Rewiring Subconscious Money Blocks
It’s tempting to think that getting awesome at budgeting, saving strategies, and investing tips will kick all our money worries to the curb. But here’s the thing – even financial rockstars can struggle if they don’t deal with the emotional aspects driving their money decisions. See, increased income brings next-level money headaches, too. “Mo Money, Mo Problems” isn’t just a song! Even wealthy people need to check in on their money mindset and emotional state if they want to stay on top long-term.
Mastering those money management skills alone will only go so far if we don’t become consciously aware of what’s really behind our financial choices, decisions, and habits.
Our Conscious vs. Subconscious Money Mind
Lots of daily spending and financial decisions happen on a conscious level, sure. And a whole unseen realm of past experiences, societal pressures, childhood lessons, and automatic fears shape our financial decisions. Our subconscious mind holds so much power.
Internationally recognized cell biologist and leader in bridging science and spirit, Bruce H. Lipton, PhD, states in his book,”The Biology of Belief,” that up to 95% of our daily thoughts, habits, and behaviors stem from those unconscious inner drivers stored in our subconscious mind.
Think of it this way: our subconscious mind operates like a behind-the-scenes puppet master. From backstage, it’s subtly pulling strings that shape how we think, what we believe, and what feelings pop up. Like a stealthy puppeteer, our subconscious mind mostly flies under the radar – yet it directs 95% of our behavior, responses, and habits on autopilot. It’s the hidden support structure propping up our core beliefs, knee-jerk reactions, deeply-rooted patterns, and our overall take on reality.
Creating Wealth From the Inside Out
Money You Should Ask Podcast – Episode 142
Our guest Michelle Arpin Begina is a Certified Financial Planner, money mentor and coach. Michele has spent the last two-plus decades studying the unconventional, non-financial aspects of life satisfaction, financial therapy (it’s a thing), and behavioral bias.
Our conscious minds would like to think we independently control things like logical thoughts and willpower. But often, we’re just puppets reacting according to our subconscious’s old programming and false assumptions. Almost all the random thoughts, feelings, and impulses that arise – have already been carefully filtered and curated by the inner puppet master before we’re even aware of them. Until we cut those strings consciously (choose to change old subconscious programming), those patterns (our finances) remain stuck. And the cycle of beliefs, habits, and behavior will continue to filter every financial decision you make.
Shedding Light on our Money Blind Spots
Between ages 2 and 7, we absorb truckloads of money beliefs that largely operate subconsciously. We download ideas about money and wealth from family, friends, society, and religion – collecting “facts” and fiction. If parents struggled financially, it may drive us one of two ways: either spurring ambition for a different future or self-sabotage repeating their path.
The stealth inner money manager remembers those early money experiences and stories, replaying them forever. So even as adults’ goal-mapping, abundance, and conscious plans of generating wealth are all put on pause, making any dreams of achieving money so frustrating.
The good news is we can overcome those blocks by unraveling outdated models planted early on. We can’t erase the past, but we can change how we relate to it. We can edit our disempowering money story with compassion, not judgment, around what we “deserve” financially. But first, we must bring light to the inner money beliefs operating in darkness since youth. Rewriting childhood stories allows for writing abundant adult stories.
Below are some questions you can ask yourself to help begin the process of exploring deep seeded money beliefs.
1. What is the earliest money-related memory you can recall, and what sensations or emotions come up for as you recall it? This begins to tap into potential root causes.
2. If money had a personality or embodied human traits in your mind, how would you describe it? By personifying money it reveals inner assumptions that you may have.
3. What did key people in your life (parents, caregivers, community, religion etc.) model to you about abundance and self-worth growing up? Their examples tend to shape our core beliefs.
4. When you imagine bold money goals like wealth or retirement, what self-doubts come up for you instinctively? Any internal pushback or discomfort tends to reveal our inner comfort level with money.
5. If you received an unexpected $1 million tomorrow, what would be your first several reactions, impulses and uses for it? Spontaneous reactions tend to unveil our default programming.
Is Your Money Mindset Working For or Against You?
Your ingrained beliefs about money can either spur you to success or sabotage your goals. Identify unhelpful money mindsets so you can rewrite your financial future.
Test Your Nerve with our free quiz to gain insight into the thoughts shaping your financial path.
Illuminate to Liberate: Rewriting Your Money Story
By tuning into our subtle money moods, our money nerve, financial behaviors, how we talk about money, and our reactions, we begin to build more self-awareness around our unconscious money story. An example could be avoiding money conversations with your partner to avoid conflict like those you witnessed in childhood. Or panic over bills because of early scarcity. Tracing current responses back to early programming is critical to shifting lifelong money habits.
The more we question the motives and stories driving our financial decisions and reactions, the more clarity we gain to rewrite limiting money beliefs by continually inquiring “why” around our financial interactions. We slowly begin dismantling the outdated subconscious programs directing our money behaviors and build new empowering beliefs and habits in their place. It’s time to start digging deep and rewriting our money stories for a more abundant future.
