Emotions and Money: The Two‘Taboo’ Topics

How comfortable are you addressing the two?

Emotions and money are the two pet peeve subjects you are likely to stumble on. Few people engage actively in these topics. They are uncomfortable. Yet most relationships collapse as a result of unaddressed financial and emotional issues. And we wonder why.

We worry about finances or yearn for financial freedom, but we hesitate to admit this. Our emotions too, take a backseat.

We are either unaware or unwilling to face their role and the havoc unhealthy emotional and financial habits can cause. We suppress and pretend they don’t matter or let them run wild and watch ourselves crumble under them.

If you crave financial freedom but say money is not important, you confuse not only your mind, heart and body but also the universe. The universe picks the latter. You cannot express dislike for what you want and expect to get it. It won’t happen.

If you want to be happy, grounded and confident, but you pay no heed to your emotions, you confuse your system. Emotions do not like to be ignored, suppressed or allowed to go wild. They persist and intensify. Like a toddler or an adolescent who will not stop until they have your attention, they keep pushing.

What to do

Start by acknowledging that talking about money is not beneath you. Whether you are earning pennies or tens of thousands, face and address your finances. Once you build a healthy relationship with money, you freak out less.

You stop getting too excited when you have much or going down the rabbit hole when you have little. Money demands respect, not excitement or avoidance. It sends you into a spin until you relent.

That goes for emotions too. Without a healthy relationship with your emotions, you can’t build healthy relationships with others.

What to ask yourself

Work on raising your awareness of these two subjects.

How strong are your emotional muscles?

How strong are your finances?

How comfortable are you addressing the two?

Put yourself in voluntary discomfort. The pandemic has revealed how precarious life can be. We may have thought we were emotionally and financially well cushioned. Turns out we were just comfortable.

Any time you start to feel too comfortable, savour the comfort. But stretch yourself and look around. Keep checking if your emotional and financial reservoirs and systems are well maintained and running.

Enjoy all the good life brings with it, every moment. But remain aware.