a Benefit Mindset

direct their growth towards contribution, and in doing so, they use their

learning to lead.

Everyday experts who seek

perfection and avoid failure

Focus on reproducing

what they know

Believes their abilities are fixed

traits and tend to achieve less

than their full potential

Everyday learners who seek

growth and development

Focus on improving

how they do what they do

Believes their abilities can be

developed, reaching higher

levels of ability and success

Everyday leaders who seek

to ‘be well’ and ‘do good’

Focus purposefully on

why they do what they do

Discovers their strengths

and meaningfully contributes

to a future of greater possibility

MINDSET MINDSET MINDSET

What is a Benefit Mindset?

WHY IT MATTERS

The Natural Pattern of Wellbeing

Contribution is the natural rule – the

natural pattern - that makes the entire

web of life thrive.

When we look deeply into the way nature works, either

at these amazing vistas – or zoom right in to the smallest

particles – it’s clear to see that wellbeing and flourishing cannot

be understood in isolation. Systems don’t thrive because

everything tries to grow and reach its potential independently of

each other. That would end in disaster and ecosystem collapse.

Rather, wellbeing and flourishing are better thought of as

an interrelated systemic property, the result of a rich web of

contributive relationships. Contribution unites and elevates

everything within an ecosystem. Flourishing occurs when there

is rich diversity performing in concert – where each element

can play a unique and valuable role in the healthy functioning of

another.

This pattern is at the heart of the Benefit Mindset. What lights up

the hearts and minds of our everyday leaders is being of value.

Being a pulse of hope in their communities and for their local

ecosystems. They acknowledge that humans can’t thrive in

isolation, but rather, thriving is something we must do together.

WHY IT MATTERS

Unleashing Student-Led Innovation

“It’s more important than ever to look

deep inside yourself to fathom the sort of

life you really want to lead and the talents

and passions that can make that possible”

— Ken Robinson

Young people are well aware, and deeply concerned about

what is going on in the world today. They are concerned about

issues like climate change and inequality. They want to go out

into the world to do meaningful work - and be a genuine force

for good.

The Benefit Mindset framework helps these students think

about how they can be the change they seek. This means

addressing the big issues, like sustainability and social justice.

But it also means practicing the things that make an everyday

difference in our lives, like kindness and compassion.

This way of thinking helps to create a culture of everyone

making an everyday difference. A whole school of students,

discovering what they stand for - unleashing social, ecological

and technological innovations and acting to co-create the

world they want to live in.

WHY IT MATTERS

Shifting Awareness: From Me to We

“The purpose of life is to discover your

gifts; and the meaning of life is to give

your gifts away” — David Viscott

Perhaps one of the greatest strengths of the Benefit Mindset is

the role it can play in shifting our awareness. From me to we.

From individual to collective.

The key question our everyday leaders ask isn’t how they can

flourish in isolation, but rather, how everyone in their school

and community can come together and become partners in

each other’s flourishing. How can we come together in a way

that draws on everyone’s unique strengths and talents – and

make the world a better place?

This is where we think much of our work as educators is

headed. Creating the conditions for students and teachers alike

to become themselves so they can make valuable contributions

to society and local ecosystems.

Developmental Pathways

What is the best way to learn more about the Benefit Mindset?

Well here is the thing; shaping mindsets is not straight forward –

its rather complex and context specific. To create the conditions

for everyday leadership – careful consideration needs to be

given to the process of learning itself.

In this section, we offer three specially designed exercises that

teachers, students and principals can use to develop a culture

of everyday leadership. This includes our:

- Virtual Crash Course

- #BenefitMindset Challenge

- Everyday Leadership Lab

The first two activities are introductory and are suitable in most

school environments. The Lab is our recommended approach

for embedding an Everyday Leadership culture within schools

and is suitable for schools with a desire to be a leader in

wellbeing and student-led innovation.

“Buchanan’s insight has significant implications for

the way schools integrate teaching around fixed and

growth mindset... I am excited about the Benefit Mindset

and how it can strengthen the application of positive

education more broadly in schools.”

Matthew A. White, A/Professor, Melbourne Graduate School of

Education, Director of Wellbeing at St Peter’s College, Adelaide.

Virtual Crash Course

Our Virtual Crash Course is a 1 hour, freely available, video

facilitated learning activity for introducing the Benefit Mindset.

It’s suitable for primary, secondary, public and private schools.

How does it work?

Over the course of an hour we introduce the Benefit Mindset,

and guide participants to envision how they can use this

mindset to shape a better future. This activity creates a rich

learning experience on multiple levels:

- For students — explore what it means to make an

everyday difference in their school and community.

- For teachers — gain a richer appreciation of each

student’s hopes and dreams for a better future.

- For principals — gain a student-led appreciation of your

school’s higher purpose.

The course is playful and thought provoking — creating student-

led pulses of hope within your school.

How do I take part?

