💸 How Scarcity Mindset Ruins Your Life

24th Dhuʻl-Qiʻdah 1446H

Assalamu'alaikum,

"My competitor just launched a product that I wanted to launch. Now what am I supposed to do?"

I could hear the frustration in my coaching client's voice - that mix of anger, disappointment, and panic that comes when we believe someone else has "taken" what was meant for us.

Sound familiar?

Maybe it's not a business competitor, but that colleague who got the promotion you were eyeing, or the neighbor whose child got into the university your child failed to get in, or even that friend who seems to effortlessly achieve what you've been struggling toward for months.

In each case, we're operating from the same flawed assumption: that there's only so much success, opportunity, or rizq (sustenance) to go around. This is the scarcity mindset, and it's destroying our peace of mind, our relationships, and our connection with Allah SWT.

When we walk through life with this gnawing feeling that there's not enough time, not enough money, not enough opportunities, not enough rizq to go around, we begin to see everything (and everyone) as competing with us. The world becomes a zero-sum game where someone has to lose so you can win.

Here's what's particularly troubling about the scarcity mindset: it's not just psychologically harmful - it's spiritually dangerous.

When we operate from scarcity, we're subtly questioning Allah's attribute of Arr-Razzaq (The Provider). We are not quite convinced there's enough provision for us and feel that someone else will take it from us.

We develop heart diseases such as envy, mistrust, and resentment in our hearts - emotions that don't just ruin our relationships, but corrode our spiritual state from within.

This is from Shaytaan as Allah SWT tell us in the Quran:

ٱلشَّيْطَـٰنُ يَعِدُكُمُ ٱلْفَقْرَ وَيَأْمُرُكُم بِٱلْفَحْشَآءِ ۖ وَٱللَّهُ يَعِدُكُم مَّغْفِرَةًۭ مِّنْهُ وَفَضْلًۭا ۗ وَٱللَّهُ وَٰسِعٌ عَلِيمٌۭ 

“The Devil threatens you with ˹the prospect of˺ poverty and bids you to the shameful deed ˹of stinginess˺, while Allah promises you forgiveness and ˹great˺ bounties from Him. And Allah is All-Bountiful, All-Knowing”. The Quran (2:268) 

So how do we shift from a scarcity mindset to an abundance mindset? 

1. Recognize Shaytaan's Whispers

The first step is awareness. When thoughts of "there's not enough" arise, pause and ask yourself: "Is this actually true, or is this Shaytaan making me doubt Allah's sustenance?"

Simply acknowledging these thoughts as external suggestions rather than facts is incredibly powerful. 

2. Give When You Feel Most Scarce

This might sound counterintuitive, but here's a spiritual secret: the best time to give is precisely when you fear poverty.

A man asked the Prophet, "O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) What kind of charity is the best?" He replied. "To give in charity when you are healthy and greedy, hoping to be wealthy and afraid of becoming poor..." (Bukhari)

When financial concerns arise, that's when you should try to give sadaqah (charity). This act of giving breaks the psychological grip of scarcity and opens your heart to receive Allah's abundance.

3. Detach From Your Mental Image of Success

Perhaps the most challenging aspect of abundance thinking is letting go of the specific picture of success you have in your mind. 

We often become so attached to how we think success should look - through this particular job, this specific opportunity, this exact timeline - that we miss the countless other ways Allah might provide for us. And we get upset when we see someone else living that image of success.

True abundance mindset means trusting that Allah's plan for you is better than your plan for yourself, even when it doesn't look like what you expected.

Let me tell you how this played out with the coaching client I mentioned at the beginning.

After our call, I asked her: "How can you approach this situation with your 'competitor' from an abundance mindset perspective?"

It took her a few days to process this, but eventually she emailed me with an update (I'm paraphrasing her response):

"I did what you suggested and approached this situation from an abundance mindset. I decided to share my competitor's product with my email list and on social media, genuinely encouraging people to buy from her. I was as sincere as I could be - truly happy for her success.

Here's the amazing thing: after I shared her product, Allah blessed me with an idea that was far better than the original product I had been crying about! I would never have discovered this new direction if I had stayed stuck in scarcity thinking."

This is the Barakah of abundance thinking. When we release our tight grip on what we think we need, Allah often surprises us with something better than we could have imagined.

The journey from scarcity to abundance isn't done overnight, it's a continuous process of aligning our hearts with the truth of Allah's boundless generosity. Each time we choose to give instead of hoard, to genuinely celebrate other’s success instead of harboring envy, to trust instead of worry, we take another step toward that alignment.

I know that shifting to an abundance mindset isn't easy in our consumer-driven, competitive culture that constantly reminds us of what we lack. However, for our own spiritual, mental, social, and physical health - it's worth it to try to adopt the abundance mindset and let go of the scarcity mindset.

I pray that Allah SWT guides us toward an abundance mindset and protects us from the poison of scarcity thinking. May He open our eyes to the countless blessings He has already bestowed upon us, and may He make us of those who trust in His boundless provision. Ameen.

Sincerely,