Welcome to reThinkable - my weekly newsletter where I share actionable insights to build a wealthy healthy life.

Here’s what we’re covering:

• 👶 Were you raised like this?

• 0️⃣ What is a Zero Sum Game?

• 🚪 How to escape Zero Sum thinking

Estimated read time: 4 minutes and 15 seconds

👶 Were you raised like this?

I was brainwashed for most of my life.

I worried about not having enough money. I resisted spending on things that would ultimately be good for me. I thought that if someone else got something, then I would never get it.

I thought that wealth and resources were limited, which led me to be excessively frugal, to hoard, and to miss out on many opportunities.

But it wasn’t my fault.

For most people who grew up without money, we’re taught to believe that life is a zero-sum game. We’re taught that resources are scarce and that we have to fight to get our share.

In today’s newsletter, I want to talk about the concept of a Zero Sum Game and how you can stop “Zero Sum thinking” when it comes to wealth and success.

0️⃣ What is a Zero Sum Game?

A Zero-sum is a concept from game theory that states the total gain of the participants equals the total loss. Mathematically-speaking, it looks like this: 

(+1) + (-1) = 0

For instance, in a basketball game, one team wins only if the other team loses. 

While most games we play are zero-sum, life and wealth as a whole are not.

In fact, a 2023 study found that people who believe that life is “zero sum” tend to have lower income and less financial security because they experience more negative thoughts, operate from feelings of scarcity, and fixate on short-term thinking.

The possibilities in your life come down to how you perceive the world. A zero-sum view will make you settle for less out of fear instead of going after what you really want.

You'll take temporary comforts that ultimately leave you feeling empty. For example:

• You accept a lower salary for a job because you’re worried there aren’t better opportunities available

• You excessively save money and avoid spending it on anything because you’re worried about it running out

• You avoid making any financial decisions like investing because it seems too complex and you believe you’re going to lose money

But if wealth was a zero-sum then it cannot be created or destroyed meaning the total wealth in the world today should be the same as it was 1,000 years ago.

But we know that isn’t true.

The average person's real income increased anywhere between 2,500% to 5,000% between 1848 to 2017. The percentage of people living in extreme poverty dropped 89% to less than 9%.

The reason I wanted to share this is because I want you to know that the “pie” of life and wealth is not limited. Just because your neighbor gets a slice, doesn’t mean you get a smaller slice.

Your path to success doesn’t end just because someone else gets there first. 

When you start believing wealth is a positive sum game then rather than slicing the “pie” into thinner and thinner slices, you can create more pies. You start to view everything as a door being opened rather than a door being closed, which enables you to reap more rewards.

But I know this is easier said than done.

Zero-sum thinking is a mental trap that I’ve fallen for many times while growing my YouTube channel and building my businesses.

But every time I find myself in this trap, 2 things helped me escape it:

🚪 How to stop Zero Sum thinking

1. Rewrite your beliefs 

Imagine your best future self and start living like that person today. You’ll force yourself to think bigger than your current self, with your current limits.

Naturally, you’ll re-evaluate your current habits and turn them into habits of the person you know you are and can be.

Over time, you’ll turn into that person, because after all, that person is you.

2. The Box Strategy

Constantly comparing yourself to others will make you lose focus on your own goals. You start chasing what others want instead of what you really want.

The problem is, you'll never feel content with your talents and accomplishments if you're too busy worrying about keeping up with others.  

The Box Strategy forces you to only compare your current self to your past self.

Basically, think about all your accomplishments from the past few years — maybe you started a new job, went back to school, or read 5 books. Put all of those achievements into a box.

Next, imagine another box, but this one’s empty. Your goal is to fill this new box with stuff that’s even bigger and better than those in your old box.

🔎 reThink More

💸 Oh, by the way, I’m helping 5 people take back control of their finances for FREE. I haven’t made the big announcement yet, but I wanted to thank YOU for reading the “reThink More” section by giving you early access. Anyone can apply: sign up here.

▶️ Watch it: My latest YouTube video,So... What’s Going To Happen To Baby Boomers’ Money After They Die?

❤️ Community Space

Last week, I wrote about I finally won the big fight. 72% of you got the right answer to Why does 'that guy' exist in our head?: "That guy" is our brain's way of trying to protect us from potential failure but at a steep cost.

Here are some of my favorite responses:

• "That guy", or for some of us, "That woman" is that overprotective guard trying to keep us from doing something too risky and upsetting the usual way of things. Even if it's good change, it'll still freak out.”

• “that guy is like a mom who is protecting the child n give comfort, but the child needs to grow up sooner or later”

• “Protection is one thing, but sometimes I wanna smack "That guy" and tell him to move outta my way.”

Answer the bonus question in the quiz below for a chance to be featured in our next newsletter 😀.

📝 reThinkable Quiz

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See ya next week, Vincent.