Most people will operate from one of two different mentalities. Of course only one of them is associated with health, longevity, and happiness.

Do you have a scarcity mentality or do you have an abundance mentality?

I can often tell which patients are going to be successful in achieving whatever goals they set out to accomplish just by identifying which mentality they spend the most time in. An abundance mentality is a mindset that there will always be enough. 

• There will be enough time and money to make you happy
• There will be new opportunities and chances around every corner - even when you can't yet see around that corner
• There will be enough delicious food to keep you satisfied on your new eating plan.

Learning to trust enough to adopt an abundance mentality can be challenging at first, especially when there are many subtle forces at play trying to keep you heavily entrenched in a scarcity mentality - the feeling that there is lack in life or there will not be enough.

If you've ever been jealous of a colleague or friend who just received a raise, you're operating from a scarcity mentality. On the other hand if you are happy for your friend because you know it means a raise is possible for you, you've got an abundance mentality. 

Let's go deeper into a couple examples that illustrate this point when starting a new food plan:

Scarcity Mentality

“I’m on a diet and this is all I get to eat. Great, this is never going to fill me up. People are going to make fun of me for even thinking I can lose weight this time let alone keep it off long term. I’m going to be hungry an hour after I eat this pathetic excuse for a meal.” 

Abundance Mentality

“Mmm, this salad is going to be so good! I wonder what else I can add to it to make it taste great and keep me going strong all afternoon? Maybe eggs, tuna, salmon, or chicken for protein. Avocado, nuts or seeds for fat. I know, I can throw in whatever veggies I have in the fridge, herbs and spices for flavour, and I'll top it with some fresh or dried fruit and an olive oil and vinegar dressing.”

I bring up all of this to make the point that even subtle changes in mindset can create big changes in behaviour. 

Where can you make one small change from scarcity to abundance?

Now I would love to hear from you! What is one example of how the scarcity and abundance mentalities might play out in different areas of your life - eating, time, money, and relationships? Leave a comment below and I'll be back next week with another edition of Doctor as Teacher Tuesday!

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