I had planned to officially retire next year. Then my modest financial portfolio went south with the rest of the market, and I pushed the date back one year. The market has rebounded since then, but still I’m leery of walking away from a regular paycheck and “downsizing” my life.

In short, I have become a victim of poverty consciousness.

Poverty consciousness is the belief that there isn’t enough of anything to go around: not enough money, not enough time, not enough planning, leaders, clean air, rest, love – just about anything that you want or think you and others need, or that is important to you.

There’s never a poverty of trouble with poverty consciousness – the trouble that comes from constantly thinking you don’t have enough of something. When you have plenty of trouble, you also have plenty of company, because the thing we desire most of all is someone to tell our troubles to.

Have you ever experienced poverty consciousness? Get one opinion on its real cause in this month’s The Drift.