I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase “you’re your own worst enemy.” This saying is especially true for most people with a scarcity mindset.

In business and in life, our mindset plays a huge role into whether we succeed or fail. And when looking at the world, people adopt either a scarcity mindset or an abundance mindset. 

What exactly does it mean to have an abundance mindset? 

How is it different from a scarcity mindset?

Why should you adopt an abundance mindset?

What Is A Scarcity Mindset?

Abundance and scarcity mindsets exist as polar opposites. And to understand an abundance mindset, you first need to understand what a scarcity mindset is.

A scarcity mindset is one in which a person believes that the amount of resources available around them (time, money, respect, love, status, real estate deals, etc.) is limited. But not in a scientific “Earth has finite resources” kind of way. It’s a zero-sum game kind of thinking, one in which someone else’s gain means a loss for you.

And this mindset can happen even if there’s objectively enough resources for everyone, and there’s plenty of evidence to prove it.

But where does the scarcity mindset come from? In a way, it’s easy to see its origin. Throughout most of human history, the majority of people have lived with very limited resources, surviving as were subsistence farmers. And there are still lots of people around who were raised by survivors of the great depression.

However, the scarcity mindset is anything but a logical cost-benefit analysis of available resources. It comes from fear and uncertainty. Fear that you won’t be able to pay your mortgage. Fear that you won’t be able to retire. And fear that you will lose what little you already have.

While it’s reasonable to think about our future and plan for it, a scarcity mindset is an unbalanced view of what may or may not happen in the future.

For instance, a scarcity, zero-sum mindset makes it very difficult (if not impossible) to feel genuine happiness for the success of others. When a co-worker closes a deal, you will feel like money was taken from you and your family. And if a friend’s new business takes off, you feel jealous and even suspicious.

Second, it leads to either hoarding and/or instant gratification mindsets. It causes a person to hoard resources, and refuse to share them with co-workers and associates out of fear that they will misuse them, use them against them, or simply not having enough for themselves.

Real estate agents with a scarcity mindset try to squeeze each and every dollar they can out of a deal, instead of working towards a win-win scenario for both buyers and sellers. While this may bring immediate gains, it inevitably damages their relationship and reputation with other agents.

Third, a scarcity mindset can easily lead to an unhappy, unbalanced life that is 100% focused on work.

Work is, of course, essential. But if all you do is work, and never have time to rest, spend time with your family, and do other important things in your life, you won’t be happy.

An Abundance Mindset

A person with an abundance mindset believes that there are plenty of resources for every single person to enjoy. That includes enough real estate deals, enough time, training, money, etc. 

When an associate or friend does well for themselves, it doesn’t mean that there’s a lower chance for them to succeed as well. In fact, the success of those close to them only adds to their personal success.

And because they’re not freaking out about running out of time or resources, they are more calm when approaching any given deal. It also frees their mind to identify possibilities they otherwise couldn’t see, and make better long-term decisions.

What An Abundance Mindset Isn’t

Don’t confuse an abundance mindset with magical thinking, such as the kind advanced by The Secret and the “Law of Attraction.” Success in real estate (and ANY kind of industry) doesn’t come just because you really really really want it to happen, or because you visualize yourself to be rich. You need to follow that up with action.

You still need to dress up each morning, work hard, build relationships, and provide the best possible service to your clients that you can.

And unlike the scarcity mindset, which is in itself an added mental weight you carry around with you, an abundance mindset takes a gigantic unnecessary burden off your mind. That’s because for a person with a scarcity mindset, each day is a battle, and they are constantly surrounded by perceived opponents.

An abundance mindset makes you more open to cooperation and growth. It helps you to become an active participant in your life, rather than a reactive one. And it helps you identify what’s really important in your life, and place it front and center in your life.

How To Develop An Abundance Mindset

1. Surround Yourself By People With An Abundance Mindset

Humans are social creatures. And no matter how independent we believe ourselves to be, our associates have a gigantic influence on us. Either through peer pressure, pressure to fit it, or even through sheer exposure, we have a tendency to be molded by the actions of our close associates.

This could be a curse or a blessing, depending on who your associates are.

For instance, if you surround yourself with people that have a scarcity mindset, you will develop a scarcity mindset.

On the other hand, if you surround yourself with people with an abundance mindset, you will also develop an abundance mindset.

