Abundance or Lack? - You Are What You Think!

"Be vigilant; guard your mind against negative thoughts." - Buddha 

In one of my last articles, I talked about being held accountable for our actions and how we need to take responsibility for our own lives and the direction our business takes. This week I'm going to talk about one of the biggest saboteurs of business that I know of - fear and feelings of one simple word, namely ‘lack.' 

A lot of us women entrepreneurs (myself included) are constantly second guessing our choices and get caught up in the ‘what if's' that revolve around the word ‘lack' such as: "What if I don't get enough clients? What if I can't make enough money this month to pay the mortgage? What if I spend ‘x' on my business and the ROI doesn't cover it? What if Ms. Y doesn't like me and tells everyone she knows my services aren't that great?" Whew! What a lot of wasted energy we spend on these lack-based fears. 

This analysis paralysis in the past has caused me to get so overwhelmed that I forget where I was going in the first place. My negative thinking or "Inner critic" kept me going in circles like a dog chasing its tail. I don't know about you, but growing up I always heard statements like, "There's never enough... You got to work hard... Play it safe, don't take risks," and "Make sure you get a job with benefits, and for heaven's sake, don't quit that job whatever you do!" No wonder we get so scared to take a risk or spend money. The damage that we do to ourselves in the privacy of our mind is far worse than any actual outcome might be. One of my mentors used to tell me that I literally persecuted myself when it came to my ‘not enough' conversation that I had going on. Fear is not the problem: it is our thinking about that fear that keeps us stuck. And it's our ability to overcome that negative thinking and conditioning which is going to set us free. 

According to the Law of Attraction, if you constantly live in a state of ‘lack,' always wondering where your next dollar or client is going to come from, then guess what you're going to attract into your business and life - more ‘lack' than you can handle! Negativity breeds more negativity faster than a stagnant pool of water can breed mosquitoes in the summer time! 

In order to change your negative thinking patterns around ‘lack' and create those of ‘abundance,' here are 3 concrete ways to shift your thinking and create more of what you REALLY want in your life and business. 

1. Watch and listen to the words you think and speak. For instance, notice how many times a day you start a sentence off with "Yeah... but... If only... I can't... Not the right time... Maybe later... Some day..." or "My business is different." This is an eye opening experience. By paying close attention to the words you say out loud as well as to your inner thoughts, you will get to see just how positive and open you really are. 

2. Tell your ‘Inner Critic' to hush up! Lately I have been telling my inner critic, "I will not allow you to keep me stuck in your small comfort zone." By effectively cutting that critic off before it gets going on a downhill slide, I save myself precious time and a whole lot of self-recrimination. 

3. Surround yourself with only positive people. You can rise above your negative thinking when you surround yourself with people who are at your level of thinking or above. Why? Because those are the people that are going to be asking you questions like, "How can I make this happen? How can I make this work?" They are open to possibilities and will never lose sight of where they are going, and their positive outlook is contagious which is exactly something you need in your life. 

4. It's okay to be scared as long as you don't let it stop you. On those days, that's when you are glad to have Step 3. 

You're probably saying to yourself right now, I know all this, Cookie. Yeah, yeah, yeah! But the bigger question is, are you doing it?