Place Yourself in the Flow of Money!

A few blogs back I shared that I was working on a new Gratitude Statement for 2009 involving finances or to be more specific…MONEY! I have always had an emotionally volatile relationship with money, and decided it’s time for me to create a healthier relationship. As I have worked on the wording of the gratitude statement, I have processed through a lot of thoughts. My thoughts about money go the full range from being anxiety ridden because I don’t have enough to pay all the bills due, to being giddy because I have a small emergency fund in the bank. I have told my husband more than once that money is an aphrodisiac, and I stand by that comment!

As I began creating the new thoughts that I want to have about money, I realized once again how important specific words are to me. At first I wrote, “I am so happy and grateful NOW that money comes to me abundantly.” But that just didn’t seem to fit. As I sat at my writing desk looking out the window, I thought of the word “flow”, and I got excited! That was the perfect word for me to use to describe the movement of money in my direction! As I wrote the word ‘flow’ in the sentence an amazing thing happened. My thoughts transported me back in time to my childhood. My brother John and I were outside doing our chores. It was early spring and the snow and ice were melting. The water was rushing from the hill down into a little stream that passed by the barn. We had to wait for the sows to finish eating and so we began to play in the water. We saw how the water divided into little streams and then came back together as it rushed downhill. We soon began to divert the streams with our boots, then found sticks to dam up the water and watch how it moved. We were changing the flow of the water.

I realize that the flow of money is much like the flow of water. There are many things that can change the flow. My thoughts about money can change how the flow of money comes or does not come to me. And so I have adopted the word flow in my gratitude statement, “I am so happy and grateful NOW that money flows to me abundantly.” Do you know how many thoughts I have already identified as being blocks to the flow of money? It is amazing to learn that my thoughts and beliefs have been like a big old boot print or a pile of sticks, keeping the money from flowing to me.

Next I realized that this statement was going to require action on my part. I could not just stand still and let the flow find me. I must place myself in the flow. I must be a participant. I must see opportunity and take action on it. This changes my priorities and my behavior.

I also began to realize that guilt has played a big part in my relationship with money. I feel guilty about wanting to have money flow to me. It seems selfish! As I thought this through I realized that there needed to be a second part to my statement. So I added, “My commitment is to use this money to realize my dreams, and direct it onward so that others can realize their dreams.” The wonderful part about seeing the flow of money is that it has no real beginning or ending. It is a flow that continues onward making possible the dreams of many. My thoughts about money will continue to change. I’m sure of it. I look forward to being generous and becoming a sponsor of many projects and dreams.

Money is big news right now! If I listen to the news I am quick to become fearful about the economy and the prospects of our nation’s and my own personal future. So I don’t listen to the news much. Instead I remember that each time our nation has struggled through hard economic times, there have been people begin new business ventures. They have been the optimists. They have prevailed, experienced success, and gone on to offer great service and inspiration to generations of people here in America and around the world. I believe that this time is no different. It is a time of opportunity. I encourage you to look for opportunity every day. Find the things you can be grateful for and spend your time thinking about them. Be Encouraged and encourage others. If you are having a bad day, grab and pen and a spiral notebook and start writing, “I am so happy and grateful NOW that…”. Fill the page! Then go out and take some action! Place yourself in the flow of abundance!