Financial growth and prospering comes with a whole different mindset. It's not something you're born with. It's something you learn.
As a young man I used to spend everything I earned because I wanted everything now, or even yesterday. The quick fixing of long term solutions is what lead me into quite a financial bear trap. But, through a long period of working on my mental health I began realising I had been trapped in a mindset that many others find themselves in.
I call it the Scarcity Mindset.
The scarcity mindset is a bitch. To be completely transparent I used to have a scarcity mindset when I was younger. This is an intertwined set of ideas that expands across all of your thoughts, from where your next paycheque will go, right up until the type of people you will choose to take on a romantic evening out.
Basically the scarcity mindset is this:
There are not enough resources and materials on this world for me to survive so I must take what I can get -- in essence this can translate into buying into a new crypto coin because you don't think your chance to "make it" will ever come around again, or taking the first date that offers you a relationship because you think there's no other options.
Most people are born into this world with the scarcity mindset. In my mind it's primal. We are taught on training programs that we have been conditioned this way but I think it is a thing that's in our biology. To get rid of the scarcity mindset we have to at first unlearn it.
You see, we are an outdated species living in a modern world. What were once biological survival markers aren't much of a thing anymore. Like for example being able to board a train for an exotic holiday with several young fertile ladies nearby and the men not tearing each other to shreds over dominance.
But we can also see them at play subtly, especially around younger people. Look out the next time for a group of young lads minding their own business when females walk into the room. Watch their behaviour to each other change rapidly as each try to assert dominance over the other, or submit quickly.
So yes, even up to a hundred years ago most things were scarce. Most of the population had to fight for what they had, and most things in life were not readily available. Those things you really wanted anyway. You had to work hard to just eat. Unless of course you were filthy rich but that's a story for a different time.
So scarcity mindset got us through life. Things were scarce and we had to take what we could get because other stuff just didn't come knockin' around the corner like it does now.
Now? Now we have abundance. Think of it this way. Do you think you have more now? Or less than your grandparents did? Apart from housing I think us youngsters do pretty well for themselves with the readily available stuff we have at our fingertips. Don't you think?
Most people I've known have been on holiday to somewhere other than the UK. That was a literal impossibility 100 years ago. So in 100 years the world has sped up and changed itself faster than we could ever think to evolve. We've gone from having nothing, to having quite a lot in a small period of time which is nowhere near enough time to evolve as humans. Even education is easily accessible to everyone now, something that only the mega-wealthy could afford.
So what do we do in a world of abundance? When we still think everything is scarce?
We try and teach our friends, families, and other people the value of abundant thinking. Because so much more is possible now than it ever was. I married up the class ladder for example, something that would have been seriously looked down upon when our grandparents were young.
I mean of course you have to be realistic with your abundant thinking also. You can't just assume riches will come to your feet if you think a different way, you have to put in the work also.
So what is abundant thinking?
Well, it's thinking that there's plenty to go around. Plenty of everything. Whilst everyone is taking what they can get, you on the other hand are taking your time and picking out the best choices for yourself. Think of life like a candy shop. There are people that just rush in and grab what they can get no matter if it tastes sour or too sweet. Then there's you, taking your time, trying out different flavours, seeing which ones you like and don't like.
How can life not be like this scenario? What's stopping you? Why can't you pick and choose and test out the things you like and don't like? I'll tell you why...
With the scarcity mindset you make quick choices. You tend to not stop and think what is actually best for you rather than just going, "I'LL HAVE THIS GOD DAMNIT!!" without a further thought and rolling with that for the rest of your life. Because you think it's the only choice you'll have, when that can't be further from the truth.
It can also work in the opposite direction too. There have been plenty of times where I've wanted to apply for a job that I just didn't think I was good enough for, or that there would be other people applying for it that would cream me in so many ways possible in skills. So the course of action would just be to not bother.
To not bother.
Every had that? When you really wanted to do something but you didn't because you thought it would be stupid to try? This right there is scarcity mindset. I shouldn't try dating this girl because she more than likely has way more options than I will ever have in my entire life, so it's probably best I save myself the disappointment.
Yes, in todays world you have to place more value on yourself as a person to get by. You see, even although they won't freely admit or even know about it but people have lots of options these days. In finance, in relationships, and in friendships.
That's why I'm not buying any hive coins right now. A lot of you may think that it's because I've lost interest in the platform, but no, it's because I feel I have options. So I wait for the right moment. I don't need to buy the first thing that I see.
If you want to get ahead in the world you will never be able to get by thinking that your options are limited. You will inevitably fall into a hole that you can't get yourself out of.
Look at the world now? We're all focusing on invisible privilege and oppression all the while forgetting what matters most. Getting ahead. It's very easy to complain about what seems to be holding you back, but it's very hard to actually look at your own behaviours and find out what would take you to the next level.
I did this and I found a lot of interesting things about myself. What I'm good at, and most importantly what I'm bad at.
Shaking hands with your faults and accepting them as part of you is probably the best thing you can do for yourself. For instance I know I can be quite gullible, a bit too trusting, and this leaves me open to all sorts of financial potholes. That's why I have several attack dogs to look at the world through a different perspective. You want your team to plug up your holes, and not constantly agree with you.
But I'm not going to tell you how to do it. I'm done with clickbait listicles. People are also way too different to even think that a small list of feel good points would even work for them. No, I'll leave the research to you. If that's something you would like to take on board that is, or even if it applies to you, and you're just here to agree with me! Haha.
But I hope I've tickled your mind today at least.
Peace out :)