Scarcity

Many years ago, a steady salary gave me the confidence to spend. I knew only the mindset of saving—saving up to buy whatever I wanted. And when I looked around, I saw the same pattern everywhere. In fact, it often felt like everyone was competing to spend more. We were all brave with money because we knew exactly when the next paycheque would arrive.

My real financial turning point came the day I quit my full-time job to start my own design business. It wasn’t higher income that changed my life. It was the uncertainty—the not knowing when the next payment would come while my expenses kept running steadily, and often climbing. That uncertainty was terrifying.

That fear reshaped my relationship with money overnight. I shifted from a saving mindset to a making-money mindset. In business, you can’t survive by saving alone. Making money is the foundation, and saving is simply a by-product—not the goal. Saving stopped being my destination.

I learned to think like a business owner with skin in the game, not just an employee trading hours for money. I learned sales. I learned bookkeeping and tax. I learned the importance of emergency funds and investing. And, most importantly, I learned who truly matters on the days when everything feels hard.

That mindset carried over with me, whether I was running my own business or working full-time again. I changed. Looking back, none of this mindset—none of these financial turning points—would have happened without scarcity.

Scarcity is the best teacher.