You Can't Separate Emotion From Money

A radio station I regularly listen to has a prize where listeners can win significant sums of money simply by texting in and remembering what the cash prize pot is at.

Last week, one listener, a charming man in his 60s was lucky enough to win the £105,000 prize that was on offer that day. When the DJ asked him how he would spend the money she was completely taken aback by his answer, as I was and as probably most listeners were.

It wasn't the standard response of a car, holiday, new kitchen or similar. All this man wanted to do was to be able to buy a gravestone for his wife who had died 6 years ago. All this time he hadn't been able to afford it and now he had the chance to let her memory live on.

You see, whatever the reason, we make buying decisions emotionally. It won't also be significant as a gravestone for your deceased spouse, but more often or not it will be to make ourselves feel better somehow.

The problem arises when that emotional support is based upon a false belief or false assumption about ourselves. If we buy material possessions to provide ourselves with a sense of self-worth that can quickly spiral into unhealthy and unsustainable buying behaviours.

By recognising our beliefs surrounding money and what it means to us we can begin to make more informed and reasoned financial decisions.

When we can attach meaning to our money, that's when we can start to be fulfilled with it.