If you were given two choices:

1. You could live a life filled with fear, anger, misery, lack, deprivation and everything else that goes with it, OR

2. You could live a life filled with abundance, gratitude, happiness, joy, peace, love, creativity and everything that goes with that.

Which would you choose?

I’m willing to bet that the odds of you choosing #2 are pretty good!

You may be thinking, "Yeah, it sounds great but that’s not my reality."

Here’s the thing….it is your reality! Believe it or not, you DO have that choice…that’s right, it may sound a little cray cray but you, my friend have the power to choose which life you want to live! It’s in YOUR hands!

It’s all about perceptions, basically, what you choose to "see" and focus your time and energy on.

This is an interesting time that we are going through right now, no doubt about it. As COVID-19 does it’s thing, you have to adapt to new ways of performing your regular activities such as work, grocery shopping, exercise, shopping in general, and so forth.

You can look at these changes in two ways:

1. Focus on how it is negatively affecting you.... bitch about the upheaval in your life or how big your arse is getting from sitting in front of the TV (guilty!)....gripe about how you can’t wait for things to get back to normal…and so forth.
(Reading this, can’t you just feel the negative, "dark" energy??)

                                                                      OR

2. You can use this event, this blip in your lifetime as a teachable moment. What good has come from this? What new (healthy) habits have you created? Which old (unhealthy) habits have you let go of? What great things and lessons learned will you bring with you moving forward, how can you create a better life for you?
(Ahhh…the heaviness is lifting and the light is beginning to shine 😊.)


Instead of complaining about all of the things that you can’t do, take stock of the good things that you have been doing.

For example:

- Instead of complaining about all of the things that you can’t do, take stock of the good things that you have been doing. Personally, I now spend more time walking and hanging out in nature, than I have in a long time!

- By not having the same spending "freedom" as you had before maybe you’ve saved some money.

- Maybe you’ve come to realize that many of the things that you "needed" to buy and spend money on before, turned out to be things you only wanted.

- Now that you have been forced to be more creative about how you spend your time, maybe you’ve taken up a new hobby or revived an old one.

I’m not flitting around, wearing blinders and singing "la la la la la" trying to make light of the situation nor am I ignoring the fact that lives have been lost during the pandemic.


What I am saying is yes, these things happened and it’s OK to acknowledge them, and learn from them but the key here is that you don’t need to hold onto them.

 You can choose to let go of the 'darkness'. 

You don’t need to make it the constant topic of your conversations or spend time listening to every report from a dozen different media sources, you don’t need to give negative subjects your constant focus and energy. …you can choose to let go of the "darkness".


You get to choose your perception of a situation.


The same applies to improving your financial situation. Many people think that following a spending plan or budget could be a light form of torture, depriving them of all things great; putting them in a position where the purse has been glued shut, leaving them to scrimp and save until their debt is paid off.
(Hello "darkness" my old friend….that is, the friend I want to ditch.)


Instead, following a spending plan can be looked upon as a way to help you live a life you love!

Wow! That sounds like a pretty heavy load for a spending plan to carry, right? But it isn’t…

Look at it this way…

First of all, if you have debt, that is one relationship that you need to be getting out of a.s.a.p. because it’s holding you back! The money that you are paying on debts (and interest) could be better used elsewhere. Getting out of debt is probably one of your most important financial goals.

Secondly, while you’re paying off your debt, your life does not go have to go on hold. Realistically, depending on your situation, it may take you a while to get out the debt but this doesn't mean you still can't live a life that you love! As your Money Coach…I want you to be loving your life …right now! I don't want you to make it a reward that you can only access AFTER you kick your debt to the curb.

What?? Can this be??

It sure can, and here’s one way to make it happen: instead of buying things to fill a space (inside of you or outside of you), you create a spending plan based on your values and what’s important to you.

Yes, debt repayment is a part of the plan but when you determine what your values are, you spend money only on the things and experiences that reflect what's important to you ...this is how you start to live a life you love!

How friggin’ awesome is that!??

You DO have the power of choice, it's one of your greatest superpowers!

Obviously there is more to it than that and it does take time to re-wire old thought patterns, but you DO have the power of choice. It's one of your greatest superpowers.

You can choose to live a life filled with darkness ( Fear, anger, misery, lack and deprivation and everything that goes with it) or

……. a life filled with light (abundance, gratitude, happiness, joy, peace, love, creativity, and everything that goes with that.)


