Scarcity Doesn’t Create Abundance, It Creates More Scarcity… (2173)

In this episode of Next Level University, hosts Kevin Palmieri and Alan Lazaros share why holding on too tightly keeps you stuck and how trusting your ability to rebuild opens the door to true growth. Through honest stories about risk, resilience, and self-belief, they show that abundance comes from courage, not fear. If you’ve ever felt trapped in survival mode, this conversation will inspire you to shift your mindset and start playing to win.

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Show notes:
(2:20) Rebuilding from experience and awareness
(5:26) Playing not to lose Vs. Playing to win
(9:41) Level up with NLU: Join our free virtual Monthly Meet-up event every first Thursday for powerful insights, real tools, and unstoppable growth. https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/XAKkZd2DSw6G3NMlxL67vA#/registration
(13:20) Status, survival, and social pressure
(15:10) Risking the current level to grow
(17:48) Outro

🎙️ Hosted by Kevin Palmieri and Alan Lazaros

Next Level University is a top-ranked daily podcast for dream chasers and self-improvement lovers. With over 2,100 episodes, we help you level up in life, love, health, and wealth one day at a time. Subscribe for real, honest, no-fluff growth every single day.

Chapters

• 2:20 Rebuilding from experience and awareness
• 5:26 Playing not to lose Vs. Playing to win
• 9:41 Level up with NLU: Join our free virtual Monthly Meet-up event every first Thursday for powerful insights, real tools, and unstoppable growth.
• 13:20 Status, survival, and social pressure
• 15:10 Risking the current level to grow
• 17:48 Outro

Transcript

Kevin Palmieri

(0:00) Yesterday we dove into a pretty complex topic. (0:03) We didn't get as deep as I wanted to get, so we're going to do a part two today, and we're going to talk about abundance and scarcity and how they connect.

Alan Lazaros

(0:10) If you have very high self-belief, I've said this before, everything is a little different. (0:17) If you have low self-belief, again, everything's a little different. (0:20) You have to take everything you say, think, do, feel, and believe and filter it through your level of self-belief.

Kevin Palmieri

(0:26) Welcome to Next Level University. (0:29) I'm your host, Kevin Palmieri. (0:31) And I'm your co-host, Alan Lazarus.(0:34) At NLU, we believe in a heart-driven, but no-BS approach to holistic self-improvement for dream chasers.

Alan Lazaros

(0:40) Our goal with every episode is to help you level up your life, love, health, and wealth.

Kevin Palmieri

(0:47) We bring you a new episode every single day on topics like confidence, self-belief, self-worth, self-awareness, relationships, boundaries, consistency, habits, and defining your own unique version of success.

Alan Lazaros

(1:03) Self-improvement, in your pocket, every day, from anywhere, completely free. (1:09) Welcome to Next Level University.

Kevin Palmieri

(1:15) Next Level Nation today for episode number 2173, scarcity doesn't create abundance, it creates more scarcity. (1:23) We are piggybacking on yesterday's episode, and the big idea in yesterday's episode was, essentially, when you get rid of the need for something, it allows you to do the things that you actually need to do in order to get that thing. (1:40) Would you say that's a fair example?(1:43) Say it one more time. (1:44) When you release the need for something, it allows you to invest the necessary time into actually getting that thing, because you're not doing it just to get the thing anymore.

Alan Lazaros

(1:53) Yeah. (1:55) It's almost like you are able to aim for something higher, and then that becomes a milestone along the way. (2:01) You and I are trying to achieve growing this company by 7% year over, or quarter over quarter, which is 30% year over year.(2:08) Your dream car is going to be a byproduct of a much bigger goal. (2:12) Right.

Kevin Palmieri

(2:14) Okay. (2:14) So scarcity doesn't create abundance, it creates more scarcity. (2:17) Here's where I think there's a disconnect oftentimes.(2:20) This is good. (2:21) This is a good example. (2:22) Allen and I were talking, and he said, dude, if everything went off the rails today, and the company went to shit, everything, I lost everything, I still had Amelia, I would just rebuild it again.(2:32) I was like, that's the dumbest shit ever of all time. (2:35) I know that's what you would do, but I would never resonate with that five years ago. (2:39) I'd be like, the reason scarcity, I feel like scarcity for most people creates more scarcity, because if you're scarce about not knowing how to get it, you're not going to be able to release that at all.

