@MJ DeMarco wrote an interesting post in a thread about the SCARCITY mindset
I grew up in a family of 11 kids so money wasn't given out like candy. Thus, I've grown up with a Scarcity Mindset when it comes to money. It's weird, as I'm a usually a highly optimistic person, but ever since graduating college a couple years ago and having to start worrying about money, that's what I've done, worry about it.
It's the end of the month now and I'm constantly checking the bank account hoping to make it to next pay period. My wife and I since moving to Texas last year have almost doubled our take home pay and bills have gone up minimally, yet it's the same feeling for me every month as it was in North Carolina (where we came from), "Drat we need to tighten up, it's the end of the month dear." It's always under the gun.
It gets so bad my wife asks me if she can buy a Kindle book for $7.99.
That hurts.
I tell her, "Dear, you don't need to ask me for that." and being a great wife she'll smile and say, "just checking," but I know, deep down, she's nervous about spending the money as I've questioned her spending habits in the past.
I just started getting active on this forum a couple months ago, and have thus taken more real action (not action fakes) in that time than the past 2.5 years combined, but when it comes to money, it's always that Scarcity Mindset.
It was shuddering today: I was driving thinking about my products saying, "I know I can license some of my products to 6-7 figures. " But my scarcity mindset suddenly pulled me to earth and said, "You'd probably still stress about money everyday, it'll probably all slip through the cracks as it does now, so why bother? Remember when you moved to Texas and you thought money won't be a stress, yeah right buddy."
Scary.
The issue is we're not struggling financially, we have more than enough take home, but somewhat like in the book "Secrets of the Millionaire Mind," our "thermostat" is set to : You, Joe, will have less than $100 in your account at the end of the month. And so it is every month. I've tried the Declarations "I have a millionaire mind" and such, but the heart and soul can smell an action fake.
I read all of @IceCreamKid 's golden thread as it's largely about mindset, and I'm sure many people here will mention "Value, Gratitude" etc. What can one do daily to get out of this money scarcity mindset.? Gratitude may be a big thing, as I'm very much someone who, once I reach a goal, I don't even acknowledge it, I'm on to the next one.
I try and "FAKE IT" by catching myself and trying to see the positive light, but it doesn't seem to work. James Altucher will say, "Instead of complaining about traffic, see the abundance of cars and the awesomeness in the work that goes into making them." Everyday I sit in traffic and try to do this, but it's a fake, the gut knows it.
What do you do to get to an Abundance Mindset instead of a Scarcity? It may be what's holding you back from wealth as it does for me.
NOTE: This isn't a "I'm broke" issue, as I've mentioned, making more money didn't solve the issue. I sold some stuff on Ebay/Craigslist to make a little more, didn't matter.
NOTE2: Have read the Secrets of the Millionaire Mind and Think and Grow Rich a couple times, maybe I just need to read those until I'm sick of them, until I actually believe it?
Once you get control over spending, the problem is not a saving issue, but an income issue.
When I see people fretting over $20K in debt, it means they still have a scarcity mindset. I make more than that in one month. When I owned a company, I earned nearly 10X more. Now coming from that perspective, an income one, would $20K in debt be a big problem? Nope. It'd be paid in a month or two. In fact, my credit card bill, which I pay off every month, was greater than $10K. Do I let it roll? NOPE. I pay it all off. How? Because I'm not focused on skimping lattes and cutting cable channels, I'm focused on INCOME.
EXPLODING INCOME is offense and its how you swim to victory.
EXPENSE CUTTING is defense and its how you tread water and stay afloat in a pool of mediocrity.
To give a fitness analogy, expense cutting is like going to the gym. It makes you feel good. It can be done relatively easy with a snap decision. (I'm not going to eat out!)
Exploding income is like eating correctly, carb cutting, and sugar eliminating. It's difficult. It's the process. It requires not a daily, or a weekly commitment, but an HOURLY one. You constantly have to work at it to make it work, and yet, it's where the real meat of the results are found.
To be in the best shape of your life is about 75% what goes in your mouth, 25% gym.
With debt/wealth, 75% of it is income. 25% is expense discipline, or saving.
As for getting in the Fastlane with debt, consumers don't care about your debt situation if you have something they want.
If my house springs a huge water leak and you are selling the plug, I don't care about your personal situation or circumstances. Let me buy the damn plug.
I grew up in a family of 11 kids so money wasn't given out like candy. Thus, I've grown up with a Scarcity Mindset when it comes to money. It's weird, as I'm a usually a highly optimistic person, but ever since graduating college a couple years ago and having to start worrying about money, that's what I've done, worry about it.
It's the end of the month now and I'm constantly checking the bank account hoping to make it to next pay period. My wife and I since moving to Texas last year have almost doubled our take home pay and bills have gone up minimally, yet it's the same feeling for me every month as it was in North Carolina (where we came from), "Drat we need to tighten up, it's the end of the month dear." It's always under the gun.
It gets so bad my wife asks me if she can buy a Kindle book for $7.99.
That hurts.
I tell her, "Dear, you don't need to ask me for that." and being a great wife she'll smile and say, "just checking," but I know, deep down, she's nervous about spending the money as I've questioned her spending habits in the past.
I just started getting active on this forum a couple months ago, and have thus taken more real action (not action fakes) in that time than the past 2.5 years combined, but when it comes to money, it's always that Scarcity Mindset.
It was shuddering today: I was driving thinking about my products saying, "I know I can license some of my products to 6-7 figures. " But my scarcity mindset suddenly pulled me to earth and said, "You'd probably still stress about money everyday, it'll probably all slip through the cracks as it does now, so why bother? Remember when you moved to Texas and you thought money won't be a stress, yeah right buddy."
Scary.
The issue is we're not struggling financially, we have more than enough take home, but somewhat like in the book "Secrets of the Millionaire Mind," our "thermostat" is set to : You, Joe, will have less than $100 in your account at the end of the month. And so it is every month. I've tried the Declarations "I have a millionaire mind" and such, but the heart and soul can smell an action fake.
I read all of @IceCreamKid 's golden thread as it's largely about mindset, and I'm sure many people here will mention "Value, Gratitude" etc. What can one do daily to get out of this money scarcity mindset.? Gratitude may be a big thing, as I'm very much someone who, once I reach a goal, I don't even acknowledge it, I'm on to the next one.
I try and "FAKE IT" by catching myself and trying to see the positive light, but it doesn't seem to work. James Altucher will say, "Instead of complaining about traffic, see the abundance of cars and the awesomeness in the work that goes into making them." Everyday I sit in traffic and try to do this, but it's a fake, the gut knows it.
What do you do to get to an Abundance Mindset instead of a Scarcity? It may be what's holding you back from wealth as it does for me.
NOTE: This isn't a "I'm broke" issue, as I've mentioned, making more money didn't solve the issue. I sold some stuff on Ebay/Craigslist to make a little more, didn't matter.
NOTE2: Have read the Secrets of the Millionaire Mind and Think and Grow Rich a couple times, maybe I just need to read those until I'm sick of them, until I actually believe it?
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