This past weekend, I had the privilege of seeing AVATAR in 3D at an IMAX theater. What a gift that was and I recommend it. I’ve heard stories of people struggling after seeing this film but truthfully, it is just a classic tale in so many ways. What makes it so beautiful is the environment that was created and the way the Pandorians (they lived on Pandora) live and interact with each other and with their environment (plants and animals).

The movie depicted human beings inhabiting their own ‘Avatar being’, in other words, when the humans connected on a brain level to their own Avatar beings, they BECAME that being and sensed everything their Avatar was sensing, experiencing the world as if they were that way.

The definition of an Avatar: the manifestation of a divine being into real life; the personification of a familiar idea. In our Creative Wealth programs we suggest that everyone has a ‘money personality’, i.e., a way of being around, and with, money. The idea of a Money Avatar is a little different.

The idea of a Money Avatar revolves around us first understanding our own natural tendency toward a certain money personality. In our programs, we use Olivia Mellan’s work for our four basic money personalities: Spender, Saver, Avoider and Monk. There a several more that she discusses in her articles and books, but these four describe the bulk of our money behaviors and actions.

Your Money Avatar

A Money Avatar, however, is who we WISH we could be. If we’re a naturally born spender, we might wish we had a little bit of the saver in us. If we’re a saver, we might wish we were a little bit more of a spender. If we are a money monk or an avoider, we may ache to wake up one day as a saver. The challenge is, how do we go from what seems to be the money personality we’re hard-wired to live into, and move into a completely different, and more financially supportive role such as a saver and investor?

Here are some steps you might take if you’re currently inhabiting a financial role or avatar that isn’t serving you and you’d rather play a different role:

1. Take some time to deeply understand your current tendency; the money personality that is the predominant driver in your behavior, choices and habits. Do some research, ask yourself where the driver comes from and how the driver took up permanent residence in your being. You must understand both the conscious and subconscious aspects to this current Avatar before you can choose an Avatar that is more supportive of your goals.
2. Next, study the type of Avatar you want to become. Study rich people, financially free individuals who live the way you’d like to live. And don’t make stuff up about rich people. Read biographies about successful people. Watch movies about their lives. A great way to learn about people with money is to take them to lunch! Ask them how they got where they are, what it took, what they learned, what their biggest lessons were. Don’t talk about you. You want to learn about them. Remember, it’s not what you already know; it’s what you’re open to learning that will move you from one Avatar to another.
3. Now, start taking little bits about what you learn and start incorporating those bits into who you already are. Shifts don’t happen overnight. You became who you are over time. You’ll become who you want to be over time as well. It’s important to incorporate new habits, behaviors and choices slowly so they can seep into your being.

If you do these three steps, you will be surprised at how quickly you’ll wake up living into your new Money Avatar.

“I see you” in there! Go for it.

Just something to think about.

(and tell me what you thought of the movie!)