This upcoming Wednesday, August 18th, 2021 I am co-hosting our first BookChat with some friends who are also fellow financial advisors.

I would love for you to join us, even if you have not read the book, Wired for Wealth by Brad Klontz, Psy.D., Ted Klontz, Ph.D., and Rick Kahler, CFP(R).

Unfortunately, I did NOT love the book. (I debated how open I should be about this but think you have the right to know.) Since I did not like the book and struggled to get through it (and I love reading self-help books about money and the psychology of money!), I have no expectation for others to read it BUT I still expect this BookChat to be fun, interesting and educational.  We will be talking about money scripts or money beliefs. No need to even look at the book.

I am excited for this conversation because I look forward to hearing and learning from others about their thoughts and experiences around money. We all view and learned about money differently. We all are unique yet there are some common issues and lessons we have around money too. I know that money scripts may not sound interesting but it can be.

Most all of us want to change our money situation in some way, right?

I truly believe that to change your relationship (or situation) with money, you have to change your thoughts, beliefs and emotions around it. It is an inside job.

Here is an article from three years ago that I thought was worth sharing again. I hope it will help get you thinking about your money story and motivate you to come to our BookChat on Wednesday, August 18th, 2021 

What is Your Money Story?

Most of us have what I call a “Money Story.” It is a story (or a few) that you remember from your childhood about money.

Money is not something that many of us are taught about directly. It is something that we learn about by watching and listening to others, especially our family at a very young age. What we think and believe about money is at the unconscious level and is often difficult to articulate.

Money holds a lot of emotion and power over most of us. I want to help change your view and relationship with money for the better, so that it is not something so “heavy,” feared, or avoided. I want you to feel empowered and confident and actually ENJOY your money and what it brings to your life.

In order to get there, I often talk about and ask people about their “Money Story.”

My money story was when I lost a week’s worth of lunch money in 5th grade. I am one of seven children and my parents were careful with money and very good at making a dollar stretch. They had to be! I remember how upset my mom was when I told her I lost my lunch money. I sincerely doubt she remembers this happening at all. I felt horrible and can still vividly remember where I was and feel those strong emotions even decades later. I felt like she was upset at ME, me personally. I wanted to fix this and I didn’t know how. The money was gone. I looked and looked for it and I could not find it anywhere.

My lesson from this story was that you need to be responsible and careful with your money. Do not take money for granted. It is important. It is necessary. I still believe that and have taken this lesson to heart. Unfortunately, I also sensed that the money was more important than me and how I felt. I know that my mom did not mean for that to happen but that is how I felt.

My reaction to this incident is that I never want anyone to feel like money is more important than them and I don’t want money to be a cause of pain or suffering for anyone.

Losing that $5 bill had a very lasting impression on me. I believe part of the reason I do what I do now is because I don’t want money to be a source of distress or discomfort for anyone. I am motivated to help people change this effect of money on them and their lives.

I challenge you to think about your own money story and write about it. Then try to answer the following questions:

• What was the lesson(s) from this story?
• How has that lesson shown up in your life?
• How did you feel about it then?
• How do you feel about the story thinking about it now?
• What is the core underlying money belief within that story?
• What is there to love or be grateful for from that story?
• What is there to forgive or let go of from that story?

 I believe we have a lot to learn from our stories. We can change our current money “story” and situation by taking the time to uncover our unconscious and powerful beliefs and change them for the better.

I would LOVE to hear about your money story and what you learned from it back then and what you learned from it now, with some time, distance and thought.

All my best,

Tara​