It’s much easier for us mere mortals to default to the darkness but by making small changes and being patient and mindful, you can spend more time living your life in the light.

​Chances are, at some point or another you’ve spent a little (or a lot) of time daydreaming of the life you desire.

Daydreaming is awesome! Not only do you see the picture of what you want to achieve but you feel the emotion that goes with it. I mean, what’s the point of hanging out in a daydream if you don’t feel some level of happiness or joy about it, right?

But what if your daydreams had a purpose other than that of passing time or escaping reality?

What if you used these daydreams in a more strategic way, as a tool to help you achieve your financial goals and make your desired life a reality?

This my friend, is where visualization comes in, it's a bumped up version of daydreaming or as Bo Bennett puts it, "Visualization is daydreaming with a purpose."


You don’t need a crystal ball to see your future…you can design it instead!


It all starts with your value-based goals and the things that are important to you. Maybe your goal is to get out of debt. That's a great start, but why? What does getting out of debt mean for you?


What does it look like? Be specific, you want to see all of the details. What are you doing? Who is with you? What do your days look like? And so on.

What emotions can you attach to your goals? How do you feel when you imagine achieving them? Are you excited? Filled with joy? Happiness? Pride?

Use your senses in your visualization. What do you see? Are there any specific sounds you hear? What can you taste? What aromas can you smell? Is there anything you can touch?

Write down as much detail as you can. You want to be able to create a vivid mental picture of it, so vivid that you feel like you are living it!

Maybe reading your description is enough to get you motivated and to keep you motivated, but if you want to be more, create something more visual, a drawing, or a painting or a collage of pictures. Or maybe you would prefer to put it in a song!  

It’s up to you, let your creative juices start flowing and do whatever you need to do to help you keep a clear mental picture of your goal, with all of the emotion and the sensuality of it!

The next part is to visualize the process of reaching your goal. What steps do you need to complete to reach your goal?

"See" yourself completing each step, how does it feel? Which of your senses is being engaged?

As Frank Niles, Social Scientist puts it, "It is a powerful way to achieve positive, behavioral change and create the life you desire."

Visualization can help you stay focused on your destination,  but it alone does not guarantee success in achieving your goals. There is more to the process than just thinking and dreaming about reaching your goals, you also have to engage in the activities that are aligned with them.


So what do you want? What does your desired life look like?

Well hello hello and happy day!
 
Here’s a question for you….

Have you ever found yourself in a situation where you want to invest in yourself but your uncertainty holds you back? 
 
The investment could be anything…investing your time, your money, your focus, your energy, and so on….
 
You can see the benefits of the investment but you come up with so many reasons why you shouldn’t do it, that you pretty much talk yourself out of it.

For example….
 
Now, you might laugh at what I’m about to say…but I kid you not.

Buying underwear (bras and panties) is a tough decision for many women to make.

Yes, there are many styles to choose from, but often, it’s the financial investment that puts the brakes on the buying.
 
And it is an investment, no doubt about it…the price of a good bra will make your eyes and if you choose the matching undies, well, you might wonder if there’s thread of gold in them there drawers.

But it's not only a financial investment.

Your undergarments are foundational pieces.
Yes, they keep your wobbly bits in place and make your outer garments look better but they do more than that.

What you are wearing underneath has the ability to make you feel confident or sexy or freaky or whatever it is that you are aiming for. You aren't just buying underwear, you’re investing in you.


Maybe you’ve found yourself in a similar situation…


...you know your underwear needs an overhaul but after running through all the reasons why you shouldn’t buy right now,
 
you decide what you have is good enough for now and you’ll buy something later.

In the meantime the support in most of your bras is at a point where the “girls” look like they are resting in a hammock and the little holes in your underwear become unintentional
air-conditioning.


On the other hand, maybe you’re an impulse shopper. You don’t talk yourself out of any purchase…but when you get home, that’s when the remorse sets in and you dwell on all the reasons why you shouldn’t have spent the money, and you feel guilty about it.

Women often let their doubts and insecurities stop them from investing in themselves.

Your doubts and insecurities can prevent you from investing in more than just your skivvies,
 
it can prevent you from personal growth and development in other areas of life such as improving your financial, physical, emotional, intellectual, spiritual and/or social state.

That, in the long run, can impact you…. and your life in a negative way.
 
Because my work focuses on helping women get out of debt, stay out of debt and build (or create) a meaningful life while they do it…I’ll use related examples.
 
