6 ways leaders can build a reinvention mindset

Are you ready for reinvention? Our rapidly evolving world is demanding more from us as leaders than ever. 

Market challenges and opportunities used to come from competitors, economic conditions, and the quality of our products and operations. This “fast-moving” world once required responsiveness, an eye for detail, and efficiency. But the age of AI is introducing a competitive threat at a faster clip than we’ve ever faced before. With a new technology arises a new leadership style: a reinvention mindset, one primed to navigate uncertainty.

Two decades ago, psychologist Carol Dweck developed the idea of the growth mindset to describe people who believe their abilities can be developed through hard work, learning, and perseverance. She also proposed the idea of the fixed mindset for those of us who think our abilities are already set and can’t change no matter how hard we try. Her concepts  influenced management theory for decades. But times have changed. Twenty years ago, we were flipping our phones, sending faxes, and thinking of Google as a new verb. 

As a transformational specialist who has worked with thousands of people, I have observed a new type of leader that’s better equipped to help their people adapt to the new reality of AI: a reinvention mindset. 

Adapting leadership in the age of AI

A reinvention mindset builds on Dweck’s ideas by extending beyond the pursuit of mastery. Reinvention requires identity shifts, mindset rewiring, and stepping into unknown territory with courage. 

That’s also where a failure mindset comes in. It describes a willingness to see setbacks not as signals to stop, but as vital data for course correction—skills critical to face uncertainty with confidence and enthusiasm.

The mindsets we model as leaders shape the culture around us. If we want an adaptive, courageous, and future-ready workforce, it begins with us embracing reinvention ourselves. 

How to cultivate a reinvention mindset

Because reinvention is based on our own unique views, beliefs, and experiences there is an art to how we approach reinvention. Here are six steps to develop a reinvention mindset.

1. Accept that change is coming. As experienced leaders, we have managed change before, then observed the mixed responses from ourselves and our people as we face the fear of the unknown. People either fight, take flight, or freeze in the face of change. Our job is to prepare ourselves and our people to accept change, because denial is not an option that has a future.
   
2. Have a reality check. Reinvention starts with a brutally honest look at what’s working and what’s not. That includes ourselves. Take a moment to review the good, bad, and ugly habits that may have contributed to where you (and your business) are now or going to be. Are they still serving you? What do you need to leave behind to move forward?
   
3. Empower yourself (and others). In times of change, people often feel powerless. This is when leadership matters most. Your role is to reframe uncertainty as opportunity and equip your team with the tools, resources, and mindsets to navigate it. This means more than sending them to a training course. It’s about consistent communication, creating safe spaces for experimentation, and modelling vulnerability when you don’t have all the answers. Because not even the AI experts have all the answers.
   
4. Take action. Do something (anything!). Reinvention is not just about thinking differently; it demands you start taking action. Analysis paralysis and procrastination are the enemy of action. Learn from the experts. Create some hypotheses and then test them so you can see which one gets the best results. Do some  A/B testing, where you invest small amounts into two options until you identify a clear winner, then back it.
   
5. Try, try again. In a reinvention environment, failure isn’t the exception—it’s a part of the process. Try, miss, adjust. repeat. Your leadership sets the tone for whether your team sees failure as fatal or just feedback. Create a culture where experimentation is rewarded and resilience is nurtured, and do it quickly.
   
6. Enjoy the process. Reinvention is tough. But it doesn’t have to be joyless. As leaders, we need to help our teams stay present, not obsessed with what was or paralyzed by what might be. Take time to reflect, celebrate progress, and laugh together. You’re not just managing tasks, you’re leading humans. And humans need hope as much as they need strategy.

A reinvention mindset isn’t about having it all figured out. It’s about being willing to rethink, reimagine, and rebuild again and again based on the information you have. When leaders embrace this mindset, they don’t just adapt—they begin to inspire.