All kids naturally start life with a scarcity mindset. It’s innate.
Whether they lose their mind when they don’t get food the moment they’re hungry or they cry like it’s the end of the world when asked to share a toy, kids live in a Walking Dead world, where hoarding and stockpiling are the favored survival methods (and the sleep-deprived parents are the zombies).
But they don’t have to stay stuck in a scarcity mindset. And you can help.
Language matters around your kids.
As parents, we’ve all been in situations where our child was upset about losing something or it running out. Maybe it’s the Cheerios running low or not having enough time left in the day to do a planned fun activity.
Whatever the case, you can encourage an abundance mentality by reminding them that there is more than enough for everyone and saying things like, “There’s always more where that came from,” or “There’s always tomorrow to do that fun activity!”
When faced with these challenges, choose to focus more on what’s RIGHT with the situation, rather than what’s wrong. Say something like, “Well, we don’t have any more Cheerios, but we do have the stuff for waffles!”
That’s not to say you stick your head in the ground like an ostrich and ignore the difficulties, but you’ll be much more successful in facing the challenge head-on if you’ve taken time to acknowledge that not everything is negative about the situation.