The concept of scarcity versus abundance has been coming up for me a lot lately.

For those who are unfamiliar, people living in a world of scarcity are focused on what they can't and don't have and what they perceive to be unavailable. For example: I don't have any money and I can't find a job. There's just nothing out there for me.

People living in a world of abundance are focused on what they can and do have, and see that there are many possibilities available. Example: Even though I'm unemployed, so I have a lot of time now. I can use this time to attend free networking events and find a job I really like, or I can do research on my own and maybe change careers into a job I'll love.

This concept came up in two separate conversations with friends.  The first was with someone who is having a hard time in this economy and she's tired of her job. One of the things she said during our conversation was, "Everything I really enjoy doing doesn't make any money." So I asked her what  it was she really enjoyed doing. She listed some things and what immediately sprung to my mind was a copywriter or PR person. And as we continued talking, it turns out she already has much of the background she would need to do this. She's only missing the networking and media connections. That's the easy part. It may take some time, sure, but it's relatively easy.

The second conversation was with someone who is nearing retirement age and recently got laid off. Money is getting tighter and because of her age she saw her prospects for getting hired at another job as pretty slim. Again, I asked her what she really enjoyed doing. One of the things was that she has a passion for antiques and is quite knowledgeable about them. We came up with a job concept of being an antique broker (sort of like an auto broker) where you're basically a personal shopper for someone looking for a certain antique piece.  It turns out she even has some connections she could use to at least research this more if not get it going.

These two friends were so fully living in the world of scarcity that they couldn't see what was right in front of them. I just pointed things out that were already there, and then helped them to see what possibilities (notice I didn't say solutions)  were available. Working in this frame of mind, the obstacles that came up were relatively easily overcome. I stressed possibilities instead of solutions because these ideas may or may not ultimately work out. But it got them thinking about what they HAD, not what they didn't, and what they COULD do instead of couldn't.

One more quick story: Another unemployed friend referred to herself as being "funemployed". This struck me as a perfect example of a terrific attitude to have --  one that would allow you to be open to ANY possibility.