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Enjoy Your Life to the Fullest by Shifting from Scarcity to Abundance Mentality - Part 2

This is the second part of the series “Enjoy Your Life to the Fullest by Shifting from Scarcity to Abundance Mentality”.


If you haven’t read the first part, about the difference between scarcity and abundance mentality yet, I strongly suggest that you read it first, before proceeding to read this article. You can find Part 1 here:

Enjoy your life to the fullest by shifting your mentality from scarcity to abundance. (Bali, Indonesia)

Abundance mentality is surely a healthier and more successful mentality to have, than thinking in terms of scarcity. It helps you focus on what you have, be in charge of your own life by living in line with your goals and values, helps you find “win-win” solutions and gives you a great self confidence.


Below are several ways to practice shifting your mentality from scarcity towards abundance and enjoy your life to the fullest, noticing all the possibilities and taking the opportunities that life brings you:


1. Be mindful of your thoughts


Start observing your thoughts a couple of times a day without judging them in any way. Notice what kind of thoughts occur most frequently in your mind.


Are they more in line with scarcity or abundance mentality? Again, you can check part 1 of these series to see which types of thoughts resonate with you more currently.


It is important to establish where you are right now in order to see what aspects could improve and shift towards the abundance mentality as well as acknowledge the areas where you already possess the abundance mentality and be proud of it.


2. Practice gratitude


Gratitude has lots of great benefits for your health, that are proven by research. In my earlier article about how to practice gratitude, you can find information on how to do it and lots of scientific evidence of why it’s good for you:


Gratitude is a great tool to shift your mentality towards abundance as it makes you focus on what you have rather than what you lack in life and be appreciative of it.


3. Think proactively


In every situation in life, there are things that we can control and there are things that are outside of our control. Unfortunately, many of us choose to focus more on the things that we can’t control.


By worrying about the things that we can’t control we miss out on opportunities that are often right in front of us, since we get tunnel vision to only see the things that are outside of our control.


If we start focusing on the things that we can control in every situation instead, such as our attitude about it, how we handle it, what we learn from it etc, we will have a much higher chance of noticing opportunities that come with it.


Check out my earlier articles about how to think proactively and let go of things that you cannot control here:




4. Keep an open mind for new learnings and opportunities


One of the most important things for our wellbeing is our curiosity and being able to once in a while get outside of our comfort zone.


Research shows that people who have a fixed mindset, i.e. feel as though they don’t need to improve anything more in either their own field or in other aspects of life, are less likely to be motivated and even successful in life, compared to those who possess a growth mindset.


Growth mindset challenges you to try new things and explore, keeping you curious and engaged with life. It also encourages you to grow in your own field.


People with a growth mindset are better at dealing with setbacks, take in feedback more effectively and have a healthier attitude toward practice and learning than people with a fixed mindset (1) .


So acquiring a growth mindset goes really hand-in-hand with an abundance mentality.


Keep in mind that there are lots of great things to learn in this world and never stop exploring.

And it’s never too late to start!


I personally love to travel and explore, getting to know new cultures and people all around the world. I also love to challenge myself in new activities, for example by learning how to surf a little while ago, or climbing mountains in the different countries that I visit. I also constantly update myself on my professional field by following the news and reading about new research. And I love to work on myself in terms of my physical and mental wellbeing, constantly learning more and more about it all.


5. Learn from mistakes


(Un)fortunately, a big part of being a human being is making mistakes.


Mistakes can be a great way to learn and to grow. Of course, they aren’t pleasant experiences and we should definitely allow ourselves to first feel bad about them, if that’s what we need.


However, after a while, it’s also great to start thinking about what we can learn from the situation in order to move on and grow as a person.


Even the worst mistakes can teach us something valuable, if we choose to focus on learning rather than dwelling on the negative feelings that we get from them.


Check out my earlier article to learn more about it:


6. Think outside the box


Many situations in life have almost endless possibilities, however most of the time we are so set into our habits that we end up taking the same actions from all of them.


Abundance mentality helps us to shift our focus from limitations to opportunities.


For example, in his book 4 hour work week, Tim Ferriss raised an interesting point - of focusing on what you want to work with, versus what kind of lifestyle you want to have.


He talked about how instead of adjusting your lifestyle to your career, you should first figure out what kind of lifestyle you want to live and then plan your work and career accordingly.


This is a little controversial way of thinking for most of us, who are used to focusing on a career first and then making up a lifestyle aside from it.


Reading that book totally shifted my focus from blindly following the norm to actually analyzing the endless opportunities that I can take in this life and figuring out the ones that fit best with my interests.


And while this type of thinking is still relatively new to me, I am happy to have started questioning my life choices and making sure that they are in line with the lifestyle that I wish to pursue. I am also proud of many of my friends who are also thinking in similar patterns.


This type of thinking really puts you in the driver’s seat of your own life.


There really are endless amounts of possibilities out there, we just have to notice them and take them.


Brainstorm your life and get creative with every aspect of it.

 

These were my 6 tips on how you can practice the abundance mentality so that it can become more prominent in your life.


I’ve been practicing these things myself during the past few years and have come a long way shifting my mindset from scarcity to abundance.


And I must say that it’s an amazing world we live in, we just have to keep an open mind, notice our opportunities and take them.


I’m certain that you can do it too! :)

 

Stay tuned for more science-backed evidence and tips on mindfulness that I will post in this blog, by subscribing to my mailing list below and following me on Instagram and Pinterest.

I am very interested to hear your opinion and tips on what you'd like to read about in this blog, so you are more than welcome to leave a comment here, or contact me on info@thegreatermindfulness.com

Cheers!

Laura | MSc in Medical Science, Certified Mindfulness Life Coach

 
 

Sources

1. Dweck, Carol S. "Mindsets: Developing talent through a growth mindset." Olympic Coach 21.1 (2009): 4-7

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