Every once in a while, we get an unwelcome visitor who knocks on our door – SCARCITY.
He’s not a very fun houseguest. In fact, I’ve experienced him as a downright nuisance and intrusion when he shows up. (And for some reason I envision him as a male energy…so we’ll go with “he” for right now, ok?)
Yes, it happens to me too. Anyone who is taking themselves on and is growing and expanding their relationship with money and breaking through to a new level of financial consciousness is likely to run into some roadblocks on their journey. And sometimes those roadblocks are labelled with a big S-C-A-R-C-I-T-Y.
Within the last month or so, I’ve been really focused on growing both myself and my business. And like everyone else I have fears about whether or not I’ll fail, and sometimes I have fears about what will happen when I succeed too. One of my favorite quotes of all time on this very topic is from Marianne Williamson:
“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”
The reality is that feelings of fear and scarcity feel real when they are happening. And so the question, at least for me, becomes what can we do to move through those feelings and get back to our best selves and the work that we are here to do?
As I’ve taken big steps forward over the last few weeks, I’ve had the chance to also be present to the fear and feelings of scarcity that showed up in my life. Some days it felt like I was taking hits from every side, and other days I found quiet pockets of peace in what felt like a storm. Along the way, even in the harder moments I was aware of consciously working to move myself through the challenging feelings of scarcity and shifting back to a more productive and abundant energy.
While there are many tools that I use to shift my feelings when they are less than pleasant, there are 5 consistent things that I do when I’m wrapped up in feeling fearful or scarce (and sometimes that relates to money, sometimes that relates to time, or sometimes that relates to me not being enough for whatever I’m up to):
- Breathe – Yup, back to basics here. Often when I’m feeling tight or fearful I realize that I’m not breathing fully. So I stop what I’m doing, and breathe deeply in and out for at least 5 minutes…and sometimes it’s more like 10!
- Focus on what you’re grateful for in your life – I remember a few years ago when someone taught me that fear cannot co-exist with gratitude for very long, and that accessing gratitude can quickly shift us away from feelings of scarcity and/or fear. I didn’t believe it at first, and after years of practicing this when I’m feeling down I can attest that it works. I don’t stay fearful for very long after I spend time honoring the amazing things in my life.
- Take care of yourself – It may seem obvious, however often times when scarcity pays a visit I realize that I’m long overdue for some sleep, some exercise, or maybe even for some pampering and self-care like a massage. I’ve come to think of it like this – when we aren’t taking care of our greatest asset (ourselves), we aren’t able to access our full power and abundance and we often quickly get dragged into energies that don’t serve us.
- Meditate – This goes along somewhat with the deep breathing, although for me there’s a distinction in meditating as for me it allows me to quiet the noise in my brain and any negative or unsupportive thoughts that are traipsing through there at the moment . Whether it’s simply sitting still and focusing on my breathing and visualizing what I want in my life for 15-20 minutes, or listening to some guided meditations (these are two of my favorites: Getting Into the Vortex and The Secret to Attracting Wealth), I experience calm and quiet after meditating that stems the energy of scarcity that is present.
- Hold off on making any major decisions – This is less about doing something and more about not doing something. Making major decisions when you’re feeling off-kilter can sometimes introduce an energy into the equation that isn’t helpful. So any time I’m feeling fearful or like scarcity has me in his grip, I am clear that it’s not the best time for me to make any major choices!
Navigating through feelings of fear and scarcity is never fun, however it often results in powerful insights and wisdom once on the other side. So the next time the scarcity monster knocks on your door, know that you have the presence and power to invite him in and politely ask him to leave after you’ve gained whatever insight that you were meant to.