Alan Lazaros

(2:54) Okay. (2:54) What did you think about it as this version of you? (2:56) Because I do, it would not be good from a momentum perspective, because we'd have to rebuild the brand and rebuild the community.(3:05) And so it's not optimal. (3:07) I don't want that to happen. (3:09) But what I do want to make clear is you and I would be way more effective.(3:14) I'd be a hundred times more effective this time around than last time. (3:18) Yeah. (3:18) Because I am now far more aware of what does work and what doesn't work.(3:22) We have eight years of scientific method of this hypothesis, this hypothesis, this, we now have, we can double and triple and quadruple down on the things that we know work and not waste any time, effort or money on the things that don't. (3:34) So I feel like we could, we could rebuild this. (3:37) How long do you think it would take for us to rebuild everything we've built?(3:39) If it all were, if we were to say hypothetical universe, we still have Taryn and Amelia, we still have each other, everything else is gone. (3:47) How long do you think it would take us to rebuild to where we are now? (3:50) Probably half the time.(3:51) Yeah. (3:52) Agreed. (3:52) I think I could do a third probably, but that, that's why it would be a pain in the ass, but it's totally doable.(4:01) See, that's, that's self-belief. (4:03) Well, but it's taken me eight years to get to that place.

Kevin Palmieri

(4:07) Yeah. (4:08) If you catch 22, if year one, somebody was like, if I took everything away, it's like, honestly, I don't have any fucking results. (4:14) So I don't, I might just go do something else.(4:16) I don't know. (4:17) You fucking have it. (4:18) You can take it.(4:19) So this would be my lesson for you watching or listening. (4:23) There is something in your life that if somebody was to take it away, you'd know exactly how to get it back. (4:30) Nice.(4:30) That's what we're talking about today. (4:32) You just don't have the muscle for that thing yet.

Alan Lazaros

(4:35) And not only do you know how you also have developed the skills, because I think there's something there where awareness plus skills plus implementation, there's sometimes a gap. (4:50) Like you didn't know how to sell and now you do. (4:53) So everything would accelerate much faster this time.(4:57) And you also would get rid of all the baggage to all the nonsense that it's like, we're all dragging a dumpster up a hill and we would cut the dumpster and then be like, holy shit, look at it. (5:08) Look at what we got going. (5:09) So again, it would be hard, but what I hope lands is when you learn how to stop playing so scared to lose, you actually set yourself up to win.(5:26) If I'm playing my whole life to just hang on to what I have now, this is, I'll share this way back 10 years ago when I quit corporate, I heard through the grapevine, I've told you this before, someone said, oh my God, he was making $180,000 a year. (5:45) I would never quit a job making $180,000 a year. (5:48) And back then, when I heard this through the grapevine, the person who told me, I said, well, that's why he'll never make 180 grand.(5:55) And the person was like, what do you mean? (5:57) And now I know why he didn't understand what the fuck I was saying. (6:00) But at the time I didn't understand the layers.(6:03) I said, I had to risk everything prior to this in order to get that. (6:07) I had to risk 65 to get 85. (6:09) I had to risk 85 to get 105.(6:10) I had to risk 105 to get 125. (6:12) I had to risk 125 to get 180. (6:14) When I went from inside sales engineering to outside sales engineering, I remember being like, oh my God.(6:19) I went from answering phones, starting an inside sales engineering team, talking to these companies on the phone to then selling to the CEO of General Electric, one of the biggest companies on planet earth. (6:31) Like that's horribly challenging. (6:34) And I had to risk it.(6:38) You have to fucking risk it.

Kevin Palmieri

(6:39) You have to risk the current level to get to the next level. (6:42) You can't, but you also knew that your safety net was pretty high. (6:46) What's worst case we go back to 115, 110, you know what I mean?(6:51) But when I, what about the first job? (6:53) 65 to 85, I would have gone back to broke. (6:56) But you never would have been because you would have figured it out.(6:59) Yeah. (7:00) Yeah. (7:00) And again, I'm not minimizing that.(7:02) I think that's awesome. (7:02) No, it's a good point. (7:03) It's a great point.(7:04) I think that's awesome. (7:05) No, I just know that I didn't have that, but in my mind, in my mind, okay, this is good.

Alan Lazaros

(7:10) You weren't going to starve. (7:12) You're always going to be capable enough to not starve. (7:15) The economy needs humans.(7:16) I mean, I was pretty close a couple times. (7:19) Brother, come on. (7:20) You are a capable fucking adult.

Kevin Palmieri

(7:22) I am now, but back then I wasn't that, I wasn't nearly as capable as I am.

