My Money Blocks and Me

Over the past few weeks, several coaches have pointed out my fatal flaw—the thing holding me back from achieving “success.” I have HUGE money blocks.

I’m not going to lie; they’re right. My relationship with money is fraught. It sometimes stops me from taking steps I “should” take toward bigger and bigger goals.

I also recognize that, despite them claiming otherwise, many of these people have pointed out this flaw so that I will spend money on their services, even if I’m not in the position to do so. In this way, my “failure” gets blamed on my choice not to invest in myself, and the vicious cycle continues.

Financial coach Tiffany Woodfield explains money blocks in this way:

Money blocks are deeply ingrained subconscious beliefs about money that create psychological barriers to financial success. These negative patterns operate below conscious awareness, making it challenging to implement behavioral changes. Overcoming money blocks requires reprogramming these subconscious beliefs to align with conscious financial goals. (12 Big Money Blocks Even the Rich Have and How to Reverse Them)

In my case, I sometimes struggle with asking for what I’m worth or demanding that I get paid fairly. Although I have been very vocal about time and wage theft lately.

I struggle with the idea that you have to “spend money to make money,” which might mean going into bigger debt or denying my family. I struggle with charging people who also have limited funds exorbitant amounts when success requires their hard work as well as mine. Finally, I struggle to say that my work can only be considered successful if it is quantifiable by numbers of people or money.

It’s definitely something to think about.

This post is not going to tell you how to heal those blocks. In a way, I choose to embrace my issues with money in defiance of societal norms. Rather, I want to challenge the perspective that money and wealth are the keys to success. What if that attitude is the problem? Could it be that money is not the problem, but the way people choose to embrace it is?

• In a late capitalist society, people need money to survive.

• Money is not real. It is paper (although now it’s rarely even that) that represents the value that human minds have placed on items and services.

• The richest among us hoard money as if it increases their value, when in reality their attitude contributes to the destruction of others and our world, thus diminishing their value as human beings.

• Money is equated with power, but people without money also have the power of their voices, purpose, passions, dreams, and creativity that—I believe—is more important.

• With shifts toward extremist right ideologies, it will be harder to make a living, let alone build wealth, as money flies to the top and never trickles down.

Based on this list, we can see that the problem is not money; the problem is people who worship money and define success only in monetary terms. Money is not the root of all evil; people who cannot find value in anything besides money can claim that title.

So what does this mean for me and my money block? Here’s what I’m thinking:

I, like everyone else, need money to survive. I would like to not just survive but thrive. To me, that means being able to treat myself and my family to a comfortable home, trips, adventures, and a joyous life without constantly worrying about money.

The unfortunate reality is that we are all (at least in the United States) about to face more money troubles; everything will become more expensive, and jobs are going to be harder to find. My strengths lie in writing, theater, creativity, education, and helping support the voices and dreams of others—especially those whose voices people in power want to silence. But, when simply making a living is a huge challenge, those things often get pushed to lower priority.

That doesn’t mean that I will stop, though. It means that I will focus on defining success in different terms—not just financial ones. I will not focus on what other people think I “should” do or how much money they think I “should” be making. but on my definition of success.

What is that definition of success? It is a life of creative resistance and rebellion, which includes:

1. Living my values.

2. Being kind and supporting those who need help.

3. Demanding respect for my work and the work of others. This means that, when working for companies and people with more money, I will expect payment for my time, skills, and energy at a high level. I will not work for less pay than I deserve so that I can offer my services at a lower price to people who deserve to live their dreams and define success on their terms.

4. Focusing on the process and joys of living a life with an eye for adventure, opportunity, and possibility.

This attitude may not fill my bank account, but at least when I look back at it all, I will have lived a life that I am proud of—and that means that I will succeed.