Life Is Not All About the Money

The idea that life is not all about the money might sound ironic coming from someone who believes whole-heartedly in the benefits of being rich. However, forget about getting out of debt, paying bills, buying nice things, etc. While that stuff’s great, at the end of it all you’re not going to give a damn about your credit rating. In fact, money’s going to be the last thing on your mind in that moment.

Refusing the Idea That It’s All About the Money

Money Won’t Change Your Circumstances

Money has the possibility to reduce the stress of living, but it can also bring just as much, if not more, anxiety. I’ve gone through my cycles of accumulating and losing money, getting more and losing it again.

The fact is, during these times, the money wasn’t burning a hole in my pocket. No, I just had a big hole in my pocket and didn’t bother to sew it up. That hole represented something in my mental blueprint that kept me from being stable with money. There was nothing wrong with the money itself. There was something wrong with me.

On the other hand, people without money often think if they just had enough to do this or that, then things would be better. While that may be true, what happens when the mind goes into ‘Only if …’ consistently? That’s exactly what you get … ‘only if.’

‘This will only happen if…’

All of a sudden nothing’s happening, and you don’t even know or remember that rule you created. In business that thinking often translates into “It takes money to make money.” No! If you have money it can certainly grow more money, but it doesn’t take money to make money. It takes creativity to make money.

Throwing money at a problem is disaster! In business there’s no such thing as a money problem. That problem grew out of somewhere else. You want to fix the root of the problem. If you throw money at a business problem, you’ll have the same business problem for the rest of your life and no money. Creativity and knowledge are the answers, not money.

Money Won’t Change You

It’s also not logical to blame money for people’s shortcomings, or the world for that matter. Obviously there are people that are rich and greedy. However, there are also poor people who are greedy. There are middle class people who are greedy. At the same time, there are rich, poor, and middle-class people who are generous. There are rich, poor and average income people who can be both generous and greedy, depending on the stress they’re going through at any given time. Money doesn’t dictate people’s behaviors. People’s behaviors run much deeper.

Hopefully these examples have proven to you that money isn’t the root of all evil. Envy, jealousy, and greed — all based in fear of not having or getting enough of something we want — pre-dated currency (think about the story of Cain and Able). These negative emotions are a part of what it means for us to be human — not a part of what it means to be financially secure.

 

If money isn’t the cause of all that’s wrong, it’s not going to be the cure either. Just as I said above, life is not all about the money. It’s not the answer. Instead, it’s the fruit of our expansion — or lack thereof — beyond ourselves and of the impact we’re having on the world. Have you struggled with these ideas in the past? How has money impacted you? Let us know in the comments below.

For Your Freedom,

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