The Money Talk…

Let’s talk about money. Money can be a controversial topic. I have gotten in tons of heated conversations about money with people; mostly my family. It seems like it’s one of those topics like religion and politics that just shouldn’t be discussed over dinner. To that point, money in general is a really uncomfortable subject. Period. Money can be a relationship killer. The having it, the not having it, spending it, not spending it, hiding Amazon boxes from your spouse. All of it can be the cause of major upset between couples, friends, family, co-workers, anyone. In fact, “money issues” is one of the leading causes of divorce. So why is that? What makes us so sensitive about money, that it leads to arguments, hostility, or worse, completely destroying a relationship with someone you love? 

There’s no one answer to this question. Money can trigger emotions inside of us that cause us to react in all different ways. However, there is a way to prevent money from ruining your relationships. We need to identify our own feelings and emotions surrounding money. What is your relationship with money? Jot down as many things that come to mind. 

Maybe you’re anxious or fearful, stressed to make ends meet, feeling guilt, shame or regret over decisions you’ve already made. Maybe you’re jealous of what it looks like other people have. There are an infinite amount of feelings we could have towards our money. 

Most times our thoughts and feelings with money start from how our parents acted around money as we were growing up. Think back to how you were raised and how that might have affected your current money mindset. Explore each emotion you wrote down and find the theme. Once we get clear on what our relationship with money is now, we can begin to fix it.