Do you think in terms of an abundance mindset or a scarcity mindset?

Have you ever taken the time to think about that?

When you hear that a friend just got a new job with higher pay, are you jealous or happy for her?

If your sister just met the love of her life and you are still single, do you congratulate her or pout about how you never meet anyone?

When your friend gets excited about his new car, house, or another big ticket item, what are you thinking? “I will never have enough money for that” or “I can’t wait until I can get excited like that too.”

Stephen Covey, who wrote the book, Seven Habits of Highly Successful People, coined the phrases Abundance Mentality and Scarcity Mentality.

The meaning of Scarcity Mentality goes like this. If someone else wins, then I lose. There is only so much out there, and there won’t be enough for me if someone else gets it. When you have a scarcity mentality, you have a hard time being genuinely happy for other people’s success.

This is what he says about the meaning of Abundance Mentality. There are enough resources and successes to share with others. You control your own life. There is plenty out there and enough to spare for everyone. It comes from a deep inner sense of personal worth and security.

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Michael Beckwith explains it this way.

“There is a lie that acts like a virus within the mind of humanity. And that lie is, ‘There’s not enough good to go around. There’s lack, and there’s a limitation, and there’s just not enough.’
The truth is that there’s more than enough good to go around. There is more than enough creative ideas, there is more than enough power, and there is more than enough love. There’s more than enough joy. All of this begins to come through a mind that is aware of its own infinite nature. There is enough for everyone. If you believe it, if you can see it, if you act from it, it will show up for you. That’s the truth.”

Which mindset do you have?

I was brought up in a lifestyle of competition. My parents and their friends were always trying to outdo each other. Whether it was their cars, their TVs, their second homes, their parties, their vacations, or their gambling. We were always looking at what else we could have that someone else didn’t. To this day, my friends remember that we were one of the first families to have a microwave.

The other day I heard my daughter say something to the effect of never having enough money to do what she wants to do.

I often catch myself being jealous of other bloggers’ success.

My cousin works for long hours because she wants to be more successful than her peers.

But just like so many other things in life, if you can just live from a sense of knowing who you are, knowing what you want, and knowing what success means to you, you can have anything. There is plenty of money, plenty of love, and plenty of time for everyone.

As I wrote in How to Use the Law of Attraction Every Day, never think you can’t have something because you absolutely can. Not everyone is wishing for or dreaming of the same things; you don’t have to worry about taking them from anyone else. By attracting abundance to yourself, you are not limiting someone else. There is enough for everyone.

We need to change our mindset from one of scarcity to one of abundance. Here are 11 exercises to get you started.

How to Create an Abundance Mindset

Be aware of your thoughts

When thoughts of jealousy, lack, negativity, or fear come up. Stop, breathe, and try to figure out why those thoughts came up. How can you turn them around to thoughts of support, abundance, positivity, and action?

Practice Gratitude

Write down what you are grateful for every day. It develops a habit of looking for what is good in your life and not focusing on what you don’t have. Oprah Winfrey is the first person to introduce gratitude to me. She says, “If you look at what you have in life, you will always have more. If you look at what you don’t have in life, you will never have enough.”

Be Aware of Unlimited Possibilities

With an abundance mindset, you are open to any way abundance can come to you. You just know that it will come. Don’t get caught thinking there is only one way for you to make money or that you can only meet people when you are specifically looking. Loosen your focus. Meditation helps with this. New possibilities may come to light.

Share Your Gifts

Confidently sharing your gifts and talents promotes a more positive sense of self-worth. When you are feeling good about yourself, you are open to better coming to you. Volunteer your time, and you will find more time to do what you want or need to. Donate to charity, and more money will come back to you.

Watch What You Say

Just as we need to be aware of our thoughts, watch what you say. If you are constantly complaining about not having money, you will continue not to have money. Do you tell people that you are fat or you need to lose weight? The language we use shapes our reality. When you catch yourself saying things out of scarcity, stop and take it back. Turn your words into stories of abundance.

Make BIG Goals

As you now know, with an abundance mindset, you are open to unlimited possibilities. With unlimited possibilities, why not think big! Write down all of your goals and dreams and make them big. Maybe you want to write an international New York Times bestseller, put it out there and then take baby steps to get there. Start with writing down book titles or notes on your ideas. Remember that there is room out there for your book too!

Plan For the Future

People with a scarcity mindset wait for things to happen and then react. Instead, strategically plan for the future and create strategies for the long-term. People with an abundance mindset are visionaries and always believe that there are new chances and opportunities.

Focus on What is Going Right

If you are going through a difficult time in your life, focus on what is going right. Focusing on what is going wrong makes you a victim. Take control of your situation by focusing on the positive and trying to create more of that.

Create Abundance Affirmations

I believe in the power of affirmations. Saying out loud positive words to support what you want in life on a regular basis makes it the truth. Check out my post, 13 Powerful Affirmations and How to Create Your Own, to write your own affirmations. Say or write them down every day.

Develop New Skills

An abundance mentality knows there is much more to learn. When you are developing new skills, you are opening yourself up to more possibilities. Find a course to enhance a skill or hobby that you love. See if it can lead you to a new source of income.

Challenge Your Beliefs

If you have limiting beliefs, you are limiting your options. If you grew up thinking, “money is scarce, and I never have enough,” you need to challenge that and turn it into something positive. How about, “there is plenty of money for everyone, and I have all that I need.” Be aware of all of the beliefs you are holding on to and make sure they do not keep you in a scarcity mindset.

Which of these exercises resonates with you?

I’m going to keep learning and keep writing until I get to my own definition of success as a blogger. I know there are endless possibilities for success, and I am open to them all.

Observe your thoughts and actions over the next few days and see which mindset comes up more often. An abundance mindset will get you to your ideal life much faster than a scarcity mindset.

“See yourself living in abundance and you will attract it. It always works, it works every time, with every person.”
-Bob Proctor

I’ve created a self-paced online course on this topic. Dive deeper into where your mindset is today and discover 11 tools to guide you in living with an abundance mindset every day. You don’t need anyone to fix you, you only need to know how powerful you are right now.

Click the button to learn more and start creating your abundant life!

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