Checking your money thoughts…what does that mean?

We’ve all heard, over and over again, that “our thoughts are the key to creating the lives we want.”

Financial translation…

“Our thoughts about money and wealth-creation are the key to creating the financial lives we want.” Since it takes money to buy pretty much everything these days, I thought it time to spend a little time checking our money thoughts!

Check Your Thought Patterns.

Given that you likely have a few money thoughts that warrant some changing, you’ll need to look at what thoughts are currently running you in the financial realm. Before we can change our thoughts, we have to become aware of them.

An interesting thing about thoughts is that we generally think in patterns. We have one thought and it automatically leads to another thought. It happens the same way almost every time. We can call this ‘habitual thought patterns’ redundant as that may be! Seeing thought patterns is a good way to practice awareness.

Here’s an example: You want to buy something. Your initial thought might be “I don’t have enough money for that” which leads to “I never have money to buy the things I want” which leads to “I’m not very good with money” which leads to “I’ll never have the money I want”. Now, whether or not you end up buying the thing, you’ve already recast your fate. Your habitual thought trail led you right into a financial thought trap! But don’t worry, they can be re-patterned to work in your favor!

Our thought patterns are created early in life without us ever knowing it. We get them from our families, our teachers, the media, from just about every input we experience as children. Your children have thought patterns firmly set in place right now…about money, about people with money, about people without money, about what it takes, or doesn’t take, to have money.

And, because so many of our thoughts patterns are learned when we’re young, they are set deep in our subconscious and strengthened often.  Unless we learn to check our thoughts and put some space in between them, THEY control US.

Check In To See Where Unsupportive Thoughts Are Working.

Unsupportive thoughts are those that work against or in conflict with what you want.

By looking at or ‘checking’ those unsupportive thoughts we gain the opportunity to replace them with those that support our true desires. In the realm of money, this is KEY to creating a new internal paradigm ‘patterned’ for success.

Here are some common definitions for the word CHECK with some interesting ways to help you check in with your current money thoughts:

• Check

To arrest the motion of abruptly; halt: “checked the flow by shutting a valve”.

What thoughts about money stop you or keep you from moving out of your current situation? Look for thoughts like “I don’t know enough” or “I don’t deserve to be rich”. Where do you get these thoughts? Is there a behavior or habit you do or don’t do when you have these thoughts? And, if you have children, are you teaching them to have the same money thoughts?

• Check

To hold in restraint; curb: “check an impulse to laugh”.

When you find a thought leading to a behavior or habit that you don’t want to do anymore, see if you can stop the thought, restrain yourself, go a different way. I know, I know. The experts say it takes 21 days to make or break a habit. That may be, but why do some people successfully stop smoking one day and never smoke again? My point: don’t believe everything you read or hear and know that you CAN change on a dime!

• Check

To slow the growth of; retard.

Sometimes we FEEL retarded when we think we can’t control our thoughts. It’s OK. You’re not alone. The simple fact is that we CAN control them, meaning we can stop believing them. We just have to have a big enough WHY for doing it. Again, I’ll use the smoker who became a nonsmoker with a single thought, “I am now a nonsmoker.”

• Check

To inspect so as to determine accuracy, quality, or other condition; test, as in “checked out the system to make sure there were no errors in the software”.

Learn to constantly inquire within when you find yourself thinking financial thoughts that lead you in a direction that isn’t working. Inquiry is not judging. Inquiry is curiosity. Simply say to yourself, “I wonder why I’m thinking….” Inspect your internal thought system. See what comes.

• Check

To verify by consulting a source or authority: “checked her facts before speaking”.

It’s always helpful to understand where your thought patterns came from. For example, if you recognize that your most unsupportive thought patterns were learned from a certain relative, perhaps you can better monitor yourself when you’re with that person and be vigilant in noticing what other thought patterns you acquired from the same source. We tend to believe those we love and admire so chances are, if you took on a thought pattern from someone like that, it’s likely there are others in there as well.

• Check

To put a check mark on or next to: “checked off each item on the shopping list”.

As your awareness grows, make a list of your unsupportive financial thoughts. Inquire, inspect, and create new, supportive thoughts. Check them off as you go. Completion is a great stepping stone!

• Check

To deposit for temporary safekeeping: “checked his coat at the door”.

Recognize that these thoughts patterns are simply a part of who you are. They may remain with you for the rest of your life but you don’t have to act on them or use them if you don’t want to. Once you’ve checked them off the list, simply put them in the used, out-of-date, doesn’t-fit-anymore closet and move on to your new, happy, fits-much-better closet.

• Check

as in your Checking account!

This is the definition I like best. When we do the work above, when we learn to monitor, control, and architect the financial beliefs we need in order to have the things we want in life, there is almost always a corresponding increase in the balance of this account!

When your checking account grows, so do you.

The Secret

What are you waiting for? Start growing your checking account right now by simply asking yourself this one question:

“What thoughts am I having about money and wealth-creation that are keeping me from having the financial life I want?”

Now step aside and watch what comes up. The next few thoughts you have may be the keys you’ve been looking for.