Open To Change
What would it open up for you if enjoying a cup of coffee in your backyard (or local park) felt as luxurious as having that same beverage at a café in the French Riviera?
Or if a used Subaru made you as happy as a leased 2023 Mercedes?
Or if having a mutual fund investment worth a Chanel bag was just as satisfying as carrying that bag around?
Would you feel lighter, more at peace, and have more resources available to spend in line with your values?
Fulfillment
Fulfillment and pleasure in the present moment are heavily influenced by our state of mind.
I am not suggesting we can money mindset our way into feeling great when we are experiencing scarcity and deprivation. There are things we need to feel safe and healthy. But what if after our needs are met—luxury became a mindset, and a CHOICE.
How should you begin your journey to transform your mindset?
Connection
I often recommend clients who want to make the shift away from a materialism “never enough” mindset, dedicate more time to connecting with nature.
What does nature have to do with money? Well, our relationship to money sits in the primal part of our brain, relating to our most basic needs for survival—food, water, warmth, rest, security and safety. That is why it’s so hard to make rational money choices. Money is emotional and often ruled by our subconscious survival instincts. And it effects every aspect of our lives.
The People/Plant connection is a powerful healer that most of us are not tapping into nearly enough. Biophilia is “the inherent inclination to affiliate with the natural world—which is instrumental to people’s physical and mental productively and well-being.”
Our relationship to plants, and nature ALSO sits in the most primal survival part of our brain. We share the same basic needs as plants—food, water, warmth, rest, security and safety. Connecting to nature makes us feel restored. It alleviates mental fatigue. We can get easily caught up in a sterile modern environment, confused about what our bodies and minds truly crave.
We have all been there, myself included: You have an urge to buy something—thinking once you have it, it will make you happy, only to realize afterwards that happiness was fleeting.
Perhaps what you really need is to care for a plant, take a walk in a garden, watch the clouds float by, or hug a tree. Perhaps that is luxury.