The last time Daron Dickens appeared on this blog, it was to talk about how to make self-care regular and intentional. Today, I’m calling on his expertise as a marriage and family counselor to talk to us (me included!) about how to overcome scarcity mindset as a social impact leader.
I was chatting with a friend the other day about the fact that entrepreneurship, and leadership in general, magnifies our strengths and weaknesses, confidence and insecurities, gifts and shortcomings. It can be the highest of highs and lowest of lows. And it’s hard enough for an individual, but then throw a team into the mix, and you’ve got a constant mirror for self-reflection.
And here’s the reality: Your scarcity mindset affects your social impact.
There’s a direct correlation because our organizations reflect us as leaders.
Hopefully, you’re constantly trying to improve yourself as you improve your nonprofit, social enterprise, or small business. That includes sharpening your skills and your thinking patterns. As you evolve, so does your organization.
So, if you also struggle with a scarcity mindset, but strive for a growth mindset, I think you can learn something from Daron’s advice. I know you probably feel like there’s never enough time, money, and resources, but if that’s where you focus your thinking, that may always be the case.
There are already enough challenges in your work. Don’t let your mindset be one of them.
What is a Scarcity Mindset?
“Only two left.”
“Act now—supplies are limited!”
“You don’t want to miss out! This opportunity won’t last long.”
These are just a few common messages we hear every day in the world of sales; a world that is perfectly designed to elicit thoughts and feelings of scarcity.
Scarcity is the idea that there’s a limited amount of resources. If we don’t act quickly, we will be on the outside looking in, unable to access valuable resources, money, deals, or opportunities.
In short, we will miss out.
These are a few common (and sometimes silly) examples, but they can still cause us to have real feelings of anxiety. They can cause us to spend money that we don’t have, and buy things that we don’t need. If you’re like most people, you’ve experienced this sometime in your life—and have some object in your house as a reminder.
As harmless as these situations may often be, they are just small examples of a greater mindset that can cause a much larger struggle when it comes to trying to live a healthy, connected life. And isn’t that what we’re all striving for?
Forms of these messages can show up, not only at Walmart, Amazon, or on eBay, but in our politics, our global economy, our societal interactions, or even in our social impact organizations. Certainly in us as leaders.
The scarcity mindset can erode the very things that we hold so dear, and keep us from living out who we really are.
our brains in a Scarcity Mindset
The mindset of scarcity, or the feeling that there’s not enough, especially when it comes to resources, registers in the brain as a threat.
Often when our brain identifies a threat, we slide from the frontal lobe to the lizard brain. The frontal lobe is the area that allows us to problem solve, to access creativity, to connect relationally, and to see things from many different sides.
The lizard brain, as you probably know, is only concerned with eliminating the threat, usually through flight, fight, or freezing. Most of the time, this comes in the form of a ”us versus THEM” mentality.
Essentially, the lizard brain skews data and causes perception to overtake reality.
Meaning, it may have you thinking things that simply aren’t true. (But they feel true.)
Abundance and Scarcity: A Complicated Relationship
Here’s the truth; the reality of things, if you will: In the United States, we live in a time where abundance is at an all-time high.
We live in a time where you can buy almost anything you could ever imagine cheaply, and with a click of a button. If that weren’t enough, strolling through the aisles of your neighborhood megamart can satisfy almost any whim you might ever experience. Not only that, but the things that we have are bigger, faster, and more sophisticated than ever before.
So what’s the problem?
Why aren’t we satisfied? And worse, why do we seem to be struggling with accumulating more and more because we feel that we have less and less?
You can blame it on marketing, or the need to create a market for things that should last much longer in a quickly-changing technological society, or a political scheme to get people more malleable, or even an overarching alien conspiracy.
The truth is more complex, though. A mix of many things from many sources. We may never find out for sure, and we certainly don’t have control over a lot of these areas.
One thing we do have control over is what we do despite the messages.
When we give in to the scarcity mindset, we tend to become more suspicious, less likely to share the resources that we have, and more likely to live a life of discontent.
Being aware that this mindset doesn’t align with our reality can help.
Making decisions based on your values rather than the emotional reaction of these messages you hear every day will allow you to live out who you are.
Focusing less on where the messages are coming from, and more how to live according to your values regardless of the messages will, in turn, erode the credibility and effectiveness of the messages.
3 Tips for Beating the Scarcity Mindset as a Social Impact Leader
Here are a few helpful suggestions for living out your values rather than through the fear and anxiety of scarcity mindset.
1. Work from a realistic budget.
By using a budget you can see what you actually have and don’t have. You will be able to see what is coming in and out so that you don’t get caught up in fear and anxiety. Likewise, it will allow you to know what spending is frivolous and what spending is necessary.
Make a plan for how to scale and save when times are good, and how to cut back when times are tough. Having a plan also allows you to feel more in control, and having a budget allows you to deal with facts rather than feelings.
Also consider your money mindset. How do you feel about money? Is it good, bad, just a tool to continue your work? The thoughts, emotions, and “power” you give to money will show up in many ways, both personally and professionally, and if you don’t start building a better relationship with money, it will always seem beyond your control.
2. Work with other nonprofits and social enterprises in the same area you are serving.
Scarcity mentality will cause you to see them as the enemy. However, if you’re really working towards a common cause, they are your allies not your enemies. There shouldn’t be a market share on goodness.
Find ways to collaborate so that each of you plays to your strengths and continues to serve the community as a whole. You probably do it a little bit differently anyway, and those differences may complement one another more than you realize.
Just like there’s room for more than one Mexican restaurant in your town, there’s room for multiple people serving the same cause!
3. Generosity begets generosity.
In a world where giving or buying is essential for the survival of your nonprofit or social impact company, a scarcity mentality has no place. Generosity isn’t just for the people that you’re asking to support you, or for the people you support, but also in the way you live out your mission as a leader.
You’ll find that your work is more fulfilling, both as an individual and as a team, because you feel more aligned with your purpose. (And increased satisfaction is a remedy for burnout.) It’s also quite possible that those who benefit from your work will notice a difference, and that your reputation in the community may become more positive as well.
Live intentionally. Live with value. Be aware. Act according to who you are inside regardless of what is happening outside. Remember, we are always better together than we are in isolation.
From KP: If you’d like to continue learning, here are a two resources on scarcity mindset that I’ve come across recently:
Daron Dickens is a Marriage and Family Therapist who has practiced for 18 years. He also previously served as a pastor for 20 years. He lives in Clarksville, Tennessee, with his wife, Margaret, and his sons, Truman and Carter. He loves pie, reading, coffee, and everything baseball.
You can find him on:
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I’m Kristi Porter, and I help cause-focused organizations understand and execute effective marketing campaigns so they can move from stressed to strategic. Your resources may be limited, but your potential isn’t. Whether you’re a nonprofit, social enterprise, or small business who wants to give back, I’ll show you how to have a bigger impact.