evolve | moving from growth mindset to evolve mindset
Exploring why we embrace a growth mindset but aren't as accepting of evolution.
evolve
verb
develop gradually.
There is a scene from Insecure that became a popular meme, “You know what that is? Growth.” We’ve all had those moments with friends where they refrain or exhibit behaviour which they couldn’t have in the past.
We celebrate notions of growth because each of us understands we’re not perfect. Growth is the way we connect to the reality of our own potential. If we can’t embrace a notion of growth then we’re claiming to be done. To be done with life is to embrace death.
As much as we laud growth I don’t think we’re so fond of evolution. We don’t as quickly embrace the notion that people evolve. When someone is different to who they were years ago accusations are levelled at them. “You’ve changed” or “What happened to you?” Perhaps we level the accusations at ourselves “You used to be fun.”
Growth is easily embraced with positivity but evolution is not so secure. As an artist I think about what it means to evolve. I’m personally invested in my own development over time. It’s valuable to know how things are different and also how things are the same.
I’m also invested in how other artists evolve. We criticise people whose work doesn’t develop over time. If a musician is putting out the same project over and over again we give less credit to them as artists. It’s a fine balance however because if an artist strays too far from where they started, our bonds with them can expire.
I think of my own relationship to Andre 3000. His artistry musically has evolved into something I’m no longer invested in, it’s too far from the music I fell in love with originally. We want to see the artist tow a fine line, evolving without straying too far from what drew us in in the first place.
Kojey Radical has evolved greatly as an artist over time. From Dear Daisy: Opium in 2014 to Reason to Smile in 2022, Kojey’s sound has dramatically transformed. If you follow the intervening projects you can track the gradual development, you can see how he got from one to the other. Even if you don't, the artistic thread connecting the projects is there.
Sometimes when we look back over long periods of time we can’t see that thread. When we evolve, when change happens gradually over time, the drastic nature of said changes can be surprising. Sometimes we look back and can’t believe we were ever that person. Sometimes we long to be that person again.
We’re all going to change. We all develop gradually over time, whether we want to or not. It’s about investing in ourselves and those around us. That way, when the future arrives we can be at peace with how we’ve evolved.