Scarcity vs. Abundance

This article was written by Rachel Isbill and published by Crossroads Professional Coaching.

 

Do you function out of a mindset of scarcity or abundance?

It’s worth considering because it affects you and your business- and I’ll tell you why.

First, let’s dig into what we’re referring to in these two terms. Scarcity is a frame of mind that perceives that you just can’t ever get enough. Whether it be time, resources, achievements, relationships, or a host of other things we may feel we are always short of. To feel as if you’re always lacking, need more, could be more secure. Scarcity is not necessarily driven by greed- it can derive from fear, insecurity, learned experience, or simply habit. Some examples of a scarcity mentality could be:

• Always rushing from one thing to the next because there is never enough time to spend on the activity you were doing previously.
• Striving for more and more even at the cost of your health or priorities because you’re hesitant to stop aiming for higher even when you’ve already hit a goal.
• Stressing over finances and never feeling as if there’s enough, even when every expense is paid and there’s cushion in the account.

The problem of scarcity is that it has an effect on you, your business, and those around you (clients, staff, family and friends). How so? A few ways.

When we have a scarcity mentality:

• We miss out on gratitude. If we never feel like we have enough, then we aren’t exploring thankfulness for what is there.
• We hold back on generosity. As we strain to grasp for more, more, more- we tighten our grip rather than giving what was never ours to begin with.
• We prioritize false security. We believe that if there was just enough, we could rest and feel safe. But in scarcity, no amount is ever enough to satisfy the insecurity in our hearts.
• We strive to create for ourselves rather than trusting God. Continuing to secure more of whatever we lack puts things in our own hands rather than choosing to wait on God to be true to who He says He is. Good father and provider.

Abundance, on the other hand, is a posture of satisfaction. Enough-ness. Overflow, even. Abundance is the sense that you have what you need with some leftover. It’s the reality that many of us live in. But the perspective is sometimes hard to hold. Yet when we function out of abundance:

• We are at peace. There is less pressure to work or fight for more. We can enjoy what is in front of us instead of looking past it in our striving.
• We can look for opportunities for generosity. Because we acknowledge that we have enough, we feel the freedom to give from what we have.
• We steward what’s given to us with wisdom and health for ourselves and those around us. As we relax into the enoughness we feel, everyone around us can feel it- our employees, families and those we spend time with.
• We humbly recognize God’s provision. God is who He says He is. He knows our needs and gives them to us. Abundance recognizes the grace of what we have.

 

Finding Abundance

So if you feel more scarcity than you do abundance, take an inventory. What areas do you feel scarce in? For most people, scarcity is more of a mindset than a reality. Therefore, the scarcity mentality stretches across multiple facets of life. Write down each category of scarcity, and try to take an inventory of the landscape of your resources in each of those areas. Ask yourself these questions:

• Is there actually a scarcity of this resource, or does it just feel that way?
• If there is a true lack of resources, what are the contributing factors to why there is not enough?
• What can I do to effectively increase the resource, and is it feasible?
• What am I afraid will happen if there is not enough of XYZ? What’s the likelihood of that happening?
• Where am I not believing that God sees my needs and that He will be the provider for me?

Last year was full of opportunities to see all that we were lacking. Everything from something as simple as toilet paper to the complex unknowns of job security and financial stability. At the turn of a new year, let’s work together to recognize the opportunity for abundance, gratefulness and peace.