Growing an Abundant Mindset
Fun fact about me. I love telling people this :
“Where you are financially today is where your money mindset allows you to be.”
This topic is something that fascinates me. So much that I was inspired to coach people about this topic. I like to hear about people’s money mindset and try to figure out where these come from.
Our money mindset is unique
You may or may not agree with me on this but our money mindset is influenced by our childhood. Our environment and our life experiences will affect our initial relationship with money. It’s like how children learn by example- we take on certain beliefs from our parents, grandparents or other influential people in our lives early on. It could be through their spending habits, what they deem precious (making memories or things acquired?), how and what they use it for.
From all these experiences, our money mindset can either be one of abundance or scarcity or somewhere in between.
The good news is that we can continuously grow and expand our money mindset.
I remember an occasion many years ago when I was with some wealthy clients for an event. One client- let’s call him Mr. Foo- declared
“I always make money at the casino.”
Of course, I was skeptical and told him I didn’t believe that. I’ve always associated casinos as places are where people go and lose their money- statistically speaking, that is. They lose their money, go back hoping for better luck. It becomes a cycle until one day they realize they’re addicted to the game and have wasted away all their life savings. That’s how casinos rake in the millions. They are dangerous, isn’t that what is portrayed in movies?
Mr Foo insists, “The casino is like an ATM, when I want to get some money, I will go there.”
The Doubting Thomas in me replied, “You have to show me otherwise it’s hard to believe you”. So we agreed to head to Resorts World after dinner- my rich client, his friend and myself. In Singapore, you need to pay a levy to enter the casino as a Singaporean. Of course, Mr. Foo took care of that for us.
He went to the cashier and got 2 casino chips worth S$100,000 each. It was my first time seeing that so I was amazed by the high value of one chip. He had the dealer change it into smaller denominations and started playing baccarat. He checked the statistics for each game before placing bets and each time he would play S$200. Sometimes he won, sometimes he didn’t. Whenever he lost, he doubled up. Now these are all based on my observations and mind you, I did not actually understand the game but I was focused on how he played it.
To cut to the chase, Mr. Foo made about S$3,000 in over an hour. A 1.5% increase in such a short period of time- a perfect way to prove his point.
Before we parted ways at Resorts World, Mr. Foo handed me a few hundred dollar bills. I shook my head and wanted to return him the money but he said I was a lucky charm. Before leaving, his last words were, “I treat the casino as a game. I win some and I leave. Don’t get hooked on it.”
My head was buzzing and I felt exhilarated during my cab ride home. I knew something magical had shifted inside of me. I learned so much from my rich client during that one casino visit. All of which I still apply in my life to date and I want to share them with you:
1.The rich do not worry about small things.
What small things you say? In this instance it was small fees like entry levies which seemed insignificant considering his gains. They see the bigger picture- the endgame. Just like if you are trading in the stock market, don’t let the small transaction fees deter you and focus on your goals.
2.Manage your risk.
Mr Foo had a capital base of S$200,000 when he entered the casino. Each bet he placed was only S$200 which was only 0.1% of his capital, so this can be considered a negligible risk. However, if you have only $2,000 in capital to play with and you bet $200 on each game, that will be a 10% risk.
3.Money is just a game.
Don’t attach your emotions to it and don’t get hooked on it. Definitely something to be aware of when investing, keeping my emotions and investor psychology in check so that I can focus on building my desired portfolio.
4.The gift of an abundant mindset.
“Money comes easily to me”. “Money is a game”.
I still have the hundred dollars notes from that night at the casino. It’s a reminder of how my financial mindset grew and expanded exponentially. How I view money and what its purpose in my life is didn’t need to be according to my past beliefs.
As I fondly recall that evening at Resorts World, I remember Mr. Foo’s generous nature which was influenced by his abundant mindset. He didn’t think twice about paying for all of us to enter the casino and even shared his winnings. There was no feeling of lack or losing at all! I love this feeling of abundance and I thank Mr. Foo for showing me what an elevated money mindset looks like.
*Disclaimer: I took away only mindset lessons from that evening at the casino and I still avoid casinos in general :)
What are your thoughts about money and how does it make you feel when you lack or have more than enough?
What is one abundant thought that you can believe in today?
Do you know that when you let go of your scarcity and limiting money beliefs, amazing new possibilities can show up in your life? Work with me to build an abundant money mindset today.