the flow of money

As a career financial advisor, what I’m about to write is a little hard. It doesn’t go against my beliefs about money, but it could be misinterpreted to discount the importance of savings, investing, and planning. It also could be seen as insensitive to those who struggle with having enough money to cover their basic living needs, which is not the intent. Despite my concerns about the idea I want to present, I still want to put it in front of you so you can see if it means anything to you or changes how you view money–this is not financial advice, should not be considered to be right for you, and I highly recommend you to talking with a financial advisor to see how it might fit into your personal financial situation.

I’ll never forget the first time I heard Bob Proctor share in a video that money is not meant to be hoarded. Instead, it needs to flow. Proctor suggested that we should not hoard our money, which is a result of a scarcity mindset, but instead allow it to flow freely through us–the economy and financial system rely on money flowing through the system. If hoarding money is a result of a scarcity mindset, then allowing money to flow through us is a result of an abundance mindset–there will be more money that will come to you, therefore, you do not need to hoard every dollar you receive.

Initially, I thought about how most Americans have too much debt, not enough savings, and cannot cover an unexpected emergency without relying on credit cards or other high-interest assistance. I didn’t immediately dismiss the idea, but I found it hard to be something I felt like I could talk about because I didn’t think it was a good view on money for most people–I was afraid it could be misinterpreted as permission to spend recklessly.

As time passed, I continued to think about the idea of allowing money to flow, and I realized that was a money belief that I actually have; I just never defined it the same way as Proctor. 

One of my financial goals is to be in a position where I am able to support friends, colleagues, or individuals/brands I care about without worry–if a friend drops a course, I want to buy. If a colleague writes a book, I want to pre-order to help the first week numbers. If a small brand I like drops a new hoodie, I want to grab one. Eventually, I want to be able to invest in startups that are based on great ideas, founded by wonderful people, and not worry about maximizing my return on investment. 

I also want to have memorable experiences with my family. Allowing money to flow to travel, our favorite holiday experiences at the art museum, going to high school sporting events, or any other random opportunities that might present themselves to us is important to me, too. Rather than hoard these dollars and earn a little more interest, I prefer to allow them to flow through me to other individuals and brands pursuing their passions.

I’m only able to do this if the rest of my financial plan is in good shape and I’m willing to not spend on other things that do not bring me as much satisfaction as supporting someone I care about. 

I never had the pleasure of meeting Bob Proctor, but I’ve watched hours of his videos and listened to more of him on his podcasts. I don’t believe his recommendation not to hoard money was permission to overextend your budget, rack up credit card debt, and not be prepared for unexpected expenses. His view on the flow state of money was just as much a mindset lesson as it was a financial lesson, despite there being some truth to the need for the flow of money.

There is not a conversation I’ve found where Proctor said this, but I think he was using money as another way to illustrate how a scarcity mindset can limit your ability to reach your potential. Whether you suffer from a scarcity mindset with money or happiness, it keeps you operating at a low-frequency level, attracting more low-frequency experiences and people to you. By shifting away from scarcity, hoarding money, to abundance, allowing money to flow, your energy shifts to a high-frequency level, attracting more high-frequency experiences and people to you–which could include more money, bringing his example from theory to reality.

Imagine a river feeding into multiple smaller streams. If one of the streams is dammed up, it receives no fresh water, eventually sees its water levels drop and maybe even dry up. All of the wildlife that once called that stream home will die or leave to find another stream that can support them. Conversely, the streams that remain open continue to receive fresh water, allowing wildlife to thrive and the stream to continue to remain vibrant. 

I mentioned that I do believe in allowing money to flow freely and not hoarding dollars. This does not mean that I don’t adhere to my financial plan, lack savings, don’t invest, or spend recklessly. It’s quite the opposite. Because I have a plan, I have graduated to understand what makes me happiest when it comes to using my dollars, and I have saved and invested over the years, I have the flexibility to allow money to flow through me. 

The idea of allowing money to flow is applicable to individuals at all levels of income–how many actual dollars you are able to allow to flow might vary. Still, even someone on a low income can find themselves in a position where they don’t have to feel as if they need to hoard every dollar. I’ll admit, that this mindset shift is going to be harder if you’re barely getting by, but I do believe it is possible to achieve, and I do believe it can provide a great assist in finding your way out of that financial situation.

Please do not close out this note and begin spending money like crazy. But please do examine how you view money—what is your relationship with it? Are you hoarding dollars because you’re afraid you’ll never have enough? Or are you on the opposite end of the spectrum and spending before you even have it, allowing it to flow too freely? 

Use Proctor’s concept of allowing money to flow vs. hoarding to help you look more closely at your relationship with money. If you identify with his idea of allowing money to flow, here are a few things to have in place before I would feel comfortable allowing money to flow completely free…

• A financial plan for YOUR life (by finding an alignment of spirit, mind, body, and money)
• Funded emergency savings
• Proper insurance coverage (life, disability, umbrella, etc.)
• Long-term investments tracking toward long-term goals
• Understanding of your budget (inflows vs. outflows)
• Identifying what you value most and where you want to direct your flowing money
• Monitoring of your financial picture to pull back the flow of money if necessary to get your plan back on track, if necessary.

Depending on your goals, values, and personal financial situation, there comes a point where hoarding more dollars brings little value to your financial situation; the opportunity cost of this scarcity mindset could be massive in that you miss out on experiences with family and friends, supporting people you care about, and ultimately disrupting the potential flow of money that would come to you as it continues to flow through you. Not only are there experiential consequences of the scarcity mindset, but it also keeps you in low-frequency energy, impacting every other aspect of your life.

Whether you fully believe in the flow of money or not, if you are able to shift away from feeling like you have to hoard your money to feeling more comfortable spending, giving, or allowing your money to flow a little more than in the past, I think that’s a positive because your increased abundant mindset will spread to other areas of your life. And at the end of the day, I think that’s what Bob Proctor was trying to get you to realize.

See you tomorrow and keep pursuing,

JC

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