Alan Lazaros

(7:27) It's almost like worst case scenario, depending on where you live, worst case scenario, you still are going to figure it out. (7:36) I can't, I understand why this isn't resonating. (7:39) I do.

Kevin Palmieri

(7:39) Yeah.

Alan Lazaros

(7:40) You're going to figure it out. (7:42) You're going to figure it out. (7:44) I don't even know what else to tell you.(7:45) You get a mentor, you fucking Google it. (7:47) Like you have work ethic. (7:50) I'm going to figure it out.(7:51) Yeah.

Kevin Palmieri

(7:52) Well, that's, but eight years ago, that version of Kevin, yeah, that version of Kevin was he would figure it out.

Alan Lazaros

(8:02) Jeez. (8:03) He always did. (8:04) Didn't he?

Kevin Palmieri

(8:05) Yeah, but fuck. (8:09) But I think a lot of things lined up and I also had a lot of grit and I was, I tucked my ego and I was like, I'll do anything, whatever I got to do to pay the bills. (8:19) It's almost like here's, this is the hard thing.(8:22) When you're taking a shot at something, you almost have to understand that you might actually go, the safety net might be way lower than you think. (8:33) You're most likely not going to fail upward immediately. (8:38) Like I'm going to go, I currently make, and again, this is a hypothetical.(8:41) I currently make $65,000 a year. (8:43) I'm going to leave the 65 K job and I'm going to apply for one that's 95. (8:48) If I don't get that job, I'm most likely not going to get one that pays 92.(8:53) I'm going to, because time is my enemy now. (8:57) And there's something to that. (9:00) Time is my enemy in terms of, I need a job fast.(9:03) I thought this was going to be the one, hypothetically. (9:07) Right. (9:07) Which creates scarcity, which means you have to make a decision based on the short term.

Alan Lazaros

(9:10) In this context, are you not willing to work at McDonald's? (9:13) Dude, if I had to, I'd work it.

Kevin Palmieri

(9:14) I'd work wherever I had to. (9:15) Yes, but I'm saying your drop is going to be, so you're not going to make. (9:18) Yeah.(9:18) Yeah. (9:18) Yeah. (9:19) Of course.(9:19) Yeah. (9:20) But you're never going to starve. (9:22) The safety net might just be lower than you think.

Alan Lazaros

(9:24) Yeah. (9:24) And people aren't willing to take that hit. (9:26) I think that's a big.(9:28) Dude, I wasn't. (9:28) We don't talk about this enough, but dude, I went from a global 1% earner to living with my mother in my late twenties. (9:36) And now I realize why everyone thought I was such a loser.(9:42) NLU listener, what is happening? (9:44) I just wanted to jump in here and let you know, if you want to get to the next level faster, we have a free virtual monthly meetup at the first Thursday of every month. (9:53) You can connect with like-minded people and become a bigger part of this amazing global community.(9:58) The link to register will be in the show notes. (10:02) But how much did that really bother you though? (10:04) Like seriously?(10:06) I thought it was really smart. (10:07) Yeah. (10:07) And I also was doing it for my mom.(10:09) I was doing it for my mom too. (10:10) We sold the house and without me, we wouldn't have been able to do that quite frankly. (10:14) But did that bother me?(10:17) I thought it was a big W, but it bothered me socially. (10:21) Everyone was so mean and they made fun of me. (10:25) Yeah.(10:26) Like, Oh, you live with your mom and you're it's like, fuck you. (10:28) I was more successful than you seven years ago. (10:31) I chose to leave that job.(10:33) It's not I got fired, but they were so fucking mean, dude. (10:37) It's so brutal. (10:39) Like I didn't make fun of you when you were working at for minimum wage.(10:43) You know what I mean? (10:43) I just, well, I think people can't even with that shit.

Kevin Palmieri

(10:46) People are afraid of the same thing. (10:48) When people are, they see them posting on Facebook, like you're doing all this amazing stuff. (10:52) And then, then you go get a job.(10:54) That's very early in comparison to what your skillset is. (10:58) You don't want to post about that. (10:59) You feel shame about it.(11:01) You feel embarrassment.

Alan Lazaros

(11:02) You were bench pressing the bar. (11:05) You went all the way back. (11:07) You went from the jacked guy winning bodybuilding competitions to bench pressing the fucking bar.(11:13) That's why you got a PR. (11:15) That's like, I don't know. (11:17) It's a logical leap.(11:18) I knew I could.

