Your unique views on money directly influence how you use it, and your mindset toward money can drastically impact your financial wellbeing. Your money mindset affects your decisions and helps you write your financial story.
Here’s why your money mindset matters and how to adopt a positive abundance mindset.
What’s A Money Mindset?
A money mindset expresses your unique views, attitudes, and beliefs about money from your life experiences. It drives how you make financial decisions and can significantly impact your ability to achieve your goals.
- For instance, are you a spender or a saver?
- Are you uncomfortable talking about money with family, friends, or professional colleagues?
- Does money overwhelm you or stress you out?
- Are you always looking to make “more”?
There’s no right or wrong answer to these questions, but your money mindset influences these answers.
We generally adopt our money mindset from our upbringing, whether consciously or subconsciously. For example, if you came from a household where money was a ‘taboo’ topic or hardly discussed, you may have a difficult time talking about money-related topics.
Understanding your money mindset can provide insights into how you use and approach money in your everyday life. Better yet, having the tools and resources to strengthen your relationship with money will help you make more productive, goal and value-oriented choices.
Understanding Scarcity Versus Abundance Mindset
There are two powerful mindsets regarding money: scarcity and abundance.
A scarcity mindset is when you’re constantly striving for more and chasing the idea of “enough.” Doctors can fall into this trap because many compensation practices reward your production—the more you produce, the more you make. So if you don’t make “enough,” it may feel like it all falls back onto your shoulders.
It’s a challenge for doctors to strike that healthy balance between being proud of what you’re doing at work while still living your life. If you make $500,000 a year but never get to do anything with it, how is that serving you? A never-enough threshold often leaves us feeling less fulfilled.
If you don’t know the answer to how much is “enough” to reach your goals or your solution is always more, those feelings can lead to burnout, which is a considerable issue for doctors today.
An abundance mindset is an empowering mindset that allows you to appreciate what you have and welcome new opportunities in the future. Here, you’re not striving for “enough”; instead, you’re content with where you are and seek to find enjoyment, purpose, and meaning with your money.
In this mindset, how you spend or save your money is intentional and based on your goals and values. That’s what our goal at Vestia is: to help you live with an abundance mindset.
Abundance is personal to you, your goals, and your values. For some, abundance means having a Tesla and living in a mansion. For others, it’s working less to focus on spending time with family or financially supporting their kids’ education. Whatever it is, define what abundance means for you.
Build An Abundant Life: Two Case Studies
Remember, everyone’s definition of abundance is different. To highlight and celebrate those differences, here are two client case studies that approach abundance uniquely.
Our first story centers on a two-physician household. Both signed contracts based on the overall salary and compensation, so they’re making a nice living but certainly working extremely hard for it. So hard that they can rarely spend time with their child as a family.
Even though they wanted to cut back, they didn’t think their cash flow could support a pay cut. We helped them evaluate their current spending and plan for their future goals. It turns out that their “enough” number supported one spouse to cut back by 30%! Now, they can be present for their child’s life while balancing their careers.
The second story is also about a physician’s family. This person had three children in college simultaneously, with one at an elite private school—a cost they didn’t plan for initially. This client’s definition of abundance is setting up their children for the best possible future without student debt. So, they used their time to take on additional work to earn enough money to cover the more considerable costs.
5 Tips To Shift Your Money Mindset To Abundance
If you have negative thoughts about money, it’s time to change your mindset. There are several simple ways to start developing a healthy, positive money mindset:
- Reflect on your financial upbringing. You can’t start improving your money mindset if you don’t understand the root of the problem. Take a moment to reflect on your upbringing and how certain events have impacted your money mindset.
- Surround yourself with people who have an abundance mindset. The people we spend our time with greatly influence how we spend our money. If the people in your life constantly worry about their finances, it will inevitably affect your money mindset. Surround yourself with people who are intentional about spending and driven by their goals.
- Express gratitude in every area of your life. No one’s financial life is perfect, but it’s important to acknowledge your steps toward a stronger financial future. Be grateful for what you’ve been able to accomplish and the people that have helped get you there.
- Praise yourself for your progress (even if it’s small). Whether you’ve been able to pay off debt, max out your retirement accounts, or treat your family to a relaxing vacation, acknowledge all wins.
- Stop negative self-talk. Before you spiral into a scarcity mindset and think about all the things you can’t have, write down what you’re grateful for. Simply thinking about those little things can help pull you out of a negative mindset.
- Understand your goals may change, and that’s ok. Our goals evolve as we grow and mature. That’s why working with an advisor long-term is essential because life changes. When you’re on autopilot, you assume things will remain the same, but a trusted guide can help you make intentional changes when your goals or priorities shift.
How Vestia Can Help You Life Abundantly
We strive to help our clients create Wealth That Matters—meaning that your money is a vehicle to help you live a meaningful life.
Money shouldn’t be the end goal; it’s the journey that matters. That means working in a career that gives you purpose, buying a house you love, providing for your family, taking time to travel the world, and pursuing hobbies—those are the true goals that foster a fulfilling life.