It’s undeniable that money plays an important role in our lives, but what exactly is that role? Is money a harmful distraction, or can it actually help us live more consciously? Is it better to give or to receive? Is poverty more enlightened than wealth?
Even among highly conscious individuals, money can be a contentious, polarizing topic. Social conditioning overloads us with so many conflicting views on the subject that it’s no wonder people are confused. Confusion about money causes us to compartmentalize the financial part of our lives. Money becomes a thing unto itself with its own rules and formulas. We literally treat it as something that must be cordoned off and sealed in a vault, isolated from other parts of our lives lest it somehow infect us with its inhuman properties.
Like most people, I (Steve Pavlina) grew up with incongruent beliefs about money. On the one hand, I saw evidence that money was good. Intellectually, material wealth seemed important, for money clearly bestows certain advantages. It can purchase food, clothing, shelter, transportation, education, technology, entertainment, medicine, and so on. Given the way our society currently functions, if you have money, you have solutions. It surely won’t solve all your problems, and it can create new problems of its own, but on balance it’s safe to say that money is a powerful problem-solving tool. Inspirational radio personality Earl Nightingale said it best: “Nothing can take the place of money in the area in which money works.”
On the other hand, there were some things I didn’t like about money. Intuitively, it felt hollow and meaningless to me. I didn’t like that it was used as a gatekeeper for certain privileges such as proper medical care, healthyfood, or decent educational resources. I was also disturbed that some people behave dishonorably to attain it. While I was sometimes impressed by the achievements of the world’s titans of wealth, many of them acquired their money through means I couldn’t stomach.
Have you been struggling with similar internal conflicts? If so, you’re certainly not alone because this battle is largely the result of social conditioning. We have some influences telling us that money is very important, while others tell us it isn’t. Notice what happens during the holiday season. Advertisers tell us to spend, spend, spend. They suggest that the more money we spend, the happier our holidays will be. On the other hand, we might watch a classic movie such as It’s a Wonderful Life that tells us we need to keep money in perspective and that relationships are far more important. Mixed signals abound.
Social conditioning about money affects how we relate to each other as well. What prejudgments do you make about people based on their financial status? What assumptions would you make about a millionaire? About someone who’s totally broke? How would you feel dating someone who earned ten times as much as you do? How about on-tenth as much as you earn?
These mixed associations lead many conscious people to conclude that money itself is the problem. Perhaps it’s better to live without it altogether or at least to minimize its role in our lives. If money is truly a distraction from conscious living, wouldn’t the most conscious choice be to shun money altogether? Should you give up all your worldly possessions and go live in a cave somewhere?
Despite what you may have been conditioned to believe, the simple truth is that there are no special rules for money. It obeys the principles of truth, love, and power the same as any other part of your life, and it’s a mistake to try to isolate yourself from the world’s financial realities. In this money section, I’ll offer you a holistic way of thinking about money, one that should satisfy your intuitive feelings as well as your logical mind.
* Source: Personal Development for Smart People by Steve Pavlina