We’ve all been influenced by our upbringing when it comes to money. Depending on what environment you were brought up in, here are some of the scenarios you may have experienced.
Money was something that was all around you (you were born into wealth, abundance, luxury). Money was invested on your behalf from before you were even born, you had the opportunity to learn how to invest it, make more of it and have money work for you.
Legacy & contribution was what you were brought up with.
You may have had a family that was somewhat entrepreneurial. You learned that money was not quite so easy to come by, you had to go out and earn it and put the work in, but you were comfortable and could get ahead. Primarily you worked for money but were able to save enough so that you could enjoy some of the luxuries of life and if you were lucky, you’d have enough to retire on and live a little. You may have also learnt to invest some of it and create a legacy for your family.
You may have had a family that was more working class, where you had to work to get money and a regular pay check. You worked for someone else’s company or a corporation, Money wasn’t easy to come by and you worked hard. Occasionally there was a little left over but not much. You managed to get by and luxury was a rarity. You were never going to be wealthy. That was only for the “Haves” and something that you could only dream about.
You may have had a family that was poor. There was no money or very little was available. You always had to struggle for money. Make ends meet, pay the rent and bills. You had to rely on charity or the kindness of others. You had to get by with not having things, wearing hand me downs, going without food, not having a place to stay. Money, wealth and luxury was definitely not for you and you wouldn’t even dare to dream about it. You knew your place. You were a “have not” and would always be scraping by when it came to money. You were always on the outside looking in.
Are these scenarios real? While they could be, they are all stories.
Depending on what money stories you were fed as a child, they unconsciously have had a profound impact on the set point of your internal filter when it comes to money and wealth.
We are all aware that there are people who were born into poverty and became millionaires and billionaires.
Oprah Winfrey was born into poverty in rural Mississippi to a single teenage mother. She was later raised in inner-city Milwaukee. She was molested during her childhood and early teenage years and became pregnant at 14; her son was born prematurely and died in infancy. She is now a public figure, an absolute icon, a philanthropist, an entrepreneur and a billionaire. (Her net worth is $3 Billion.)
Ralph Lauren the American fashion designer with the iconic “Polo” brand, a philanthropist whose net worth is $7 Billion grew up in an impoverished neighborhood of the Bronx in New York. He was just a poor kid from the Bronx.
Amancio Ortega grew up living in poverty in Spain, where his family had to struggle to get food. He left school at the age of 14 and went to work for a local shirt maker so he could earn money to support and feed his family. He then got another job where he learned make clothes by hand. He went on to be the founder of Inditex a Spanish multinational clothing company and from that ZARA one of the biggest fashion companies in the world. His net worth is over $90 Billion.
Howard Shultz the former CEO of Starbucks whose net worth is $2.9 Billion. He put Starbucks as a coffee company “ on the map” all around the world.
When he was 7 years old, he experienced something that deeply affected him even to this day, which is the shame of being a poor kid living in government-subsidized housing.” (He lived in the projects.)
He said, “I never dreamed I would be in a position one day to be part of a company where I would have authority — let alone build a company. What I’ve tried to do is build the kind of company that my father never got a chance to work for.”
Interesting isn’t it! Our disempowering beliefs that are unconscious prevents us from seeing and recognizing ourselves as an authority in our own life. Our Egoic nature prevents us from accessing, owning and seeing the truth beyond our identity: our definitions, stories and beliefs.
Yet these people were so “end result” focused that they took themselves and their families from abject poverty to enormous wealth AND the key thing they did was they used their will, they followed through and applied what they learned. Rubedo, Rubedo, Rubedo. (Rubedo refers to taking the required action, following through and continuing this process until you’ve achieved your outcome.)
Making a better life for themselves was non-negotiable.
Fear was not an option. – Meaning feel the fear and do it anyway.
The only place to find your strength is to be true to yourself. They were 100% committed to using their will and creating their outcome no matter what.
Be in charge of your own destiny…. Create your own destiny.