 
If you’re struggling with money and debt right now…I want you to just take a moment and think how it’s affecting you and your life.
 
Are you stressed out and frustrated over it?  
 
Are you losing sleep?
 
Are you just praying you’ll win the lotto or inherit money or even wishing money will just mysteriously appear in your bank account?
 
Is your financial situation negatively affecting your relationships with your spouse, your family, your friends, your co-workers or even the other people in your life?
 
Is it more difficult for you to have a handle on your emotions…in other words, is it way too easy for you to flip into bitch mode?
 
Is your financial situation affecting your productivity? I mean, it can be difficult to focus and think about other things when you’re stressed out over money and debt.
 
I want you to take the time and think about the negative impact that debt is having on your life.
 
This is not an exercise to make you feel like crap or pour salt into an open wound…it’s simply meant to give you a reality check….to move you to take action, and do something for yourself by facing your debt and doing something about it.
 
If you aren’t investing in gaining the knowledge and the skills you need to not only get out of debt…but to stay out of debt….you are doing yourself a disservice.
 
And the kicker is… your money problems will not magically disappear…if you don’t take control of the situation now…it’s going to get worse.
 
Debts are not like wine…they do not get better with age!
 
Investing in you can mean taking advantage of free or paid  resources, reading books, taking classes, participating in workshops or even working with a coach like me…but the idea is to take action.


There are many blocks that prevent women from investing in themselves and from taking action to change their situation, here’s a few and they are not in any specific order:

1.   They’re embarrassed about their situation and fear others will judge them.
 
This is a big one for many women, myself included. But here’s the truth…if this is you…it’s not about others judging you…it’s about how you see yourself!
 
We tend to think other people spend a lot of time thinking and talking about what’s happening in our lives…
 
truth is, unless your financial situation impacts them… they don’t really care….
 
If people have better things, to concern themselves with…such as…..their own life, they aren’t going to spend their time focusing on you and your finances.
 
And if you do know someone who would actually make you feel bad or judge you because of your situation….well, these are not the people you seek out for help.
 
Make sense?
 
2. Instead of making themselves the highest authority of their own lives. They seek permission to grow… from others.

It’s not a bad thing to get a second opinion from someone else if you’re trying to make a decision…. but bottom line…it’s up to you to determine what you need, what you want, what you deserve and to ultimately find a way to get it.


3. They aren’t sure it’s the “right” time.

Realistically it might never feel like the “right time”; you’ll always be able to find some excuse as to why you don’t have time to do something critical…. that will help you. 
 
Not being the “right time” doesn’t mean it isn’t the best time. It’s up to you to carve out the necessary time and money to make it happen.


 
4.   They’re worried they won’t get enough out of it or it’ll be a mistake.

YOU are the key player in your return on investment. Yes, it takes research to determine if something is worth pursuing… but more than that, your commitment, your actions, and your decisions directly affect your results.


 
5.   They’re afraid to achieve success.

Instead of feeding your unfounded fears about what might happen if you succeed in achieving your goals….. focus on the positive aspects of your success. How would you feel and what would your life look like if you were in control of your money and living a debt-free life?


 
6.   They feel guilty about spending money on themselves and put the needs of others ahead of their own.

I’m not talking about women who are struggling to keep a roof over their head or food on the table. I’m talking about women who have discretionary income, yet, they still feel guilty because they want to do something for themselves to get ahead…instead of using it for the good of others.


Does any of this sound familiar? These are just 6 examples of the blocks preventing women from investing in themselves…but there are more….
 
Are you putting off investing in yourself….. even though you know it’ll help get you closer to living your "ideal" life?
 
If so, what’s preventing you from doing it?
 
Many women struggle, with putting themselves first but look at it this way…if you don’t make you… #1….no one else will.
 
In order for you to be able to take care of and support others…you need to take care of you first.
 
As the airline safety procedures remind us….You have to put on your own oxygen mask first.
 
Remember, when I say “investment” I’m talking about the investment of your time, your energy, your focus and possibly your money….to gain the knowledge and the skills you need to help you achieve what you desire in or from your life.
 
I realize that money, debt and getting out of debt can be a sensitive subject….so if you are struggling and you want to talk about it….please feel free to private message me.
 
I want to help you get out of debt…stay out of debt…and build (or create) a meaningful life while you do it…but it all starts with a conversation.
 
On that note, I am outta here.
 
You have yourself a totally fantabulous day and always, always let your awesomeness shine!