stop shrinking, start expanding
The first advice is always the same: cut back.
When financial stress arrives, the response is immediate and universal. Reduce expenses. Tighten the budget. Live on less. It's practical, responsible, and rooted in a single assumption—that the problem is what you're spending, not what you're earning. But what if the real problem is the question itself?
We've been conditioned to see scarcity as the starting point. When money feels tight, we're taught to make ourselves smaller. Trim subscriptions. Cancel memberships. Reduce needs until we fit into the box our current income provides. And yes, living within your means matters; reducing misaligned spending is often part of the solution. But it's become the only solution we offer. The default answer. The path of least resistance.
Nobody asks the other question: what if you expanded instead?
This is what most financial advice ignores. We assume constraint is wisdom. We believe that shrinking is safety. But at a certain point, cutting expenses isn't neutral–it becomes painful. It becomes a form of self-denial that whispers, "You don't deserve more. You should want less." That energy doesn't create abundance. It creates resentment.
There's another path. One that most professionals won't mention because it can't be controlled, can't be guaranteed, can't fit neatly into a spreadsheet. That path is expansion. It's increasing your means instead of reducing your life. It's growing into the fullness of what's possible rather than shrinking into what feels safe.
I know the objection already forming: "That's not realistic. You can't just make more money." And you're right–it's not easy. But difficult isn't the same as impossible.
The only real barriers to improving your financial situation are the ones you accept as truth: self-doubt, disbelief, and fear of change. There are countless examples of people who started with less, faced more obstacles, and still found ways to expand. They didn't do it by making themselves smaller. They did it by aligning with what they could uniquely offer. It is possible. But almost nobody is telling you this.
This path looks different for everyone. Real constraints exist– systematic barriers, medical situations, or caregiving, I'm not dismissing those realities. But even within constraints, there's often more possibility than the scarcity mindset reveals. And sometimes the answer is both: reduce misaligned spending and create aligned income. It's not either/or.
The financial industry has built itself around protection and caution. Risk mitigation. Safe strategies. These have value. But they've also created a culture that whispers, "Don't reach. Don't risk. Stay where you are." We've become so focused on defending what we have that we've forgotten the energy of creation. And there comes a point where cutting expenses doesn't lead to peace. When you've already eliminated the excess, when you're already living modestly, when you're making conscious choices, cutting more doesn't bring clarity. It brings constraint. It makes you feel smaller in a world that keeps expanding. That's when you need to expand, not reduce.
You've probably heard the narrative that more money doesn't make you happy. At a certain threshold, that's true. But if you're reading this, if you're considering cutting expenses just to live a good life, you're not at that threshold. Not even close. More money won't solve everything. But more aligned money absolutely improves your life. That distinction is everything—especially once you've covered the basics. Yes, you need to pay the bills. But even when you're meeting basic needs, how you earn matters. Working in alignment with who you are changes the quality of your life, not just the quantity in your account. And once you're past survival mode, that's when aligned expansion becomes the real path to wellbeing. Anyone can live aligned, regardless of income. But when you're seeking to grow beyond the basics, alignment determines whether that growth brings peace or just more stress in a different package.
This isn't permission to chase wealth for its own sake or keep up with anyone. This is about alignment. If your desire to increase your means is aligned with your authentic life—if the reason you seek more money serves your purpose, supports your values, and helps you live more fully as who you truly are–then expansion is the path. The question isn't "Can I afford this life?" The question is "Am I living in alignment with who I am?"
One of the most powerful places to start this expansion is with your unique gifts and talents. You have them. Everyone does. These are the things you do naturally, the ways you see the world that others don't, the value only you can offer. When you align your financial life with these gifts, something shifts. You're no longer just working for money. You're allowing money to flow through the expression of who you really are. And here's why this matters practically: when you're doing something only you can do, scarcity works in your favor. You're providing value that's harder to find, which means you have more control over what you charge. You're also better at what you're doing—when you're using your natural gifts, excellence comes easier. Better work means more value delivered, which means more income potential. And I believe the Universe responds to the higher energy of doing something you love. It's not just about the economics. It's about moving in harmony with your purpose. So where do you start?
Maybe it starts as a side project. Maybe you offer your gifts to people who need them, outside your regular work. Maybe it stays small, just enough to ease the pressure. Or maybe it grows into something you never imagined. You won't know until you start. But here's what I believe: it will grow into exactly what you need it to be.
When you pursue expansion through alignment, the Universe tends to meet you there. Not because you're forcing or manipulating, but because you're finally moving in harmony with your purpose. Instead of living from scarcity, stress, and fear, you begin to live from abundance. You create the authentic life you want, not the diminished version you've been told to accept. And this is where alignment becomes critical.
Expansion without alignment is just chasing. It's the same trap, different direction. If you're seeking to increase your income because of external pressure, because society says you should, because you're comparing yourself to others, then you're still operating from scarcity. You're still trying to fill a void that money can't fill.
This isn't an excuse to spend frivolously or live beyond your means in misaligned ways. Expansion applies to both sides of the equation—how you earn and how you spend. When you're already stretched thin, expanding doesn't mean adding new expenses or indulging every desire. It means creating more aligned income to support the life you're meant to live. And when you do spend, the same principle applies: if the spending is aligned with who you are and what matters, then go. If it's not aligned, think twice.
Ask yourself:
Is my desire to increase my means aligned with my authentic life?
Is what I can do to increase my means aligned with who I truly am?
Am I seeking to expand for myself and those I care about, or am I doing this because of societal pressures?
These questions determine whether expansion will bring peace or just more stress in a different form.
The right answer for some people might still be to cut back on spending–especially if that spending is misaligned, if it's serving someone else's vision of success rather than your own. Review your expenses. See if reduction is part of the solution. But don't assume the answer always has to be "live on less." You don't have to make yourself smaller. You don't have to accept less than what you need to live your authentic life. You don't have to apologize for wanting space to breathe, to create, to give, to grow. Shrinking doesn't have to be the answer when expanding is also an option.
This is an invitation to see a different path. One where your financial stress isn't solved by diminishing your life but by expanding into the fullness of what's possible. One where money flows not because you've learned to need less, but because you've aligned with who you really are.
The Universe responds to alignment, not deprivation. Your gifts matter. Your vision matters. Your authentic life matters.
Stop asking "What can I cut?" Start asking "How can I expand?"
Keep pursuing,
JC
