My Growth Mindset Moment with an Egg Shaker
Have you ever thought, “This will be easy. It will only take a minute.” – Only to be proved sooo… wrong? Not everything is as easy as it looks!
There I was, standing at the microphone with an egg shaker in hand, singing the same song for the third time, trying to record a song called Growth Mindset Superpower based on a poem in my book Growth Mindset Poems for Raising Confident Kids.
Shaking an egg to a song sounds simple, right?
Wrong.
Turns out, shaking an egg to the rhythm while recording isn’t as easy as you’d think – especially when you’re also trying to keep the vibe joyful, the timing right, and your insecurities in check. But what hit me most in that moment wasn’t just how hard it was… it was how I wasn’t freaking out about it like I used to when doing something new while under pressure.
The Surprise in the Shaker
As I stood there fumbling with my egg shaker (with my sweet husband patiently recording take after take), it dawned on me – I was singing about growth mindset while actually living it!
I wasn’t spiraling into frustration. I wasn’t getting overwhelmed and shutting down. I wasn’t mentally quitting or telling myself, “I just can’t do this.”
Instead, I was choosing different thoughts:
- “This is fun getting to do this with my husband.”
- “I can learn this and get better even if it takes lots of ‘takes’.”
- “It’s okay to mess up a bunch before I get it right.”
And that shift, my friend, was huge.
58 and Finally Getting Unstuck
I’m nearly 60 years old, and for most of my life, I believed a lie: “I can’t change.”
I’ve spent so long with the pain of feeling stuck and unchangeable in many different areas.
If I wasn’t good at something right away, I’d get overwhelmed, shut down, and often give up. Or my panic about it made me make mistakes! Especially when it came to anything tech-related. (Can I get an amen from anyone who has ever tried to learn new software and ended up questioning their life choices?)
One of my kids once told me, “Mom, you’re weird, but the computer takes you to a whole new level.”
And they were right. I used to freak out in both directions – anger when it didn’t work, ecstatic joy when it finally did.
But these days? I don’t freak out. I just keep going. I bounce back. That’s not who I’ve always been, but it’s who I’m becoming.
Stress About Stress is a Real Thing – Stress Mindset Theory (Look it up!)
Recently, I heard something powerful in a video on YouTube called Rethinking Stress: Why Stress Mindsets Matter. Researchers told a group of students before a big test, that feeling stress was actually a good thing – it meant they cared. Instead of stressing about the stress, they just acknowledged it and kept going.
That tiny mindset shift made a big difference in their performance. It’s true in life too: When we stop stressing about the fact that we’re stressed, overwhelmed, or struggling, and instead remind ourselves this is part of the process… everything feels a little lighter.
That’s what happened to me as I started to feel the old panic try to shut down my shaker! I recognized the stress, told myself it’s okay, just try your best, then kept going. I didn’t let the stress build and take over.
Growth Mindset = New Life
When you embrace a growth mindset, you start to believe things like:
- Mistakes are part of learning
- I can grow, change, and improve over time
- I don’t have to be born “good” at something to eventually become great at it
- Progress matters more than perfection
That kind of thinking changes everything.
- It’s helped my marriage
- It’s helped me launch creative projects I used to be too scared to start
- It’s helped me finally push through fears that held me hostage for years
Including the fear of success – yes, you read that right I was afraid of becoming successful because I thought I couldn’t handle it. All the new responsibilities, potential interviews or public speaking… It all felt like too much. So I’d distract myself with busy work instead of doing what would actually move me forward.
Ever catch yourself avoiding doing what you should with something else ‘productive-ish’ so you don’t feel so guilty? Yeah. Not cool, but hey, it’s gotta get done right?
Your Brain is a Computer – Update the Program!
Here’s something I wish I had learned decades ago: Your brain is like a computer. Whatever programs have been installed, by your upbringing, past experiences, or the stories you’ve told yourself are the ones it’s running.
So if you want different results in your life, you have to change the code. That starts with your beliefs.
If your internal script says things like:
- “I’m not good at this.”
- “I’ll never change.”
- “I’m just not wired for this.”
…your brain will go, “Okay! Let’s live like that’s true.”
But if you consciously choose new beliefs and feed your mind with truth, you can literally rewire your responses. That’s not just self-help fluff. It’s neuroscience. And more importantly—it’s biblical truth.
Lies Don’t Set You Free. Truth Does
Jesus said, “The truth will set you free.” But I’ve learned something the hard way: Even truth won’t set you free if you’re filtering it through lies. If your mind is full of rocky or hardened soil – if you’ve believed deep down that you’re stuck, broken, or beyond help, then the truth can’t take root.
You’ll hear powerful truths, but they’ll bounce right off because your belief system is blocking them. That was me for decades. Until I started paying attention. Until I started weeding out the lies and replacing them with God’s truth and a growth mindset.
And friend? Good news – it’s never too late.
If You’re Struggling, Let Me Lend You My Belief
There have been people in my life who believed in me even when I didn’t believe in myself and today, I want to return the favor. If you feel stuck, I want to lend you my belief in you.
You can change.
You can grow.
You can do the things that feel scary, overwhelming, or impossible right now.
But it doesn’t start with your actions. It starts with your mind. Stop trying to fix behaviors without digging up the root beliefs behind them. Ask God to show you what’s going on under the surface and to help you renew your mind with truth. Then partner with Him to shift your thoughts and plant new seeds.
Let These Truths Soak In
Say these affirmations aloud, regularly. Let them reprogram your inner world:
- I can change by changing my mind with truth
- I can change with God’s help and the Holy Spirit as my counselor
- I can learn how to do hard things one step at a time and they will get easier
- I don’t need to give up when I goof up – mistakes are part of the learning process!
- I will not expect perfection from myself while I’m learning
- I will celebrate small wins and praise myself for trying, growing, and showing up
Growth doesn’t come overnight. It’s a process, but the more you renew your mind, the more you’ll notice…
- You freak out less
- You bounce back faster
- You enjoy the process more
- You start believing in who you’re becoming
So go ahead – pick up your egg shaker (or whatever it is for you) and give it another try.
The breakthrough begins in your brain and the first step is simply believing…
You’re not stuck. You’re just starting.
One way to start if you’re looking for your next step, is by downloading my FREE eBook 7 Steps to Mastering Your Mind – A guide to managing your life by improving your thought habits and mindsets. It comes with journal pages, printable affirmations and powerful mind changing statements to keep you thinking about your thinking!
Follow me on Instagram @noellareeder for more inspiration on personal growth!