Kevin Palmieri

(11:19) Can you go through it quick? (11:20) I was having shoulder issues and I was like, I need to figure this out. (11:27) Still strong, still stronger than most of the people I know.(11:30) Like nobody would ever know, but it was, my shoulder was bothering me. (11:33) I said, I got to figure this out. (11:35) And we were in Florida.(11:36) I remember doing this in Florida.

Alan Lazaros

(11:38) I think that's when I was with you.

Kevin Palmieri

(11:39) Yeah. (11:40) I think that's when I started bench. (11:41) I had to put weight on the bar.(11:42) Yeah. (11:43) Because I didn't have any, I literally went, I think the most I ever benched was 300, 295, 300, something like that. (11:49) Not great.(11:49) Bench press is not good for me, but I remember going to the gym and saying, I'm just going to go back to bench pressing the bar so I can actually do it correctly. (11:59) I'm going to go all the way back to the fundamental. (12:02) That was a huge cred build for me.

Alan Lazaros

(12:05) I think now I realize that would be a cred hit for other people.

Kevin Palmieri

(12:08) Okay. (12:09) But imagine if I wasn't in good shape, I didn't have the belief that this was going to be worth it. (12:15) 16 year old Kev, not a fucking chance.(12:18) Load it up, baby. (12:19) I'll tear it right off. (12:21) I don't care.(12:22) But it takes perception and status. (12:24) A hundred percent. (12:25) Yeah.

Alan Lazaros

(12:26) Why do we correlate status with survival? (12:31) Why do we correlate status? (12:33) That's a big L for people.(12:34) I think you don't need status. (12:37) It helps. (12:38) It definitely helps.(12:40) Let me give you an example. (12:41) We just got a client that is over $100,000 a year. (12:46) I am so proud of us, particularly you because you own a majority of this, but the company, obviously the team, I'm proud of everybody.(12:54) A lot of moving parts. (12:55) A lot of moving parts. (12:56) All of us were necessary for this to happen.(12:58) That's the truth. (12:59) And so I'm proud of all of us. (13:01) That's great.(13:01) That's a hundred grand a year from one client. (13:04) Now on the other side of that coin, don't fuck this up. (13:07) And we have to do all the work that comes with that.(13:09) So the responsibility is there. (13:12) That's a status build. (13:14) When you build status, you do have more opportunities.(13:17) I do understand that, but you're not going to die without it. (13:20) And I think that's all in our head.

Kevin Palmieri

(13:23) I think we're all afraid to get kicked out of the group because you know why? (13:28) This is my experience. (13:30) I'm not saying this is your experience if you're out there.(13:32) Dude, one of the reasons I had suicidal ideations when I was getting ready to leave my job, we used to literally fucking joke about this. (13:40) It was a joke. (13:41) We were joking about this.(13:42) We weren't serious. (13:43) And it ended up becoming a serious thing. (13:45) So I understand the irony slash weirdness of it.(13:49) We used to say, if I ever got fired from this job, I would fucking kill myself because there's no way I'm ever going to find a job like this again. (13:56) Why? (13:57) One, I didn't believe I could.(14:00) That was part one. (14:01) Two, I had a reputation. (14:03) I had, I had a reputation that exceeded my belief in myself.(14:08) And your awareness and your capabilities and your skills.

Alan Lazaros

(14:11) Yeah. (14:11) So if I have to start over, yes, yes.

Kevin Palmieri

(14:15) I think so many of us rely on external results because that's the only way we don't feel like imposters.

Alan Lazaros

(14:22) How did you not feel like an imposter when you went from a six figure earner to a loser broke podcaster? (14:28) I did feel like an imposter.

Kevin Palmieri

(14:29) There's a reason I didn't tell people that I was a podcaster for a long time. (14:33) Oh, I wasn't, I told people, I just wasn't proud of it.

Alan Lazaros

(14:37) I think I was naive.

Kevin Palmieri

(14:38) Oh, you were naive. (14:39) Yeah. (14:40) Yeah.(14:40) You were super naive. (14:42) Super nice shit. (14:44) I don't think when we were recording in your mother's basement, we weren't coming out saying like live from Alan's mom's basement.(14:51) We weren't, I don't know that we were hiding it quote unquote, but we weren't, I wasn't hiding it for sure, but I wasn't shouting it from the rooftops. (14:59) Yeah. (14:59) It's a cool story now, but at the time it was not as cool as it is today.

Alan Lazaros

(15:07) You know, I, that, but when you hear these success stories, they always start with like, I know, but nobody, nobody hears about them when they're not successful.

