Every time I sit down with a remodeler, a team member, or even just reflect on my own journey, one thing keeps coming up: mindset.

It’s not flashy. It doesn’t show up in your financial reports or on a blueprint. But it’s there—shaping how we react to challenges, how we lead, and how we show up for our teams and ourselves.

What Is Mindset, Really?

To me, mindset is the lens through which we view everything—success, failure, opportunity, pressure. And the thing is, we get to choose that lens. Every day, we’re faced with situations that could either knock us down or build us up. We can’t always control what happens, but we can always control how we respond.

One of my favorite ways to think about this is through the coffee bean metaphor from John Gordon and Damon West. When pressure hits, you can be like a carrot and get soft. You can be like an egg and harden. Or, you can be a coffee bean—transforming the environment around you. That’s what I aim for, and it’s what I hope for everyone in the RA community.

Mindset in the RA Community

What I’ve seen as a facilitator and as someone deeply connected to this network is simple: mindset matters big time. The most successful members I’ve worked with all have something in common—they stay focused on growth, not fear. They show up to meetings ready to help, ready to learn, and ready to lift others up.

And the opposite is true too. When someone’s stuck in a negative mindset, it impacts the whole room. Negativity is contagious—but so is positivity. We all have a choice in what we spread.

My Personal Journey

I didn’t always have this perspective. Like a lot of folks, I had to learn it the hard way. I used to brush off the idea of things like affirmations or vision boards. I thought it sounded a little out there. But the moment I started shifting my thoughts—just choosing to look at things differently—things changed. Not overnight. But gradually, consistently, and meaningfully.

One of the tools that helped me the most was building a morning routine based on Hal Elrod’s Miracle Morning. It includes silence, affirmations, visualization, exercise, reading, and gratitude. Just a few minutes a day on each. It helps rewire my thinking before I even start the workday.

And let me tell you—it works. It doesn’t eliminate challenges, but it gives me a better mindset to face them.

Why We Get Stuck (And How to Get Unstuck)

You might wonder, “If mindset is so simple, why is it so easy to fall into a negative one?” Honestly, it’s wired into us. It’s that survival instinct—always scanning for what might go wrong. That kind of thinking might have kept our ancestors alive, but it can hold us back today.

We’ve got to be intentional about rewiring that habit. Whether that’s through mindfulness, journaling, coaching, or surrounding yourself with the right voices, it takes effort—but it’s worth it.

One trick I love is this idea of reticular activation—your brain starts noticing what you focus on. If you’re constantly focused on downturns, problems, and worst-case scenarios, guess what? You’ll see those things everywhere. But shift your focus to opportunities, solutions, and wins—even the small ones—and you start to rewire how you show up.

Practical Takeaways

Here’s what I’ve found works, both in my own life and with RA members:

• Focus on what you get to do, not what you have to do. That small shift creates big energy.

• Create rituals that ground you. Morning routines. Gratitude lists. Reading. Exercise. Whatever helps you reset your brain daily.

• Audit your inputs. Be mindful of the news, social media, even conversations you allow into your world.

• Reframe the negative. Instead of “What if I fail?” try “What if I succeed?”

• Stay rooted in purpose. Mindset is easier to maintain when you’re clear on why you’re doing what you do.

Final Thought

I want to be clear: Mindset doesn’t replace hard work. You still have to show up, day after day. You still have to do the work. But mindset amplifies that work. It makes you better at showing up. It makes you better at leading, communicating, and bouncing back from setbacks.

So here’s my challenge to you: Choose to be the coffee bean. Choose resilience. Choose a mindset that makes you, your team, and your community stronger.

It might just be the most powerful decision you make this year.