Growth mindset vs. Scarcity mindset

About this episode

The world you live in is a reflection of the mindsets you choose to adopt on a daily basis. Your mindset includes your thoughts, beliefs, and attitudes. In today’s episode we will delve into the key differences between a scarcity mindset and a growth mindset and some of the main causes of a scarcity mindset. Lastly, we will discuss why and how you can adopt a growth mindset that supports your wellbeing!! EPISODE NOTES You have the power to positively shift your mindset. A positive mindset rooted in growth and abundance fosters resilience and opportunities while a negative mindset rooted in scarcity can cause discouragement and anxiety. Mindsets are changeable through self-awareness, mindfulness, and consistent conscious effort. By intentionally mediating your internal environment, you have the power to positively shift your external reality. Priming: In psychology, priming is a memory phenomenon that states that stimuli (a word, action, or image) unconsciously influence an individual's response to later similar stimuli. According to Psychology Today, when your brain is already primed by a certain belief to look for something, your brain facilitates faster processing and response by shutting down competing neural networks. So basically, your brain actually makes it harder for you to see evidence of the contrary to an already existing belief. This is why when you believe you are having a bad day you notice everything that goes wrong. Most people don’t realize that you are reading and writing your life story at the same time. Scarcity Mindset vs. Growth Abundance Mindset 1. The view of potential and resources: A scarcity mindset operates from fear, believing that your resources and potential are limited. There is never enough time, money, talent, support, or luck. In contrast, a growth mindset believes that resources and potential are plentiful, and intelligence and abilities can be developed through effort and time. A growth mindset focuses on possibilities, solutions, and improvement rather than limitations. 2. The response to challenges: When we are thinking in a scarcity mindset, we feel hopeless, stuck, victimized, and unempowered when faced with challenges. Low self-esteem and anxiety are biproducts of a scarcity mindset, making it harder to problem solve and show resilience. Challenges become barriers that can’t be conquered. When receiving feedback, a scarcity mindset tends to feel offended, self-centered, and victimized. A growth mindset sees change and challenges as opportunities for growth and learning. A growth-oriented mindset is rooted in opportunity, continuous improvement, and abundance. Through a growth mindset, feedback and obstacles are seen as learning tools, not an attack. 3. View of feedback and other people’s success: When receiving feedback from others, a scarcity mindset tends to feel offended, self-centered, and victimized. An individual with a scarcity mindset relies on self-pity and excuses and may feel jealous of other’s success. They may be more likely to compare themselves to others and feel that another person’s success takes away from their own. In contrast, through a growth mindset, feedback from others is seen as a learning tool, not an attack. A growth mindset is able to celebrate other’s success and find inspiration through it. What causes a scarcity mindset? 1. Negativity Bias: Because the brain's core function is to keep the body safe and alive, the brain is wired to be more attentive to negative stimuli and risks than positive experiences. This innate tendency to focus on negative stimuli or danger is rooted in early human history. Thousands of years ago, our ancestors were exposed to immediate threats such as predators and environmental dangers. For our ancestors, this negativity bias in the brain served one purpose, survival. This innate tendency is intended to keep us alive often causes modern brains to fixate on negativity over positivity. Since the brain contains this negativity bias, it means that we tend to expect the worse in uncertain situations first. 2. Scarcity trauma: Scarcity trauma is a generally new term that is used to describe psychological and emotional impact caused by prolonged exposure to real or perceived lack of essential resources according to PositivePsychology.com. Prolonged lack of essential resources such as financial, emotional, or social resources have been linked to negative psychologic effects such as a scarcity mindset. Scarcity trauma can picked up from past life experiences, your childhood, or through your relationships and family members. For example, if your parents openly struggled with money while you were growing up, then you would be more susceptible to developing a scarcity mindset around money later in your life. People in this situation may become overly frugal, hoard resources, avoid taking financial risks, and develop chronic stress. 