Money Sense, Screwdrivers and Squirrels
Contando Dinheiro - Image by Jeff Belmonte
I just read the new post on Joe Vitale’s blog, How Much Money is Bad?. It’s about money and people’s limiting beliefs about money. It really got me thinking.
I realized, that money is just a tool, like a screwdriver. It is no more and no less. It reminded me of Ebenezer Scrooge in Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. In fact the specific version that came to mind is from Disney’s version, not the new one that was just released, but the classic version that I grew up with. Burned in my mind, is the image of Scrooge counting his money, literally surrounded by stacks of gold coins. He hoarded his money, like a squirrel storing nuts for the winter. But unlike the squirrel, Scrooge never used any of the money to do anything. It occurs to me, that this is the equivalent of filling room after room after room with every type and size and description of screwdriver, but never using any of them to drive a screw, or do anything else.
When we talk about this in terms of screwdrivers, it seems utterly absurd. On the other hand, we talk about it in terms of money, it seems like a good idea. But don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying I think saving is a bad idea. What I am saying is that I think if we want financial abundance in our lives, we need to be focused on what we really want, not the screwdriver, but the thing that we make with it. Likewise we need to focus on what it is that we desire to do with our money. This could be anything, a new home for family, amazing works of philanthropy that make a difference in the world, helping to make someone’s dream come true or maybe just creating amazing experiences for ourselves. Whatever it is, I think the it’s incredibly important to be focused on that, rather than on many coins we have in our bank account.
I feel in my heart that doing this will make all the difference. So I’ll leave you with this thought, in the words of Tiny Tim: “God bless us, every one.”
