Scarcity, Abundance, and the Race to Zero

If you’re paying attention, you’ll once again notice today is Sunday—and this is a Saturday newsletter. You’ll also have noticed I didn’t write this newsletter last week either.

I’m on Anna Maria Island, Florida. Google it… it’s pretty incredible. I’ve been coming here for winters and springs for 25 years, and it gives me plenty of time to ponder and muse. If you know me well enough by now, you’ll know that I value living over working to live—and so sometimes I drop off the map for a while, enjoying the sun, sea, and sand with my family. If that isn’t hustle and grind for you, I’m sorry, but it’s my life.

While I’ve been here, I got to thinking about what happened to me after one of my companies failed catastrophically. We went from luxuries to near poverty overnight. It’s not a victim-to-hero story... it’s just the truth. But it wasn’t the failure itself that hurt me most—no, that stuff can be overcome. It’s what happened afterwards that held me back more.

See, I insidiously developed a scarcity mindset.

I began fearing bills.

I saw luxuries as irresponsibility.

I started counting the pennies.

I wore frugality like a badge of honor; “Hey, guess how much my monthly expenses are, Bill?”

My wife would proudly tell me how much she’d saved on the groceries. We’d choose things off menus based on price, not taste.

Little did I know, we’d started down a one-way street.

There’s only so far you can cut—yet infinitely more you can add.

There’s a floor, but no ceiling.

For the first time in my life, I began to see expenditure as bad, and conservation as good. The fear of loss had rewired me.

And the moment you start operating from a scarcity mindset… you’re done.

But I caught it in time.

I realised that fear and conservation weren’t serving me. Because the lower I drove my costs, the less I focused on growth.

It became a race to zero.

There’s nothing wrong with being cost-conscious and responsible.

But seriously—who benefits from our lack of luxury, adventure, experience, and comfort?

Some months, my personal expenses will hit $50K—with travel, lifestyle, entertainment… it’s not unusual for me.

But there was a time when I wore a $3K burn rate like a trophy, and sh*t myself when it went above. Like a martyr who’d “learned his lesson.”

But here’s the truth:

You can remain immune to disaster, as long as you don’t spend outside your means and you keep your fixed costs flexible.

The mistake most people make?

Their fixed costs are so high, they’re finished the moment they stop earning.

That’s not me.

Even then—I no longer live my life anticipating the worst.

I expect abundance.

And I focus entirely on the top line.

Abundance vs. Scarcity.

Revenue vs. Reduction.

Growth vs. Contraction.

Earning your way to a million is way easier than saving your way to one.

Trust me—I’ve done both.

Focusing on costs instead of revenue is the fastest way to stall your future.

As Mark Cuban says: sales cure all.

As promised, Vanquish in under 1 minute…on a Sunday from AMI!

In case it inspires you, or you’re just curious where I am this Sunday…here’s a pic of our beach here: https://images.app.goo.gl/iY2PHEy3KQJbC9hk6

Build, Scale, Vanquish.

Jonny