Edit Your Life: The Abundance Attitude

Money is a touchy subject in general.

I grew up in a predominantly single household. I had my first job when I was 14, and I have been working ever since. Watching my mother and the strong women around me hustle created a hustler's mindset within me. Everyone I know is a hustler (or being silently judged by the rest of us for not working hard).

But recently, I have changed my view of money.

This became very evident when an unexpected expense came up. I stared at a bill that was nearly 3 times as much as I had been paying. I began to feel the usual cycle of money worry engulf me. "Oh no. What am I going to do? Geez, how am I going to pay this? If I pay this, will I have enough for the rest of the month?" Usually, this cycle would go on all day, maybe even several days, and it would literally consume my mental state.

But this time, something within me spoke up. I heard myself speak directly to my worry, saying so calmly "I am not going to worry. God has provided for you thus far, and He will keep providing for you now. I am not going to worry." A wave of transformative calm came over me. As I looked down at that bill, I suddenly felt victorious. (As an aside: A phone call later would show me that I really did not need to worry as the bill was actually an error that has been fixed.)

I stopped seeing money as a power over me and more as the tool it is. When I started looking at the money I earn as tools to not only cover my own expenses but to bless someone else, further my business, save for a vacation, spoil the little ones in my life (or the big ones for that matter) it made me feel like I was in control.

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To be clear: I don't make that much. My first year working for my self hasn't been glitter and glam, but I have learned so much, and I have not lacked ANYTHING.

If anything, I have gained more: more time to work on my dream, more time to enjoy my family, more time to connect, more time to write, and more of an abundance attitude.

I go on trips, shop, go to dinners, support my friends in their businesses, all because of this abundance attitude.

What is the abundance attitude?

It is trust in God's provision, that He will take care of you because He loves you.
It is being responsible with the money that has been given, paying off debt, paying your bills, etc.
It is also being willing to give.
It is seeing the needs of others and being generous, whether financially or with your time and talent.

It is also freeing yourself from a poverty mindset, that says there isn't enough, that your needs won't be met, and that you will go without.
There will be times when you won't be able to too all of the things that you want to do, that's life. But that doesn't mean that you hoard and suffer. That attitude makes money ruler over you. It makes you greedy, it makes you selfish, it makes you not the person you want to be.

The abundance mindset frees you from that laborous, miserable trap. And combined with a hustler's ambition and faith in God's love and His provision, you won't ever have to worry.

When I was listening to one of my favorite writers and coaches, Cara Alwill Leyba on her latest podcast discussing money, and she voiced the same sentiment, it resonated with me. She says:

"When you have an abundant attitude, and when you feel like there is enough, and when you feel like you deserve to have...everything is going to change. Your self worth is going to change, your business is going to change, your energy is going to change, your mental state is going to change. You are going to feel healthier, you are going to feel better."

And she's so right. I certainly do.