3. Low Self-Esteem: When an individual believes that they are lacking in smarts, looks, resources, or love, they will automatically look out into the world for proof of their lack and limitations. This leads to self-sabotaging behaviors that reinforce a “not enough” mentality. This goes back to the phenomenon of priming. Your brain searches for proof and related content to your already existing beliefs. Tools that support a positive mindset: Self-awareness: When working towards bettering your mindset, self-awareness is the first step. Self-awareness is the skill of recognizing and understanding one's own emotions, thoughts, strengths and weaknesses, and values. Strengthen your self-awareness by getting to know yourself better. Self-Awareness is about paying attention to how you interact in your life. Be curious about why you do things, how you do things, and how they result. Don’t ignore your feelings, explore them. Tap into the cues, triggers, and urges you have on a daily basis. Exploring the unknown and uncomfortable is scary. We often ignore the hard and confusing feelings because they are uncomfortable. But I encourage you to push yourself to be curious, ask questions, and reflect when thoughts and feelings come up. Ease yourself into it by pushing yourself to identify where the emotion is coming from. Continue to think a little deeper and explore a little farther. Practice self-awareness in a way that feels natural to you. In a comfortable and calm environment, try meditating, observing, and communicating with your inner voice, asking yourself guiding questions, talking to a trusted individual like a therapist or journaling. Strengthen your self-awareness by practicing mindfulness and presence. Consciously be more intentional with what you think, consume, do, and say. Go into your daily experiences with the intention on being present in the moment. Be more observant of the details in your surroundings, the sensations in your body, and the thoughts that cross your mind. Practicing self-awareness in conjunction with mindfulness promotes a growth mindset by highlighting areas for improvement, reflection, and emotional intelligence. By practicing self-awareness, at the very least you will learn more about yourself and be able to make decisions that better align with your true feelings, intentions, and values. Recognize the Negativity Bias: Because the brain's core function is to keep the body safe and alive, the brain is wired to be more attentive to negative stimuli and risks than positive experiences. It is one of your brain's innate tendencies that is meant to keep you alive. However, by recognizing that your brain is likely expressing this negativity bias, you can create awareness and distance from the negative thoughts and think more rationally and positively about your current situation. Creating awareness and distance between you and your thoughts is a way to intentionally detach your thoughts from your identity. You are observing your thoughts, but you are not your thoughts. Next time you find yourself stressed and anxious consumed with overthinking and self-pity, ask yourself; am I thinking in a growth mindset or a scarcity mindset. Am I fixating on the problem or am I looking for a solution. Am I being rational? Am I making assumptions, or do I have proof? You can use these questions to guide you through overthinking, help calm you down and manage stress more effectively. Resilience: Resilience is the capacity to adapt to adversity, trauma, or significant stress; it is a "bouncing back" mechanism that fosters psychological, emotional, and behavioral flexibility. Some studies show that resilience can be inherited as a personality trait, but it can also be a skill that can be learned and improved overtime. When you are faced with challenges and obstacles, see them as an opportunity to grow and learn something. Shift your perspective from ugh why is this happening to me to this is happening for me, what am I meant to get from this? What lesson is this teaching me? How can I use this experience to help me move forward? I believe that there is always always always a silver lining. Challenge yourself to search and identify a silver lining in each irritating situation. Find a lesson in the struggle. Look past the surface. What is this situation showing you? This mindset shift fosters reflection and active interpretation about challenges and failures in a positive light reminding you that they are opportunities for growth and strengthening your character. You have the power to see the “good” in any situation and take positive action. Master your internal dialogue: The internal dialogue that you have, including your thoughts and the way you talk to yourself, hugely impacts your self-esteem. Ensure that you are talking to yourself with kindness and patience. I mentioned this tool in a past episode. Talk to yourself like someone you love. Give yourself the same compassion you would give your best friend. Allow yourself the thoughtfulness that you show your family. It can be much easier to recognize other people’s skills and accomplishments but do not forget to celebrate yourself. If someone gives you a compliment, don’t downplay yourself. You are deserving, you are capable, you are strong. If you are feeling down about a mistake or a situation you wish would have gone differently, accept it and remind yourself that you can always learn something through each experience and something doesn’t work out, believe there is something better planned for you. A growth mindset is centered around the belief that you can improve and develop skills and abilities overtime. You are not fixed. You are constantly growing and changing. Mistakes and obstacles are a part of that learning process. “Experience is making mistakes and learning from them” – Bill Ackman Empower yourself with your ability to learn: Figure out what your learning >https://www.bas.msstate.edu/news/2024/11/curiousity-success-why-we-all-should-embrace-lifelong-learning Priming (psychology) | Psychology | Research Starters | EBSCO Research. (n.d.). EBSCO. https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/psychology/priming-psychology McGarvie, S., PhD. (2025, April 1). 8 Strategies to Transform a scarcity Mindset. PositivePsychology.com. https://positivepsychology.com/scarcity-mindset/ Vilhauer, J., PhD. (2020, September 28). What cognitive science has to say about how we experience life. Psychology Today. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/living-forward/202009/how-your-thinking-creates-your-reality#:~:text=Your%20thoughts%2C%20if%20you%20think,cognitive%20lens%20through%20which%20you