A scarcity mindset will have you believing in limits. Time is limited. Money is limited. Even you are limited at what you can accomplish. It’s like putting blinders on to everything good in the world and focusing only on the lack thereof. However, if you’ve never been conditioned to think any other way, it can be tricky to break the chains of a scarcity mindset.
For many people, life is just unfair. They don’t see mindset as the cause of their problems and tend to blame forces outside their control. For this reason, having a scarcity mindset can hold you back long before you even realize what is happening.
Here are 5 main areas where a scarcity mindset may be holding you back.
Confidence – A scarcity mindset will have you believing that you’re never enough. You’re not thin enough to wear a bikini. You’re not smart enough to go for that new job. You avoid putting yourself out there or taking risks because you’re too scared of what people will say. What if you look stupid? What if you fail? Growth and change are impossible with this mentality because you won’t allow yourself to move past your fears in order to realize your full potential.
Career/Money – Scarcity has you seeing obstacles, not opportunities when it comes to career and money. You believe you have to scratch and claw and hustle your way to the top just so you can “get yours.” You place a ceiling on how much money can come into your life because you think there’s only so much to go around. You think making any decent amount of money has to be difficult. This mindset will have you believe that everyone else is smarter or better or more qualified than you. It’s hard for anyone living in scarcity to embrace change, take risks or step very far outside their comfort zone to experience anything new.
Relationships – When you live in scarcity, you are rooted in the fear that your choices are limited and there is not enough love to go around. You settle. You obsess. You stay stuck in unhealthy, toxic relationships for way too long or have an obsessively tight hold on someone which, in turn, causes them to leave. You tend to place blame on others and find it hard to compromise, an important component of a successful relationship. Professional relationships can also be strained because of your overly competitive nature and inability to share credit or recognition.
Health/Wellness – When a scarcity mindset is in control, it has a big impact on your
physical and emotional wellbeing. Not only are stress and anxiety a part of your daily life, but you also make excuse after excuse as to why you can’t lose weight, exercise more, or maintain a healthy eating plan. Because you see it as a limited resource, you may have a tendency for overindulgence when it comes to food. You remind yourself of everything you will have to give up, rather than what you will be gaining by adopting a healthier lifestyle.
Productivity – Goal setting plays a big part in how productive you are, simply because you know what you are working towards. The problem is, when you live with a scarcity mindset, you lack the ability to set clear goals. Your future outlook is bleak, and you don’t really feel like you are working for much more than a paycheck and the occasional raise. Excuses are your friend. If you just had more time, more energy, more money THEN you could finally accomplish something. Rather than seeing it as a mindset issue, you blame others and your circumstances for your inability to get things done.
Living with a scarcity mindset can wreak havoc on your life without you even realizing what the true problem is. Becoming aware that you need to break free of these limitations is so important to your current and future success.