Kevin Palmieri

(15:17) That's the fucking thing.

Alan Lazaros

(15:18) That's survival. (15:19) I didn't make any money the first year. (15:20) The second year we only made $13,000 between the two of us.(15:23) Now we make more than that in a month, way more than that in a month. (15:28) That's only cool now. (15:30) Yeah.

Kevin Palmieri

(15:33) Because you, this is the thing. (15:35) So for you, you're thinking of the future. (15:39) I was always thinking, I'm not going to buy.(15:42) I thought it was awesome being in the Subaru while I was doing it. (15:44) I thought that was awesome. (15:46) Yeah.(15:46) A hundred percent. (15:46) I understand why you thought that was awesome. (15:49) I also understand why, because it's a representation of the mindset that will eventually create success.(15:55) It shows commitment. (15:57) Yeah. (15:57) I'm willing to do something that no one else would do, but I know that's what's going to make the difference.(16:01) I fucking imagine if I was on the other line and I went, I paid you for a coaching session, right? (16:06) Imagine this. (16:08) I'm eating dinner with my wife that night.(16:09) How was your coaching session with Alan today? (16:11) I was a little fucking weird. (16:12) He was in his car for some reason.(16:15) I have no idea why he took the fucking car. (16:16) He was just sitting, he's baking in the sun, sweating all over the place. (16:20) Credit hit.(16:21) Why? (16:23) I was in better shape. (16:24) I was a fitness coach.

Alan Lazaros

(16:25) I know, but, but there's something to it.

Kevin Palmieri

(16:28) Yeah.

Alan Lazaros

(16:29) There's something to it. (16:30) Even though I was already successful.

Kevin Palmieri

(16:32) Nobody cares. (16:33) It doesn't matter. (16:33) No, nobody cares.(16:34) That is, what do you mean who cares? (16:36) No, nobody cares what you've done or what you're going to do. (16:38) They care about what you're doing now.

Alan Lazaros

(16:39) That's the dumbest shit I've ever heard. (16:42) That is dude. (16:43) Trajectory matters more than current position.(16:45) Current position doesn't matter at all.

Kevin Palmieri

(16:46) One, nobody can see your trajectory because they're not following your story. (16:50) So they don't know. (16:51) That's a piece of it.(16:53) And for the first fucking four years, the trajectory was down from the previous four, quote unquote, it looks like it's down.

Alan Lazaros

(17:00) Yes. (17:00) It looks like it's down, but you're the one who knows the trajectory. (17:03) They don't.(17:04) You had to take a step back in order to bench more than ever before. (17:07) That's the principle. (17:08) You have to give up the current level.(17:10) You have to risk. (17:11) You have to risk the current level, have to, to get to the next level. (17:15) If you're always trying to hang on to your current physique, you're not going to be able to gain weight and gain muscle in order to, this is a fundamental, you have to sacrifice or at least risk the current level to get to the next level.(17:26) Of course. (17:26) You must. (17:27) Yeah.(17:27) And I appreciate the conversation. (17:30) Trajectory matters more than current position though. (17:31) I agree.(17:32) We got to have an episode on that.

Kevin Palmieri

(17:33) Okay.

Alan Lazaros

(17:34) Done? (17:34) Yeah.

Kevin Palmieri

(17:34) Done. (17:34) All right. (17:35) Next Level Nation book club every Saturday, 1230 Eastern time, new book starting.(17:39) You don't have to have read it. (17:40) You don't have to be on camera. (17:41) You don't have to participate.(17:41) You can just be a fly on the wall. (17:43) We would love that for you. (17:44) And if you are looking for a group of amazing humans getting to the next level, we will have our private Facebook group below.(17:48) As always, we love you. (17:49) We appreciate you. (17:50) Grateful for each and every one of you.(17:52) And if you are as committed as you say you are to getting to the next level, make sure you tune in tomorrow because we will be here every single day to help you get there. (17:59) Strong work.

Alan Lazaros

(18:00) Keep reaching for your full potential. (18:02) Next Level Nation.

Kevin Palmieri

(18:05) Thanks for joining us for another episode of Next Level University. (18:09) We love connecting with the Next Level family.

Alan Lazaros

(18:12) We mean it when we say family. (18:14) If you ever need anything, please reach out to us directly. (18:17) Everything you need to get a hold of us is in the show notes.(18:21) Thank you again. (18:21) And we will talk to you tomorrow.