Most people believe that increasing income is all about working harder, finding a better job, or starting a side hustle. While those strategies are valid, they only scratch the surface. In my own journey, none of those traditional tactics yielded the breakthrough I craved. It wasn’t until I made a fundamental mindset shift—one that challenged every internal belief I held about success, self-worth, and money—that I experienced a dramatic transformation. My income didn’t just increase incrementally; it doubled in just six months.
In this article, I’ll break down the exact mindset shift that changed everything, the neuroscience behind it, and how you can adopt it today to elevate your own financial and personal trajectory.
1. From Scarcity to Abundance: The Core Shift
The pivotal mindset shift was this:
I stopped operating from scarcity and chose to embody abundance.
Let’s unpack what that means.
For years, I subconsciously believed there was never enough—never enough time, money, opportunities, or even talent. This scarcity mindset made me hoard knowledge, avoid investments, and settle for underpaid work because I feared “losing” or “wasting” anything.
But here’s the truth: scarcity isn’t a reality; it’s a perspective. And like all perspectives, it can be replaced.
When I began to operate from a place of abundance—believing that opportunities were everywhere, that my value was expansive, and that investing in myself would yield a return—everything changed. I started taking calculated risks, offering higher-value services, negotiating confidently, and attracting clients and opportunities I’d never imagined.
2. The Psychology Behind Abundance Thinking
Abundance is more than just “thinking positively.” It’s rooted in cognitive behavioral psychology and supported by neuroscience. When you believe the world is full of opportunity, your reticular activating system (RAS)—a part of your brainstem responsible for filtering information—starts recognizing and prioritizing data that aligns with that belief.
In short:
- Scarcity mindset = Your brain filters for lack and limitation.
- Abundance mindset = Your brain filters for growth and opportunity.
This shift in perception leads to more confident behavior, which in turn invites more lucrative outcomes. It becomes a self-reinforcing feedback loop.
3. Rewriting My Internal Money Blueprint
To shift my mindset, I had to challenge deeply ingrained financial beliefs I had inherited from childhood and culture:
- “Money is hard to make.”
- “People like me don’t become wealthy.”
- “It’s selfish to want more.”
These beliefs are silent saboteurs. They operate in the background of your decisions and behaviors, limiting your potential.
I began rewriting these scripts using a combination of:
- Daily affirmations rooted in neuroscience.
- Visualization exercises to recondition my brain.
- Evidence-based journaling where I tracked every “win,” no matter how small.
Within weeks, I noticed I was showing up differently in conversations, pitching bigger ideas, and saying no to work that didn’t align with my worth.
4. Investing in Myself: The Catalyst for Growth
The abundance mindset led me to make a bold decision: I invested thousands of dollars into a coach and several high-level online programs—something my old self would have feared.
Why? Because I now saw investing in myself as the highest ROI decision I could make.
And it paid off:
- I gained clarity on my niche.
- I mastered high-income skills like persuasive writing and personal branding.
- I built systems that scaled my work beyond trading time for money.
This was the tipping point. By the end of six months, I had doubled my income—not by hustling harder, but by thinking and acting like a higher-income individual.
5. Embracing the Identity of a High-Earner
Perhaps the most overlooked element of this shift was identity transformation. I didn’t just want to earn more—I decided to become someone who earns more.
Here’s how:
- I dressed, spoke, and acted with more intentionality.
- I consumed content aligned with my desired future, not my current limitations.
- I curated my environment to reinforce the beliefs I wanted to grow into.
In psychology, this is called embodied cognition—the idea that how you act shapes how you think. By acting like a person who earns twice as much, I began to believe it, and then achieve it.
6. Practical Steps You Can Take Today
If you want to begin your own mindset transformation, here’s a roadmap:
✅ Audit Your Internal Beliefs
Write down your current beliefs about money, success, and self-worth. Identify which are based on fear or scarcity.
✅ Challenge the Narrative
For every limiting belief, write a counter-narrative. For example, change “I can’t charge more” to “People pay for value, and I deliver exceptional value.”
✅ Invest in Expansion
This doesn’t mean spending recklessly. It means investing strategically in things that will elevate your skill set, mindset, and network.
✅ Act As If
Show up as the person you want to become. Embody that identity fully—before the results arrive.
✅ Track Your Wins
Keep a daily log of your wins, however small. This rewires your brain to notice success, reinforcing the abundance loop.
7. Why Most People Never Make This Shift
It’s not because they’re lazy or unmotivated. It’s because they:
- Cling to certainty, even when it keeps them small.
- Avoid discomfort, even when it’s the doorway to growth.
- Wait for proof before they believe—when in reality, belief creates the proof.
This mindset shift isn’t comfortable—but that’s the point. Growth never is.
The Power of a New Lens
In the end, doubling my income wasn’t about hustle, luck, or timing. It was about fundamentally changing the way I viewed myself and the world around me.
When you change your thoughts, you change your actions. When you change your actions, you change your outcomes.
If you’re ready to earn more, start by thinking differently. The results will follow—faster than you think.