Tony Robbins asked the question: “Do people focus more on what they have or what they are lacking?” The answer is what they are lacking. This is called the “deficit mindset” or “scarcity mindset.” Roughly 75% to 88% of Americans experience the hallmarks of a scarcity mindset. Interestingly, the USA is the wealthiest nation on earth, both in terms of total economic size ($32.38 trillion nominal GDP) and total private wealth ($163.9 trillion).
WebMD defines scarcity mindset as “a way of thinking that focuses on something you don’t have enough of. This scarce resource is often money or time, but it also could be other things such as emotional support.” People with a scarcity mindset are so obsessed with what they lack that they can’t seem to focus on anything else, no matter how hard they try. Researchers proved that people with a scarcity mindset fail to see opportunities even when they are painfully obvious due to tunnel vision from only focusing on bad outcomes.
Ecclesiastes 5:10 says, “He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves wealth with his income; this also is vanity.” Luke 12:15 says, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” The scriptures call us to come from a mindset of abundance and contentment: “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want” (Ps. 23:1). Paul says, “. . . for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation” (Philippians 4:11-12).