When I believe that there is ‘enough’, I find it easy to be generous. If I believe that I live in a world of scarcity, then I get miserly.
People have been struggling with this for a long time.
It’s funny how pervasive this is; Jan Brueghel the Younger painted about this in the 17th century. If I believe that there’s enough success to go around, then I celebrate the success of others. If I believe that there is a limit to the number of people who can be successful, then I get paranoid about anyone else (even people I care about) being successful. When someone says something nice about me, my interpretation of what they’ve said seems to depend on how much seems to be riding on them approving of me specifically.
Food, love, safety, feelings of well-being, friendship, professional accomplishment, wealth, the esteem of others; all of these diverse things that I want suffer from this phenomenon.
Questions to ponder:
- Do others notice this response to scarcity in themselves?
- When do I believe that the world is abundant rather than fundamentally scarce?
- How can I make it easier to believe in this abundance?
Small Kind Things 
I was just thinking about this last week, specifically with reference to energy. When I’ve rested enough and have available emotional energy, I am much more giving. When I haven’t slept enough or I’m stressed and anxious, I pull into myself more like I’m hoarding my energy for essential functions. I think it creates a feedback loop, since feeling selfish increases depression, which decreases available energy.
Oddly, there’s a WikiHow that discusses this exact topic, with some surprisingly helpful suggestions. I especially like taking time to be appreciative and cutting down on news. https://www.google.com/amp/m.wikihow.com/Create-an-Abundance-Mentality%3Famp%3D1?client=safari
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