I’ve always had some kind of morning ritual, from as far back as I can remember. My current ritual is reading a chapter of Proverbs, reading a Daily Stoic entry, and reading an thinking on a card from a deck by Esther and Jerry Hicks about money.

The card I’m pondering today says that the subject of money is really two subjects:

1. Money, plenty of money
2. Absence of money, not nearly enough money

Often we assume that when we say, “I want more money”, we are speaking positively about money. Yet what we are really speaking to, is the absence of money. We want more, because there’s not enough. This difference, though subtle is important. The first brings more money and the second keeps it at a distance. We already know this because we often say – the rich keep getting richer and the poor, poorer. We say this as fact not realizing that we are pretty much echoing the same sentiment as the subject of money.

In The Trance of Scarcity by Victoria Castle, the back of the books implores readers to “Live a Life of Abundance”.

Do you ever tell yourself that you’re not enough? Not smart enough, not rich enough, not good enough, not fill-in-the-blanks enough? Or do you worry that there is not not enough time, not enough money, not enough opportunity, not enough…whatever? Consciously and unconsciously, dozens of times a day, we tell ourselves that we are lacking, that our lives are lacking, that the universe is lacking. We lull ourselves into what Victoria Castle calls the “Trance of Scarcity”—a numbed state in which we’re crippled by the pervasive assumption that lack, struggle, and separation are our unavoidable fate. But what if it is the very story we tell ourselves—both as individuals and as a society—that keeps us trapped in this limited state?

Castle traces how this trance seeps in early. Family sayings like money doesn’t grow on trees or you have to work twice as hard become the background story behind all of our decisions. By adulthood we’re often fluent in lack, structuring our schedules, budgets, and even relationships around the fear that something—time, love, opportunity—will run out.

Entrepreneur Justin Welsh recently wrote in his Saturday Solopreneur newsletter about a Zoom call that almost pulled him back into such a trance.

A potential partner kept widening the project scope and tightening the timeline—while the pay barely moved. Welsh knew better. He had years of proof that his work commands premium rates.

Yet in the moment he nodded along, a people-pleasing robot, as he put it, quietly agreeing to nearly twice the work for three-quarters of the fee.
Two days later he caught himself, emailed to withdraw, and declined even when the partner returned with more money and a saner timeline. Why?
Because the version of him who’s already built and delivered doesn’t negotiate from fear.

Welsh’s story is familiar to every founder and independent professional who’s ever underpriced, overworked, or said yes when intuition screamed no. It illustrates how scarcity isn’t just emotional—it’s operational. Unchecked, it shapes your calendar, cash flow, and reputation.

Language Creates Atmosphere

Castle and Welsh, from different vantage points, name the same truth:
Words create the emotional climate you operate in.

Scarcity-language (I want more, I can’t afford to turn this down, There’s not enough time) keeps you small and reactive. Sufficiency-language (I create value that circulates, I choose aligned opportunities, There is time for what matters) frees you to design, decide, and decline with strength.

When Abundance Feels Unsafe

This isn’t abstract theory. It lives in our daily choices.

I’ve watched myself earn well below my potential—not because the market said no, but because the voice on repeat in my head whispered: It’s too easy. You don’t deserve this. Something will go wrong.

So I stopped doing the very activities bringing in money. I let simple, repeatable wins slide because ease felt dangerous. I know I’m not alone.

Charlie Sheen’s documentary aka Charlie Sheen offers a public version of this private pattern. Despite fame and fortune, his life has been a long dance with self-sabotage—burning bridges, inviting chaos, nearly daring abundance to disappear. Despite his celebrity, he is not immune. This is his trance of scarcity: the conviction that success must be dramatic, costly, or short-lived.

How It Shows Up Everywhere

In my own work I see this daily:

• Teams sitting on an acre of diamonds—untapped talent, loyal customers, proven processes—keep thinking they need more Instagram, more influencers, better marketing, more visibility.
  They mistake movement for growth, and build strategy on lack masquerading as reality. Record profits still feel fragile, so they cut investment, hoard opportunities, and create policies of mistrust.
• Solopreneurs can hit six figures and still hustle like they’re one invoice away from collapse. They overbook, undercharge, or refuse to scale systems that already work, convinced that if business feels too smooth it must be a fluke.

It isn’t balance sheets driving the anxiety. It’s the trance of scarcity speaking through their decisions, pricing, and culture.

Strategic Reflection Prompt

Where are you quietly sabotaging abundance—slowing or stopping what already works because it feels “too easy” or “undeserved”? Rewrite one internal phrase today so it reflects the sufficiency you’ve already proven.

About Giselle & The Hudson Alignment Studio™

I’m Giselle Hudson—writer, possibility thinker, and Strategic Alignment Facilitator™ and MCODE Legacy Coach. Through The Hudson Alignment Studio™ and my proprietary Hudson Alignment Framework™, I help founders, solo professionals and non profit leads answer the One Question: What will it really take to leverage your people-potential + expertise, get real results, and transform your business to maximize profit?

Most organizations I meet are sitting on an acre of diamonds but don’t know it. They believe the answer is more marketing or visibility, when in fact the core work is deep clarity around their Zone of Genius—a shared understanding of individual strengths, collective capability, and the team’s true potential.

That’s why my practice focuses on Zone of Genius and Client Retention & Referral. When those two pillars are aligned, Client Attraction & Marketing and Sales & Revenue fall naturally into place. You move from proving and scrambling to creating and sustaining.

My guiding principle remains simple: Clarify Before You Amplify.