Imperfect people with imperfect motivations attempt to navigate the world of finances. The individual, through their innate temperament and the experiences gained throughout their lifetime, concoct a perception of money that is rarely accurate. We attribute so many concepts to money, including our feelings, values, customs, the ideas of freedom and happiness, and many more. As we interact with and hear stories about money, we attach little sticky notes to that figurative dollar bill. Those sticky notes may say things like “money starts fights,” “money is unattainable,” or “money = things.” Unfortunately, as we are writing those ideas on the sticky notes we are also writing emotions on the back side of those sticky notes that we cannot easily see. The corresponding emotions may be fear (“money starts fights”), sadness (“money is unattainable”) or happiness (“money = things”). Those thoughts and feelings begin to distort our view of money, much like the mirrors that distort our image at the fair. Right now, for example, you might be thinking: “well, if I had more money I would be happier and have more freedom.” This may be partially true, but most people of means say that having money comes with its own set of burdens, worries, and traps. Also, the same issues with finances we have when money is scarce will still be there if we all of a sudden do have money. An example of this is when people win the lottery. The vast majority of those winners end up struggling financially in a short period of time because their beliefs and actions surrounding money did not change when they actually became wealthy. If those lotto winners had changed their view of money when they became wealthy, then they would have had a better chance of retaining their wealth.
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