Finding Money To Increase Your Cashflow

Finding Money To Increase Your Cashflow

Chances are you’ve probably tried to budget at some point in your life. Trying to get a handle on your monthly cash flow can be an overwhelming project. As a Financial Coach, I spend a lot of time helping my clients get clarity on what their budget numbers are, and...
The Money Story: A Journey of Awareness

The Money Story: A Journey of Awareness

Have you ever thought about writing your autobiography? Chances are, it sounds daunting! To recapture your life and all that’s happened may take quite a bit of time and energy. Who would you write it this for? Documenting your life experiences would be an interesting read for your family and could serve to pass down some wisdom you have gleaned through your lifetime.

Your Money Story is a piece of each chapter of your life. It is uniquely yours, as there are no two stories that are identical. Although writing your story may feel as daunting as an autobiography, it can be broken down into specific chapters, that when pieced together, can impart some important clues around how your beliefs are driving your emotions around money. Even more interesting, how these are affecting your behavior with money.

Having written my own Money Story, I can attest to many “aha moments” that have given me insight into “why I do what I do” with money. As I have been working on my story for several years, I have learned that by documenting each chapter I have been peeling back layers of messages and emotions that hadn’t been leading to the behavior I knew I wanted to embrace.

We’ve all been given sage advice as to the best ways to manage our money, such as “spend less than you make,” or “pay off your credit card every month.” But turning this guidance into action steps is a struggle for many of us. In my past, I would beat myself up for the decisions I made, because I knew better…

I knew that spending more than I was making wouldn’t turn out well. I knew that my increasing credit card debt was going to lead to more worry, stress, and guilt. I kept asking myself, “what’s wrong with you?”

As it turns out, nothing was wrong with me! The unhealthy money habits were a result of a disconnect I had with my money story: mixed messaging, misguided perceptions, anger, and fear around money made for a perfect blend of a looming disaster. I hit rock bottom twenty- five years ago. I was broke and broken-not able to muster up the energy to tackle the enormity of my situation.  The isolation was the frosting on the cake of my situation and carried my mindset to an all-time low.

It wasn’t until I started digging deep into my story that I could start my own journey to financial confidence. By unraveling my perceptions, and getting curious about my emotions I began to understand my behavior with money. Little by little I began making different types of decisions that were based on the emotional outcome I so desired, using that emotion as a guidepost in my everyday spending decisions. I was in the early stages of changing my goal from paying off a HUGE amount of debt to making decisions that would result in building my confidence.

I have written my Money Story! Each time I reflect on it I have new insights to incorporate into the story, leveraging my awareness of some behavioral blind spots, or messaging that can linger for decades.  The transformation that I have experienced is a big part of why I founded my financial coaching business. I believe that everyone deserves clarity around their money behavior that can lead to a life of stress- free money management. Using our money story as a tool to build awareness, along with a plan to leverage the numbers we are working with can lead to a truly holistic approach to money management.

Brad Klontz, author of “Mind Over Money,” and founder of Yourmentalwealth.com, states, “Recognizing that our financial habits make sense given our history and the beliefs we internalized about money allows us to reflect on our financial mistakes with compassion and grace.”

By authoring your money story, you will triumph over the habits that are holding you back from reaching your financial goals, and give yourself the compassion and grace that will allow you to get un-stuck. Get ready for the next chapter of your Money Story to finally be told from the perspective of confidence!

What’s Your Money Story?

What’s Your Money Story?

Results for "jane helm" Do you know what your money story is? How do you approach money, and what do you struggle with the most financially? Coaches Laura and Kelye explore the topic of financial independence with financial coach Jane Helm from Money Mentor...

Redefining Your Money Monster

Money is __________.

If you were to complete this sentence, what would you say? 

What are the driving forces behind your attitudes about money?

Where did those attitudes and beliefs originate?

The way in which we handle our finances is determined by the underlying beliefs  we have about money and it’s impact on our lives.

Life Coaches Carol Hayes and Laura Hall are offering an interactive and creative workshop where you will begin to identify what we playfully call your Money Monster. Like any “monster” that lurks under the bed, when we shine a light on it we see that it’s not as bad as we think it is. The fear of the imagined monster is what limits us and prevents us from being all that we want to be. By acknowledging its presence and effect on our lives, we can begin to make different choices. Choices that enhance our relationship with money instead of letting it control us.

Money can be a difficult subject for many people to talk about so we approach this topic with respect, and with a bit of humor.  Money mastery begins when we understand that our self worth is not determined by our net worth. As we identify our values and explore how our money reflects those values we begin to see that money is simply a tool and not an end in and of itself.

 If you are curious about  your relationship with money and want to transform it into something that serves you instead of something that restricts you  join us on Tuesday, December 7th from 7-9 pm in Wolf Furniture’s conference room.

Register today at www.wholisticwomanretreats.com.

This workshop is open to women, men, couples and anyone interested in learning more about money mastery.