What does your money creation tap into and exercise within you?

Examples:

• A graphic designer taps and exercises her creativity, and perhaps a drive to make the world beautiful. 
• A financial planner may connect with a propensity towards numbers and a drive to help people. 
• An inheritor may tap and exercise his love and loyalty of family.

Whatever your role in bringing money into your life, the process will tap into and exercise components within you. The important thing is: Does this process expand you and your life?  Or does it take you away from what is special about you? 

What energy do you give to bring in money?

Examples: This is three fold - using the example of a professional hair dresser:

• First, it is the energy you spend creating whatever value you receive money to produce (i.e. actually dressing hair).
• Second, it is energy you give to fulfill indirect elements of your role, such as commuting to a location, being on your feet, staying ahead of style trends, etc. 
• Third, it is emotional and psychical energy given.  This may include patience with a bothersome co-worker, personal time spent decompressing, missing family dinners for an obligation to work evenings, etc.

In a big picture sense, what do you do to fulfill your role in whatever way you bring in money?  Consider the different ways you give energy.  Is the nature of this energy having a positive or negative effect?  Is it in balance with your greater MEC?

What value do you receive money to produce?

Examples:

• An architect is paid money to design buildings.  These are valuable because they are where people live and work.
• A web designer gets paid to create websites.  People and business value these as a forum to share their message.  
• Less directly but true nonetheless, a homemaker creates value for her home and family and receives financial support as part of the family’s MEC.

You receive money because you contribute something that others value.  This is one of the ways your MEC connects you to the world outside yourself.  Considering both yourself and the world beyond, what are your sentiments regarding the value you produce?  What are your sentiments regarding the impact?

Note* I am not saying that all value is transactional.  People often produce value for which there is no money involved.  Much like all squares are rectangles but not all rectangles are squares, though money is always exchanged for value, value is not always exchanged for money.

What non-financial costs and benefits come back to you?

Examples:

• Your office is down the street from a good friend, which makes seeing each other easy.  This strengthens your friendship and enriches your life.
• You’re consistently out of patience at home because you spend it all at work, and you feel an impact on your parenting.
• Relationships forged through your money creation, for better or worse, often affect what this engagement means to us.  They can make it all worthwhile, or then can be an inescapable thorn in the side.
• Susan feels pride and purpose from her work, adding meaning to her life.  Ben feels demeaned and mistreated by his corporation and it makes his days long and hard.

Money isn’t the only thing that comes back to you through your money creation. Do the non-financial outcomes of your money creation contribute value to your life, or do they contribute negatively to the big picture?

What financial value do you create?

Examples: This has several components. 

• The money you bring in, meaning your actual take home money.
• Also any financially valuable ‘perks’ or benefits, such as health insurance, access to sporting or music events, discounts for goods and services through connections, etc.
• It is also includes costs of working, like the price of commuting, clothing, continuing education, etc. 

Most importantly, does the financial value you create reflect the energy you put out and the value you produce?  Is it in balance with the financial resources you need to effectively nourish your unique life?

Price.  How much money do you pay for the what you bring in?
Or: How much financial value do you use for the value you bring in?

Examples:

• When we recently needed new dining room chairs my husband saved us hundreds of dollars by patiently searching on Craig’s list, finding us a quality set for $25.
• We all need to eat.  Cassy doesn’t cook, and instead eats out for every meal.  She loves the social environment, but feels the cost both in her pocket book and her nutrition.  James is an avid cook, and loves high end ingredients.  His nutrition is OK and his enjoyment is high, but his money life feels a strain from the specialty products.  Taylor loves to cook simple foods and is used to shopping sales and seasonal ingredients.  The price point is in balance with her greater MEC, while she receives great value in both her nutrition and enjoyment. Where it comes to food, both the price point and the value received vary widely.
• There is often a tradeoff for time and money. You may free up valuable time by paying a professional to clean your home or for someone to watch your children.  You may put in time to save money by finding quality used items at a discount price.  This is a way we leverage different valuable resources.

Do you feel like you get a lot value for your money?  Or do you feel like you work long and hard and that it hardly brings back in what you need?  How much you personally value a dollar is a component of price.  Most importantly, is the value you bring in with your money in balance with your creation of money?

How is your money balanced across the breadth of your life?

• Every aspect of your life calls for money. 
• Even things that are priceless, like love for our children, have financial implications.
• Some areas call for more (like housing), and some less (like exercise).  The idea is to fund them according to what they need.
• We have financial pulls from the past (debts), the present (bills, lifestyle and gifting), and the future (periodic expenses, education, retirement).

Are some areas of your life financially neglected, or do you do a good job of balancing your financial resources amid the myriad of pulls and tugs on your pocketbook?  

Does your money bring value and energy back to you?

Examples:

• A woman does a “no thought shop” with three children in a department store.  Yet she feels no joy out of what they bring home.  She gained no energy and experienced no value, despite using large amounts of money.
• There is a family reunion across the country this summer.  Though it’s a financial strain, you choose to create the resources because family is a top personal value.
• A coffee is pennies to the dollar when enjoyed at home as compared to out.  Yet, if the cup bought at a shop comes with a conversation with a friend, a great working session or some loving self-care, the energy that comes back to you may be priceless.

Do you use money in ways that are disconnected from you, making the experience unsatisfying?  Or do you connect your money with you, giving you experiences of value and energizing your life?