The concept of abundance appeals to most people - we want an abundance of money, time, friends, love - yet so many of us seem locked into scarcity at all levels. Why? Let's take a look at financial abundance. I've discovered that the two major limitations around abundance are an underlying feeling of not deserving and a feeling of guilt that our abundance comes at the expense of someone else.
We can do all we like in terms of earning, saving, investment, money management and financial planning but we'll never feel truly abundance if we don't change these beliefs about ourselves and our environment. Have you ever wondered why some people have money, while others do not, or why some people have earned lots of money and still don't have any?! There are obstacles such as the family we are born into, lack of financial knowledge or lack of opportunity but people overcome them all the time.
What really stops us is the way each of us thinks and feels about our money and this is the key factor in determining how much money we ultimately are able to create and keep. Some people think and feel in a way which creates the means to achieve and hold on to what they desire and others do not. Robert Kiyosaki's well known "Rich Dad, Poor Dad" book is all about thinking and feeling differently about money.
We learn many of our beliefs about money from our parents. How did your parents spend money? Did they enjoy their money, or did they struggle to have enough? Did they buy things for themselves? Did they talk freely with you about how much they earned, or was money a forbidden topic? How did they spend on you? Did you feel your wishes counted?
Have you taken on such beliefs as: *money only comes from working hard, *paying bills is a struggle, *people will only love me for my money, *wealthy people are stressed out,*having money will separate me from my friends, *money is a responsibility that ties me down, *I don't deserve to make money from work I love to do? Or are you one of those people who is wealthy but still doesn't feel secure?
You can release old beliefs and feelings that no longer serve you and choose your own operating principles instead. It takes courage - Suze Orman in her book called "The Courage to be Rich" says we need courage in order to honestly face our beliefs, emotions and behaviour around money and abundance, many of which are associated with a low self-esteem. When you undervalue what you do, the world will undervalue who you are. Your net worth will rise to meet your self-worth only if your self-worth rises to accept what can be yours. Gary Craig, founder of EFT, points out that rather than feeling greedy and guilty about wanting more, the more we use the more we create, the more we generate abundance for others and the more freedom we have to extend love into the world.
How about choosing to earn and spend money in ways that bring you aliveness, happiness, well-being and self-love and sharing this abundance with others.