The Scarcity Mindset Vs. The Abundance Mindset

Another way of looking at this phenomenon is in terms of a scarcity mentality versus an abundance mindset. Stephen Covey initially coined these terms in his best-selling book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. Scarcity mentality refers to people seeing life as a finite pie, so that if one person takes a big piece, that leaves less for everyone else. Most people, particularly in the corporate world, have been conditioned to have a scarcity mentality. It's no wonder when promotions and raises are scarce, resources are limited, managers hoard information, micromanagement abounds, and generally, short-term thinking is the norm. A scarcity mentality is what keeps many of us from achieving our goals. An abundance mindset refers to the paradigm that there is plenty out there for everybody.

A scarcity mindset believes that if one person wins, another loses. Try to create win-win conditions in your life to combat this manner of thinking. Look for ways for both parties to leave with a sense of accomplishment and a better feeling about the relationship. Consider practicing this in both your personal and professional life. This often means listening without judgment or censorship, fully understanding what a win-win means for both of you, and brainstorming solutions until you find one that satisfies both parties.

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Well, while positive thinking is by no means a cure-all for all of life's hardships, research shows that it can help people find more joy1 and derive meaning from their lives. By this logic, adopting an abundance mindset can translate to a more abundant life in some ways.

According to Stephen Covey, who popularized the idea in his book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, mindsets are often centered around either scarcity or abundance. To have an abundance mindset is to believe there are enough resources to go around. The scarcity mindset, on the other hand, is defined by feelings of competition and lack. If you're operating from a place of scarcity, you might believe that someone else achieving something means you've somehow lost something.

"Because of the evolutionary wiring throughout the ages for the survival of the species it's natural for the scarcity mindset to prevail," she explains, adding, "We're 2.5 times as likely to want to not lose anything as we are to want to gain something."

Again, it's not that an abundance mindset can solve all your problems. It can, however, make those problems feel more approachable or manageable when practiced over time. Here are Swart's tips for beginning the journey from a place of scarcity to one of abundance:

"You have to cultivate the practice of being in an abundance mindset because the natural thing is always to think more in terms of scarcity," Swart says. So, every time you notice yourself having a scarcity-based thought, "you have to try to replace it with an abundant thought until it becomes more natural for you."

If your thoughts are a bit chaotic in your head, writing them down can help you recognize which ones are coming from a place of scarcity and which are coming from a place of abundance. In this way, journaling daily can illuminate where you might be self-sabotaging, Swart says.

This is easier said than done. One way to try to nudge culture in a more abundant-mindset direction is to try to encourage and celebrate the successes of your co-workers and friends, instead of viewing their wins as your loss.

As an entrepreneur, you have two predominant mindsets competing for your attention: scarcity and abundance. To put it simply, a scarcity mindset leaves you feeling overwhelmed, depressed, and paralyzed. An abundance mindset leaves you feeling excited, motivated, and ready for action.

Abundance mindsets take all of the negative aspects of a scarcity mindset and flip them on their heads, turning them into positive opportunities. Abundance mindsets are grateful, creative, and cooperative.

Instead of seeing life as a zero-sum game, those with an abundance mindset see all of the opportunities that life has to offer. Instead of seeing the depletion of resources, they see how human ingenuity can create new, practical solutions and breakthroughs. They see endless opportunity.

So, the main differences between an abundance mindset and a scarcity mindset are simple. With a scarcity mindset, everything is getting smaller. But with an abundance mindset, everything is getting exponentially bigger. Tools, systems, and networks create new areas of personal and general expansion in which the factors of growth continually multiply one another.

In The 7 Habits of Effectively People, Stephen R. Covey compares the scarcity mindset to the belief that life is a limited pie with only so much money, success, and good fortunes and if someone takes a big piece of the pie, it leaves less for you. Believing in a limited pie not only limits your options, it also limits what you can achieve.

What you think is possible can place the boundary on what you can accomplish. While a scarcity mindset can get in the way of your dreams and make you settle for less with the assumption that your desires are unrealistic, an abundant mindset makes everything appear within reach.

To build an abundance mindset, be clear about what you want and lay out a plan to achieve it. Knowing what you want gives you a direction away from distractions so that you can focus your energy on turning your dreams into reality. To build a proactive focus, ask these questions:

You should know that I find your articles very inspiring. I like what you compose. Keep it going because people really need this kind of thinking. We need a better mindset.

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The abundance mindset turns scarcity on its head. Having an abundance mindset instead of a scarcity mindset can have a positive effect on your finances because it impacts how you view your earning and saving potential. An integral part of building a robust portfolio is altering your relationship with money so that you are motivated to save and invest with purpose; possessing an abundance mindset will help with this. In this guide I talk about the abundance vs. scarcity mindset and what you can do to view your finances through the prism of abundance.

My challenge for you is to reflect on your mindset and identify if you lean toward abundance or scarcity. I know I want to have more of the abundance mindset. Whichever way you CHOOSE to think will determine your actions in a very clear way.

An Abundance Mentality basically means being of the mindset that there is plenty out there for everyone. There are many benefits to having a mentality that is secure and confident that there is plenty for all, and my mission with this article is to point out these benefits in order to help you to think "Win/Win" when making choices and decisions.

What would our lives be like if we changed our thinking to be in sync with a mentality of abundance? Examples of this mindset would be to believe that the world has fruit for all, that there is plenty to go around, that there is a lot of room at the top, that we are beneath no one and superior to no one. If we could develop this mentality, we would free ourselves from fear, we would be immune to criticism, and we would experience ultimate freedom in our minds and in our hearts.

To break the scarcity mindset habit, maybe this means setting certain boundaries with people in your life or finding new friends that help empower your positive thoughts instead of your negative ones. And if your thoughts are really starting to get to you, it may be good to seek a therapist who can help you understand the root cause of these fixations.

He goes on to say we are conditioned into this mentality through athletic competitions, academic grading curves, and ranking systems in general. Scarcity mindset demands that one team must win, while abundance mindset hopes everyone wins and has a good time.

Our relationships and social circles have a potent impact on our mindset. Spend a lot of time with people who recognize opportunity is everywhere and you will automatically think more positively. Reflect if those whom you spend time with show traits of the abundance mentality.

Someone with an abundance mindset is grateful and appreciative of everything they have in their life. An abundance mindset refers to the belief that there is plenty of everything for everybody in the world.

Developing an abundant mindset impacts your personal and professional success. When you have an abundance mindset you feel clear, confident, and capable. When you have a scarcity mentality you fear the unknown and believe there is only so much of everything available in the world.

Someone with an abundant mentality is an optimist and is always looking for ways to learn, grow, and achieve the goals that are most important to them. A person with an abundant mindset believes there is plenty available for everybody and looks at each of their experiences as an opportunity to learn and grow.

Someone with a scarcity mindset comes from a zero-sum mentality. When you think with a scarcity mindset you believe there is a depletion of time, money, energy, and resources available. You have the choice of developing a scarcity mindset or an abundance mindset.

A scarcity mindset can stop you from achieving your goals. Someone with a scarcity mentality believes that there is not enough to go around. They believe that everything necessary to create an abundant future is scarce.

Someone with an abundance mindset surrounds themselves with other abundance-minded people. They seek out committed, self-aware people. They also look for people who look for the positives in any experience.

Abundance makes you feel anything is possible. Feelings of abundance increase energy and creativity and help you feel more confident. Someone with an abundance mindset is always moving forward positively. They understand that their strengths give them a platform to grow faster.

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