Practical Steps to Developing a Wealth Mindset

Practical Steps to Developing a Wealth Mindset

Do you know that you can change your relationship with money?today?by simply adjusting your mindset? To acquire wealth, you have to think as wealthy people do. If you look at truly wealthy people (those who have gotten to where they are legitimately), for most of them their wealth did not come as one large lump sum – it was acquired over time as a result of their habits and actions.

A?wealth mindset?encompasses a set of attitudes, habits and behaviors that differentiate the wealthy from the rest. Most of us, however, are victims of a scarcity mindset instead and this holds us back from making significant progress.

With a scarcity mindset, we believe things such as, “Wealth is for other people, not me”; We believe that we are somehow excluded from the possibility of becoming wealthy for reasons such as our income, our upbringing, our history, etc. With a scarcity mindset, we convince ourselves that we have no option but to continue living from paycheck to paycheck – we believe our circumstances are the ones hindering us from success and that we are destined to remain as we are.

With a wealth mindset, however, we embrace abundant thinking. We can believe that resources are available in plenty and that opportunities are limitless. We are able to go beyond our limiting beliefs and accept life’s challenges as opportunities to grow.

So, how can you begin to develop a wealth mindset today? Here are some practical steps:

1.???????Develop healthy routines.

One of my favorite sayings goes, “Tell me what you did today, and I will tell you who you are.” We are the sum total of the things we do daily. A person who exercises daily is likely to be fit, a person who writes daily is likely to be a writer, a person who puts money aside daily is likely to maintain savings. Build into the habits of your daily routine things that you know will lead to your improvement such as reading, saving, planning, etc. and try to eliminate (or at least limit) habits that do not contribute to your growth such as endlessly scrolling social media, overindulging in alcohol, etc. Try and include in your routine taking at least 15 minutes out of your day to contemplate your finances and plan what you can do with your available resources.

2.???????Have a specific vision of the future you want.

One of the major reasons most people struggle with saving money is the lack of motivation to do so. Without a goal you are trying to achieve, it is quite difficult to maintain a savings or investing habit. What are your goals? If, for instance, one of your short-term goals is to replace your phone, it will be easier to convince yourself to cut back on your entertainment budget for a few months than if you were cutting back “just because”. If your goal is to get out of debt within the next 5 years, you will be more likely to use your bonus to reduce your loan than to use it to go on holiday. The larger and more meaningful your goals, the more likely you are to be able to develop a savings and investing habit. The trick is, to ensure these goals matter to you. Have a clear vision of what you want your life to look like, and begin working towards it. Be a visionary.

3.???????Observe your actions versus the resulting outcomes.

Learn to compare outcomes against actions taken and repeat the actions that produce the best outcomes for you. For instance, if you notice that some days you are more productive than others, evaluate the actions you took on those days. You are likely to notice a pattern in your actions. It could be that on the day you spend time with a particular person, you are more motivated, or the day you go to the gym after work you are able to generate ideas and get more done that evening. Alternatively, you may notice that the day you go out with your friends during the week, you are sluggish the next day; or that after scrolling through people’s photos online, you feel the urge to splurge on items or events. Value your time and do the things most likely to help you grow.

4.???????Always be ready and willing to learn more.

Wealthy people are notoriously hungry for knowledge. They are always upskilling and they ensure that they keep up with the latest developments in their particular fields, and they also invest heavily in their self-growth. Knowledge is power – embrace it by ensuring you are consistently improving, both professionally and personally. Take courses, attend seminars/webinars and read widely. Every year, aim to know a little more than you did the previous year.

5.???????Think of your career as an opportunity to learn and grow – not just as a source of income.

If you think of your job as strictly just a source of income, you will never be satisfied because you will always want more money. Learn to gain a sense of accomplishment from the work you do, even when your job seems trivial. Try to be great at what you do and in the mastering of your work, different opportunities will present themselves. Keep in mind that the skills you learn in your career are transferable to your personal life and may one day also be transferable to the running of your own business.

6.???????Connect with like-minded, focused individuals.

“Birds of a feather flock together”. Look at the people in your life – do they portray the life you want for yourself? Are their goals aligned with yours? As the saying goes, you are the average of the five people you spend the most time with. Looking at your five closest friends, are you satisfied with the average? When you spend time with motivated, goal-oriented individuals you are more likely to take positive actions in your life and be inspired to improve your situation. Additionally, a solid support group will be able to provide you with the accountability you need to stay focused on your goals and call you out if you drop your eye from the prize.

7.???????Be curious and aware of opportunities around you.

Develop an eye for seeing opportunities, because they are all around you. I’m sure you know at least one person who, when you are describing a problem that you have been experiencing, they somehow find an opportunity lying within the challenges. For example, if you tell them that the electricity in your estate has been going off consistently every night for the past week, they would say something like, “If that were happening in my estate, I would already be selling them solar lamps”. That is someone who sees the opportunity lying behind a difficulty. Turn challenges into opportunities and jump on them. Be ready to put in the work necessary to achieve great things. To quote?Thomas Edison, "Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work."

8.???????Embrace the idea of abundance.

Develop in yourself the belief that the world is a plentiful place. We are cultured to think competitively and to approach situations as zero-sum games, yet, there are enough resources to go around -someone else’s gain does not equal your loss. Competition should be used as a motivator to improve and not as a race to the top where only one person wins. We are all blessed with different capabilities and have the ability to make the most of our lives using our unique talents.

9.???????Be adaptable. Learn from your mistakes.

Adaptability is a hard skill to learn, as it means being able to pick yourself after failure and having the courage to try again. It is, however, key to success. Most successful entrepreneurs, for instance, failed at several businesses (or at the same business several times) before they eventually hit upon success. It is a matter of being able to learn from your fall, adjusting where necessary and trying as many times as it takes.

10.???Be grateful.

There is great power in practicing gratitude. Being aware that what you already have is enough, will give you the necessary motivation to try and achieve more. If instead, you wallow in the lack in your life, the negativity of these emotions will keep you from moving forward. Having life in itself is a great gift – one we often take for granted. So, to shift your mind from all the things you do not have, count your blessings.

With these practical steps, you should be able to start developing a wealth mindset from today. You will notice when you begin putting them into action that they are a lot easier said than done. But nothing comes easy. After all, if being wealthy were easy, wouldn’t we all be rich?

To shift your mindset and begin to see results, you will require discipline, determination and courage. Let us live in abundance!

If you’d like to talk about your experiences around money, you can book a free 30-minute ZOOM call?with me HERE.

You can also check out the Thrive! 90-Day Financial Growth Program HERE if you are ready to propel your financial growth.?