Have you ever felt that making money and doing what you love are somehow in conflict?
That the more you focus on earning money, the less time and energy you have for the work you actually care about?
I certainly have.
A couple of decades ago, I read the classic Law of Attraction book Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill.
And I realised I was in big trouble. 😱
Because Hill talked about needing a burning desire to make money. A laser-focused drive to create wealth. If I wanted to make real money, I would need to think about it day and night and never lose sight of that goal.
All I could think was, I'm just not interested! Boooring!
In fact, it was worse than that. Because, as a musician, I felt a certain contempt for the whole idea.
‘What, THAT'S what you're passionate about? But there's no substance, no depth, no art, no meaning.’
Oh dear.
So I went back to practising scales in my room, hoping that getting brilliant enough at my violin would mean the money would magically appear someday.
But this money/passion dilemma isn't confined to musicians and performers!
Fast-forward to 2017, during my Energy Psychology training, and there was the same dilemma again.
People who were passionate about EFT and other healing modalities were talking about exchanging services, bartering, and thereby avoiding money completely.
Oof.
I even took the reins on a weekly Marketing tapping call with the other participants - mainly to clear my own resistance, but it turned out to be very popular!!
The truth is, it was beginning to feel as though there was an inverse relationship between being passionate about what you do and making money doing it.
And that's all very well until you have to live in the real world.
Where bills need paying, and passion alone doesn't keep a roof over your head.
And if you don't have a rich patron - or you're sick of relying on family to keep you afloat - that conflict becomes a very real problem.
But what if these two things don't actually have to be in conflict?
Because there ARE people out there doing work they love and making good money doing it.🥳
And perhaps the problem isn't that we have to choose between money and meaning. Maybe it's the story we're telling ourselves about the relationship between them.
Here's something you can try.
A Simple Exercise to Resolve the Conflict Between Money and Passion
Some years ago, I learnt a great technique from visionary coach Derek Rydell called Value Conflict Resolution.
The idea is to take two values that seem to be competing with each other and bring them together into what I like to call a 'virtuous cycle'.
For example:
I want to make money.
VS.
I want to dedicate my time to doing what I love.
Now try bringing those two ideas together with this formula:
The more I do X, the more Y happens.
And the more Y happens, the more I get to do X.
Here's an example:
The more I dedicate time and resources to doing what I love, the more money I make.
And the more money I make, the more time and resources I have to do what I love.
Read that again.
And notice how it feels.
Does it begin to soften the conflict? Can you feel even a little more possibility opening up?
You don't have to force yourself to believe it. Just be curious about what happens when you stop treating money and meaningful work as opposites.
Because imagine what might become possible if making money actually helped you do MORE of the work you love. Pretty liberating, right?
Of course, changing the story doesn't necessarily mean that every old belief about money magically disappears.
Sometimes we need to explore the emotions, memories and experiences that have made earning, charging or receiving money feel uncomfortable in the first place.
And if you're curious about how those old money beliefs might be affecting what you earn, check out my recent article, What's Your Income Ceiling? And How Can You Raise It?(opens in new tab)
Let's Work on Both Sides of the Money Gap!
On Saturday 14 November, I'm joining forces with my fabulous business mentor, Natasha Kennedy, for an in-person workshop here in Madrid.
Natasha will help you understand your business numbers, review your pricing and identify opportunities to increase your profits, using a practical tool she's developed.
And I'll be bringing EFT Tapping into the mix to help us tackle those pesky money gremlins — the beliefs, fears and habits that can get in the way of earning, charging and receiving more.
Practical business strategy meets the emotional side of money!
Plus a delicious sushi lunch, networking and some wonderful conversations with other businesswomen. 🍣
Saturday 14 November | 10.00–16.30 | Madrid
Find out more and book your place at The Money Gap Workshop
In the meantime, keep questioning those old money stories.
Because doing what you love and making a good living don't have to be mutually exclusive. 🤗🙏
