In The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People Stephen Covey described the contrast between scarcity and abundance mentality in this way:
“Most people are deeply scripted in the Scarcity Mentality. They see life as having only so much, as though there was only one pie out there. And if someone were to get a big piece of the pie, it would mean less for everybody else.”
“The Abundance Mentality, on the other hand, flows out of a deep inner sense of personal worth and security. It is the paradigm that there is plenty out there and enough to spare for everybody. It results in sharing of prestige, of recognition, of profits, of decision making. It opens possibilities, options, alternatives, and creativity.”
And, in her groundbreaking work, The Soul of Money, Lynne Twist identifies the three toxic myths of scarcity as follows:
1) There’s not enough
2) More is better
3) That’s just the way it is
Based on the direct observation that many nonprofit teams easily get caught up in these pervasive myths (especially around time and money) which destroy performance, the Fundraising Leadership team created an experiential workshop that takes nonprofit teams on a journey from scarcity to sufficiency.