A Woman Who Invests
Today, I am a woman who invests.
This is an evolution, a journey for me. And it is far richer and goes much deeper than just money in an investment account (though that's pretty exciting to me, too).
It was hard for me to conceptualize investing actual dollars until I learned how to invest in other key ways.
I had to learn how to stop simply spending and learn how to start investing - in all areas of my life.
Spending vs. Investing
Spending money {time, energy, love... anything, really} is recognized by its connection to a feeling of lack and scarcity. It has nothing to do with what's actually available - it feels like a drain (or like nothing at all). Often unconscious and steeped in the energy of *should*, spending takes away from the balance of our lives and adds nothing. Not because it couldn't, but because we cannot receive the gifts of our spending when we are out in the future or lost in the past.
vs.
Investing money {time, energy, love... again, anything} is recognized by its connection to a distinct feeling of abundance. Investing is additive by its very nature - it is a conscious choice to align our dollars, our time, our energy, our love with our most heartfelt values and priorities. It carries a feeling of expansion and investing by its very nature is grounded in the present moment.
All of our energy is either spent or invested.
We can do the exact same thing, be it money, time, energy, or love spent - basically given away - or it can be invested - put into the things that matter most: health, relationships, business success, peace of mind, prosperity, experiences.... whatever it is for you.
There is nothing wrong with spending - we all do it. However, when we lean toward the spending side, trying to fill a void or meet a need indirectly, we end up depleted (financially or otherwise... often both) - adding to the feeling of lack and scarcity.
Learning to invest
It is in the small, daily decisions that you can become comfortable with investing - by making choices and decisions that are additive and generate more abundance. Cultivate the investment mindset in the following ways:
1. Appreciate what's already here, available to you in this moment. When you are in spending mode, you are in scarcity mode. To stop the spending in its tracks, take a moment to yourself and breathe. Relax your jaw and your shoulders. Drop your attention into your body by feeling your breath move in and out of your belly. Feel your feet on the floor. Look around you and take in your surroundings. Ask yourself, "What abundance is already available to me at this moment?" "How am I already taken care of and taking exquisite care of myself and my needs?" This shifts you from spending to investing, immediately.
2. Know your core values. What is most important to you in your life? When you know your values and priorities, it becomes far simpler to make decisions that are aligned with your true desires. Your values become a touchstone, "Will this feel like love?" "Will this create a feeling of connection?" "Is this the truthful, authentic, courageous action to take?" Your core values are a powerful driving force for investing in the future you desire.
3. Ask yourself, "Is this flow {money, time, energy, attention, love, etc} additive?" Does it add something important to your life? Does it contribute to your wellbeing, to your family's wellbeing, to the future you envision? Is it aligned with your current priorities? When you envision the flow, does it feel expansive? Does it give something back to you that is greater than the flow itself?
The beauty of investing.
Though we often spend to fill a void, to slake the thirst of a "should" or to appease someone else, in the end, there will be nothing left. So often the women I work with feel like investing is an act of selfishness, but the truth is that spending steals not only from you - but from those you wish to serve. Investing, by its very nature creates more - more money, more time, more energy, more love, more success, more, more, MORE!!
Abundance is the birthright of women who invest.
Be a woman who invests.
I invite you to practice investing. Be loving, be kind and be curious as you shift from the spending mindset to investing. Enjoy the expansive abundance that begins to grow from your commitment to being a woman who invests.
xoxo.nona