3 Steps To Embrace An Abundance Mindset To Change Your Life
Abundance is not necessarily a circumstance but a belief and a mindset.
How does an abundance mindset change your life for the better?
When I was battling many defeating thoughts in my head one night, feeling very stuck in a downward spiral and felt like I wasn’t enough, these words came to me and I wrote them down:
"I must believe in abundance, then only I can see abundance. If I believe in lack, then I shall only look for lack. And, hence, I will see plenty of lack!
I must believe in availability, then only I can see what’s available. If I believe in unavailability, then I can’t see what’s available. So I can continue to believe in unavailability."
Isn’t this true, dear friends?
What you believe is what’s going to define how you feel and act.
The outcome of your interaction with your living environment will become a self-fulfilling prophecy for what you believe consciously — and more so, unconsciously.
What must you do, then?
Here are 3 steps to embrace an abundance mindset and change your life for the better.
1. Believe in abundance so it can start happening for you.
In my former workplace, I often heard from different colleagues about how hard it was for them to apply for something they wanted or needed.
One day, upon moving into a new office space, I decided that I would like a round table in my room. I spoke to a few people — they all probably thought that I was too ambitious to try to fit a round table into my small room.
Moreover, it was hard to actually find a round table in the organization, unless they were willing to buy a new one for me, supposing there was still a budget for that.
But, in my imagination, I could really see a round table fitting in nicely with two chairs in the room. So, despite the discouraging views from my colleagues, I still put in the request for a round table.
Not long after, someone from the acquisition or purchasing department came and looked at my room. He then said that he might actually have an unused round table somewhere in the building that might fit.
Shortly after, they really sent the round table with two chairs! And they looked perfect in my room!
Do you have an "impossible" dream? Start believing in abundance!
2. Believe in availability, and then you can see it.
There's a shopping mall that I often go to. The parking lot is usually full.
But what I’ve noticed is that when I set my mind to go to the mall, I usually just entered the parking area without even considering the possibility that I might not find a parking lot, even on a busy weekend.
I just expect to find one somehow — and I almost always do!
But on some days when I was feeling a little ambivalent about going to the mall but still made my way there, I could hear my own doubts deep inside.
Was there parking or not? Those were the times when I usually won’t get a parking spot and, in the end, that became an excuse or "sign" for me not to go shopping that day.
The deeper truth may be that I was already unsure about going to the mall. Hence, I was merely using circumstantial data to confirm or disconfirm my doubts within.
In contrast, whenever I was sure of my plans, I would typically have no problem finding a parking spot, even if I might have to go a few rounds looking.
But I don’t let my circumstantial difficulties deter me as easily.
3. Know that you can still doubt and shift your mindset at any time.
Both examples reflect our daily thought patterns and the actions we take, based upon those thought patterns.
If we learn how to pay more attention to how we think, we might be able to wisely choose the actions that truly align with our deeper desires and true being.
Even when in doubt, our thoughts merely serve the purpose to slow us down a little, so that we can discern more clearly, within our hearts, our fears, hopes, and competing desires.
The more we can be in touch with ourselves, the better judgment and decisions we make with regards to the people and things that we allow into our lives.
And even as doubts help us to clarify, what will bring abundance and availability to us is still our mindset.
Whenever we are ready to shift our mindset, we see change happening quickly to how we think and feel about our circumstances.
And subsequently, how we respond to our external circumstances would also quickly dictate whether we can create a better or worse outcome for ourselves.
This is especially true during these difficult times of the global pandemic and economic recession.
We can feel more empowered when we know we can be the change we want to see in our lives.
Dr. Wai Sheng Ng (Psy.D.) is the founder and clinical director of Growing Space Psychology Center, Malaysia. Trained in clinical psychology, family therapy, and spiritual companionship, Wai Sheng is passionate about helping people grow and expand towards greater personal integration and relational satisfaction. Check out her private practice and articles or get connected with her now at her email: drng@growingspace.org.