While you may not be able to choose who your co-workers are, you can choose the people you socialize with after work. Surround yourself with people that motivate you, genuinely care about your success and the success of others, and are willing to help each other out.

2. View REAL Scarcity As An Opportunity To Grow

Over the course of your real estate career, there will be times in which you are short on resources. There could be a lack of money, human resources, training, knowledge, time, etc.

Instead of focusing your mental energy on how much things suck right now, and complaining about how things aren’t where you hoped they would be them to be, focus on what you can control right now. Take your desired end goal, and work backwards from there.

For example, do you have a lack of time to prospect because you have many deals you need to close right now? 

In this case, your end goal is to free up more time to prospect regularly each week. What can help you handle some of the most tedious and repetitive aspects of your job? A virtual assistant!

3. Focus On Your Unique Strengths

Rather than spending countless hours trying to improve on your perceived weaknesses or skills shortage, focus your efforts on improving your existing strengths.

In real estate, this often translates into finding the right niche to specialize in.

Finding your niche isn’t just a good strategy economically speaking. When you have a specific level of expertise, you’re uniquely qualified to do it, AND you actually enjoy it, it makes a gigantic difference. 

You will feel (and act) more confidently, you’ll bring a lot more helpful to your clients, and it will be a lot easier to maintain an abundance mindset.

4. Avoid Procrastination 

Procrastination is a big temptation that plagues us all, and can easily ensnare you. The reason procrastination can be so appealing is because it brings immediate results. It helps you avoid unpleasant tasks now, and pushes them for later. We are especially susceptible to procrastination when we feel discouraged, tired or stressed.

The problem is that said stressful, unwanted or disliked situations don’t just go away or get solved. And sooner or later you need to deal with the consequences.

For example, you may hate prospecting, and decide to leave it until the end of the day. But by doing so, you leave an essential task for a time in which your mental energy is already depleted and you can’t think quickly anymore. So how can you succeed at growing your client base if you’re constantly sabotaging your own efforts?

Remember that there’s always time to do more pleasurable things after work (such as checking your social media, watching YouTube Videos, etc.), and force yourself to tasks you dislike most FIRST, when you have all the energy you need.

It also helps to remind yourself of the benefits of handling those tasks straight on.  Remember that a single successful prospecting call could be worth thousands of dollars in commission. 

And once you begin to conquer procrastination, you’ll begin to feel better about yourself, and others will notice the increase in your own productivity.

5. Train Your Mind To Recognize The Possibilities

Gaining an abundance mindset is really all about your developing the ability to see more possibilities in your life. These can be more opportunities to grow your brand, more opportunities to make friends, getting things done more efficiently, etc. And starts with freeing up more “mental real estate” to start noticing them.

The brain can only process so much stimuli at any given time. And it tends to focus on what it’s looking for and what it already believes in.

For example, if you believe that starting a successful real estate business is impossible for you, or you think that making 6 digits in take home commission a year isn’t something you can do, then your brain will automatically filter out any evidence to the contrary.

So how do you start seeing more possibilities? Start by shifting the way you think about your goals.

Instead of telling yourself “I can never make 6 digits in take home pay a year”, rephrase it as “How can I make 6 digits on take home pay a year?”

By doing even such a seemingly small adjustment, you start to recognize possibilities and paths that lead to said 6-digit take home pay. You may start to notice underserved niches in your market that you’ve never noticed before. You start to look for software and tools that make it easier and more efficient to prospect. You now invest some of your personal time to improve your skills.

Cultivating an abundance mindset takes effort. It requires building self awareness and discipline. But just like with any skill, the more you practice it, the easier it gets. And eventually, it becomes your default mindset.

Questions That Can Make It Easier To Recognize Opportunities:

• If someone else were to analyze this situation, what might they notice that I’m not seeing right now?
• What are ALL of my choices here? Did I miss anything?
• What’s going right and in our favor in this situation?
• If this goal were to be achievable, what would be the next logical step?
• What resources might I have available here that I happened to miss?

6. Approach Matters With A Neutral And Analytical Point Of View

As much as possible, try to approach any new situation with an open mind, and without any preconceptions. It helps to pretend like you’re a total beginner, and hold any judgements until you have all the facts.

This isn’t about embracing ignorance, but rather avoid being limited by your current beliefs, and seeing things by how they really are.

Ask yourself, “If I had no opinion on the subject, would I notice anything different? If I were to ask someone that knew absolutely nothing about it,  would they notice anything different?

Conclusion

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