As one of the early arrivals of the Baby Boom generation, I grew up in a middle-class family where my siblings and I had no clue what being poor was like, even though we couldn’t have everything we wanted (think piano lessons but no pony). Our parents didn’t talk to us about the war, or about the Great Depression that preceded it, but we could tell they weren’t as carefree as we were.
Do you remember the term, “Depression mentality”? As I got older, I often teased and accused my parents of always thinking poverty was just around the corner; they didn’t spend money too easily and they never threw anything away. My father was warning about another Depression until the day he died, but I and my fellow Boomers were too busy creating seismic shifts in our nation’s culture to think what it was like to not have enough.
Today, that concept is called a “scarcity mentality” and it has created a huge impact on many of us, not only those who experienced poverty but even those who didn’t. Scarcity refers to the belief that there is not enough to go around, whether that’s money or food or jobs or even happiness. Focusing on what is lacking can create anxiety, stress and fear, and creates a cycle of self-limiting thoughts and behaviors. It can feel downright irresponsible not to worry, but it doesn’t feel good and often doesn’t really help change anything. This election cycle has highlighted the concept of scarcity through the grim warnings constantly issued by the Republican candidate, as he tried to convince voters that the end is near unless they vote for him. He had to come up with lots of false information about immigrants, and inflation, and crime, so he could present himself as the only one who could fix the problems he amplified and distorted. Sadly, many of his followers were not interested in the truth about these subjects, but just sought the comfort of believing that he would fix everything.
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