The virtual crash course will be available in early 2017. Head

to www.benefitmindset.com to download and print out

participant handouts, and access the online course.

Prefer to have this course facilitated in person? If located within

Australia, we also come to your school to run this course. Write

to us at hello@benefitmindset.com to find out more.

This activity is relevant to the following Australian Professional Standards

for Teachers: 1.1, 3.6, 4.1 and 7.3. It can be linked to the Personal and

Social and Ethical Capability areas of the Victorian F-10 Curriculum.

This challenge gives students and teachers the opportunity to create and share

a Benefit Mindset learning resource. It’s suitable for primary, secondary, public

and private schools.

How does it work?

That’s completely up to you but as a guide we say - make something that gets

you excited. Some examples we’ve seen are posters, videos, graphics, cartoons

and mind maps, like the one’s you see here.

Once you’ve created your masterpiece it’s time to share it with the world! This

is your unique opportunity to inspire others. We all know, learning works best

when shared.

Make sure to hashtag #BenefitMindset when sharing on your preferred social

media channel. Send a link of your creation to hello@benefitmindset.com if

you’d like us to share it too.

This activity is relevant to the following Australian Professional Standards for Teachers: 2.6,

4.1 and 7.3. It can be linked to the Personal and Social and Creative and Critical Thinking

capability areas of the Victorian F-10 Curriculum.

#BenefitMindset Challenge

Everyday Leadership Lab

Our in-school Everyday Leadership Lab is our term-long, year-

long or multi-year approach for infusing a culture of everyday

leadership within schools.

Who is it for?

This approach challenges traditional education ideals and is

best suited for secondary schools with a desire to be a leader in

wellbeing and student-led innovation.

How does it work?

For the lab’s duration, students and teachers use tools such

as Appreciative Inquiry, storytelling, prototyping and Adaptive

Leadership to co-create projects that promote wellbeing on

both an individual and a collective level.

This typically includes addressing the big challenges faced by

our schools and communities, as well as exploring the everyday

things students can do to be a force for good.

Presently, our labs are created and facilitated by trained

practitioners who partner with schools. In time, we hope to be

able to release an ‘Everyday Leadership Lab Guide’ to share our

experiences so that schools can create their own.

How do I take part?

Write to us at hello@benefitmindset.com to find out more and

explore your suitability with us.

CASE STUDY

Fitzroy Community School

Fitzroy Community School is located in Victoria, Australia. They

are a wonderful example of a school that has embedded a

Benefit Mindset into everything they do. Teacher Nick Berryman

who is a recent graduate of the Master of Applied Positive

Psychology explains:

“One of the daily questions everyone at our

school asks themselves is: how have you made

the world a better place?”

“This way of thinking is infused into the fabric of

our school. You can see it in the way we teach,

how we look out for each other, and how the

school looks out for the broader community.”

Students actively fundraise for the Asylum Seekers Resource

Centre, as well as an underprivileged school in Kunming, China.

They also focus on the everyday things each student can do to

make school better for each other.

“Everyone in our community is empowered to

contribute in their own unique way. It feels great

to be teaching in a school that has a culture of

contribution.”

CASE STUDY

Evangelische Schule Berlin Zentrum (ESBZ)

ESBZ is a school located in Berlin, Germany. They are another

example of a school that cultivates the Benefit Mindset. In

grades 8, 9 and 10, students have a class called “Challenge”.

They are invited to explore their inner potential.

“One group of four students prepared for a three

week survival camp deep in the woods, where

they lived in a shelter they built and on food they

gathered.”

At all levels students spend a period of the day working on

individual and collective projects with real-world implications.

“Some students redesign a part of their school

building and then coordinate the actual

renovations. Others might try to get the

city council to adopt higher environmental

standards.... Students are encouraged to find out

what matters to them, to aim high, to fail, to try

again and to celebrate their accomplishments.”

They learn that they can make a difference, and that others

need them and that they need others.

*Case study quoted and adapted from Reinventing Organizations by

Frederic Laloux (2014)

Final Thoughts

“You cannot get through a single day

without having an impact on the world

around you. What you do makes a

difference, and you have to decide what

kind of difference you want to make.”

- Jane Goodall

If we truly want young people to live meaningful lives in an

interconnected global society – they need to learn how they can

best contribute to each other’s flourishing.

Imagine what would be possible if we had generations of

students finishing school with a richer appreciation of how

their unique strengths could make the world a better place.

Imagine the ripples of change that would be possible with whole

generations living their lives with purpose. Imagine everyone

in your school flourishing in concert with each other and their

community.

It’s time to boldly reimagine what’s possible in education – and

prepare young people for a flourishing future.

Want to find out more?

Get in touch. We’d love to chat. You can reach us at

hello@benefitmindset.com or visit us at benefitmindset.com

6/120 Cambridge St, Collingwood VIC 3066

+61 3 9036 0426 | cohere.com.au