The Why of an Abundant Mindset (Part 2)

An abundant mindset matters most when money is tight, because worry about money eats up the attention you need to deal with money. Thinking from a place of "there is enough, and I can work with what I have" gives some of that attention back, so you make steadier decisions about the bills in front of you.

We know that can sound a bit rich when the rent is due and the account says otherwise. Not having enough for bills, rent or tuition is real, and nobody is asking you to pretend it isn't. We've sat with those numbers too, at the kitchen table, doing the same sums three times in the hope they'd change.

So this piece is about why the way you think about money changes what you do about it. It's part 2 of our abundance series. Part 1 covered the what. Here we look at the why, and in part 3, six tips for an abundant mindset, we get to the how.

What Is an Abundant Mindset, in Short?

In the simplest terms, an abundant mindset is the settled belief that there is enough to go around, and that you already have most of the tools you need to build a good life. What you don't have yet, you can learn, borrow, earn or ask for when the time comes.

It tends to show up as five habits of thought:

• You are enough, as you are, today.
• There is enough for everyone, so someone else's win takes nothing from you.
• You let yourself think big.
• You give back, even in small ways.
• You have a calm, honest relationship with money.

None of these will pay a bill on their own. What they do is change the person who sits down to pay it. Pick the one on that list that feels hardest to believe, and keep it in mind as you read the rest.

Why Does Money Worry Make Everything Harder?

There is some honest evidence here. In a 2013 study in Science, researchers Anandi Mani, Sendhil Mullainathan, Eldar Shafir and Jiaying Zhao found that thinking about financial problems lowered people's scores on thinking tests when money was tight for them. Farmers they followed also scored lower before harvest, when cash was short, than after it. The researchers' explanation is that money worries take up mental room, leaving less for everything else.

That's useful to know. The fog you feel when money is short is partly the shortage talking. It says nothing about how capable you are.

So get the worry out of your head and onto paper. Tonight, write down every bill, its amount and its due date on one page. A list you can see takes up far less room than a list you keep rehearsing at 2am.

Build Faith in Yourself First

When we think abundantly, we build a foundation of faith. Call it faith in the universe, in God, in nature, whatever fits you. The part that does most of the work is faith in yourself: a steady belief that you will be looked after and that you can ride out what comes. As that belief grows, the constant feeling of lack starts to ease, and so do the old stories about money you picked up long ago.

"To have faith is to trust yourself to the water. When you swim you don't grab hold of the water, because if you do you will sink and drown. Instead you relax, and float." - Alan Watts

Watts is talking about the grip. When we're scared about money, we clutch, and clutching makes us tired and short-sighted. Floating means trusting that you can keep your head up while you work out the next stroke.

Faith needs evidence, so give yourself some. Write down three hard times you've already come through, and one thing you did in each that helped. That page is your proof that you know how to swim.

Let It Spill Into the Rest of Your Life

When we think abundantly, other areas of life shift too. We get more patient, because we trust that good things are on their way. We notice details. We treat the people we love with more generosity, and we start giving back in whatever way we can.

There's a subtler change as well. We begin to see the limiting beliefs we hold about money, and where they came from. Often that means seeing our parents in a new light. They were doing their best with what they'd been taught, and many of them were never taught much.

Try this: finish the sentence "Money is..." five times without stopping. Then circle the one you heard first at home. Ask yourself whether you still agree with it, or whether you've just never questioned it.

Get Creative With What You Have

People with an abundant outlook often seem to find more than one source of income. That usually comes from paying attention. Good relationships, a curious eye, a willingness to try something new and plain hard work all open doors. You start to see openings where you used to see walls, and you notice the small clues life has been leaving you.

"Creativity is just connecting things. When you ask creative people how they did something, they feel a little guilty because they didn't really do it, they just saw something. It seemed obvious to them after a while." - Steve Jobs

Jobs said this in a 1996 interview with Wired, and it fits money as well as design. Creative ideas usually come from joining two things you already have, like a skill and a need someone around you has.

So make two lists. On the left, things you can do well. On the right, problems people around you keep complaining about. Spend ten minutes drawing lines between them. One line worth testing this month is plenty.

Prepare So You Repair Less

Thinking abundantly tends to make us proactive. We lean towards action. We're grateful for each opportunity, and we treat each one as a gift and a small responsibility to use well.

"I believe that everyone chooses how to approach life. If you're proactive, you focus on preparing. If you're reactive, you end up focusing on repairing." - John C. Maxwell

Maxwell puts it neatly. When money is scarce, most of our energy goes into repairs: the late fee, the overdraft, the emergency. An abundant mindset nudges some of that energy towards preparing, even a little at a time.

Put one fifteen-minute money task on your calendar this week. Call about a payment plan, cancel a subscription you've forgotten about, or move a small amount into a separate pot. Small and done beats big and planned. If you want a wider reset, our list of 12 things you can do to take control of your life is a good next read.

Loosen Your Grip on the Outcome

Have you ever stood in your own way? Most of us have. When we want something badly, we can end up checking on it constantly and questioning everything. Maybe you've had thoughts like these:

• "When am I ever going to be financially free?"
• "Nothing works when it comes to my finances."
• "I don't know if I will ever get that promotion."

Thoughts like that keep us stuck. Every small setback starts to feel like proof, and we stop seeing the progress we are making. We end up resisting the very thing we want, by wanting it so tightly and doubting it every time it doesn't arrive the way we pictured.

So when one of those thoughts shows up, write it down and add one line under it: "The next small thing I can do is..." "Nothing works with my finances" becomes "The next small thing I can do is ring the bank about that fee." The worry gets a job, and you get a step.

And give yourself a few minutes of plain sitting each day. Gratitude helps here too. Our three simple gratitude practices take less time than scrolling the news, and they leave you calmer.

Where This Leaves You

We believe an abundant mindset is a practical tool. It clears enough mental space for you to see your options, act on the small ones and keep going while the big ones take shape.

If money worry is keeping you up most nights or weighing on your mood for weeks, please talk to your doctor or a therapist. Financial stress is hard, and you deserve support with it.

Tonight, write the one-page bill list. Tomorrow, pick one line on it and make one call.