Episode 89: Dear Money...

And hello everyone, welcome to episode 89 of the Weekly Yes and Podcast, the Weekly Yap. I am the host Travis Thomas and the creator of Live Yes and. That's liveyesand.com, or you can find me @liveyesand on social media. This is episode 89 called Dear Money. So that is coming up here for you after a couple of quick updates. Wanted to let you know that I am starting another Get Unstuck in 10 Days starting December 1st. If you go to my Facebook page or if you go to my website under events, there is information on that, an informative video as well as the opportunity to sign up for that. Again, that is starting December 1st. That's the program that I created that goes along with my book, 3 Words for Getting Unstuck: Live Yes and. But even if you haven't read the book, you do get a free e-version of the book when you sign up for the program, but every day is sort of a different principle from the book, a different chapter, over 10 7 days, all designed to help you get unstuck in some aspect of your life, be it a relationship, something financial, some project, something. The idea is to put these ideas to use, these principles to use every day with a new activity and a new reflection. And again, a lot of fun. It's $25. The signup is on the website. And again, that starts December 1st. So for those of you who have taken it and you want to take it again, you can absolutely do that or share with others that you think might be interested in that. And of course, coming up here Friday, November 24th, the day after Thanksgiving, which we know as Black Friday. This is the 4th annual RAK Friday, which stands for Random Acts of Kindness, which some friends and family and I started 4 years ago. This will be year number 4, where we dedicate the day to committing as many random acts of kindness as possible, thus transforming Black Friday into RAK Friday. And again, our goal this year is 2,700 Acts of kindness committed and then shared via social media using the hashtag #RackFriday17. And let's see how much we can do. It's, it's been awesome to see how this has gotten a little bit bigger each year, and we're really excited about that. Our Facebook page where most of the activity happens is Rack Friday 17, or if you go to our website rackfriday.com, that will kick you To our Facebook page. And this year is extra special because many of you know that my mom passed away this year, June Thomas, better known as Juju. And she was just a huge fan of Rack Friday, and it meant a lot to her. It was always a healing aspect of her holiday season. And so most of what we're doing this year will be in the spirit of my mom, Juju, and really excited about that. And so yes, Rack Friday, you know, if you have a church group, a sports team, a school, at work, grab a bunch of people together and you can either do it together or brainstorm together. It should be a lot of fun.

So really excited about that.

And yeah, wow, November is here, holidays are here, things are moving quick. Before you know it, January 2018, yikes.

All right.

Which maybe has something to do with what today is all about, but I have 2 good dear friends of mine And we do a mastermind breakfast every couple of weeks. We're all sort of in creative fields, artists and gallery owners, and obviously I'm doing my speaking and writing. And so over the last 10 years, we've all seen kind of our financial struggles and in pursuit of sort of living your passion and purpose. And at a breakfast recently, one of my friends was kind of sharing sort of just kind of his financial situation and thinking about financial goals. And how, you know, money can be a struggle. And we started talking about just the stories that we create about money. And my wife just came back from a workshop a few weeks ago, and there was a woman there who talked about— they were sort of setting intentions for the new year, and this woman talked about she struggled with money. And so she decided to write a letter to money. And I was like, oh, that's fascinating.

That's really cool.

Write a letter to money. And so as I was talking to my friends about this, I'm like, you know what, I need to do this myself. And so after breakfast, I went off to do some kind of my own work. And many of you know that this past year I made a commitment to myself to be more vulnerable and authentic. You may remember my post just about a year ago called I Failed in 2016 Again, which I got a lot of feedback on and a lot of support. It wasn't necessarily meant for support as much as just authenticity and being vulnerable. And so I thought, wow, writing a letter to money, that's going to be a little vulnerable. And I wrote it and I shared it. I had a listen call with a good friend of mine and she thought it was excellent. And I shared it with my friends and they're like, you know what, if you feel comfortable doing it, you might want to share that with your audience. And so that's what I decided to do. And so I sat down and This was very much kind of a stream of consciousness over 20 minutes. And if this resonates with you, now you know that you're not alone.

If it doesn't, just replace the word money for any relationship in your life you are struggling with.

Maybe you replace money with body. Maybe you replace money with your spouse. Maybe you replace money with your boss or politics or the environment, whatever it is.

Just replace it if money's not a thing for you.

If you have answers and solutions for me, just keep them to yourself.

I appreciate it.

This isn't a call for help, although if you are booking me for an event, talk, or training, by all means reach out.

So without further ado, here you go. Dear money, first of all, I need to apologize. I'm sorry. For years I've been blaming you for so many things that are not your fault, and in the process I have created a divide between the two of us.

Again, none of this has been your fault.

It's all me. Growing up, you were always there.

I had more of you than I needed, but the problem is I didn't think you were mine.

My dad was earning a lot of you, and as a result, I reaped the benefits. So your presence allowed me to have many things growing up, but I never felt worthy that I earned it. I just happened to be the recipient of being born into the right family. As a kid growing up, I never felt special. To have more of you, it seemed that you needed to be gifted in certain areas, be it intelligence, creativity, or athletics. I didn't feel gifted in any of those areas, nor did I see myself with this personality style for going out and outworking everyone else in order, in order to earn a lot of you. So as a result, I just hoped you would come my way. That is where I have been.

I keep hoping you will grace me with your kindness or pity.

Why? Because ultimately, I guess I have felt unworthy of your abundance. Therein seems to be the real issue. When I look at the traditional ways of earning more of you, I just haven't seen my place in those roles. So as a result, I have struggled to welcome you into my life. And here's the thing. You are right there ready to come into my life when I open the door, but I've kept the door closed, making you something that you are not. I have created stories about you based on how other people have used you. You have been associated with greed, yet you are not greedy. You have been associated with evil, yet you are not evil. You have been associated with corruption, dishonesty, and war, yet you are none of those things. You just are. You are whatever I have made you, but on your own, you are none of those things. How others choose to use you says nothing of you and is only a reflection of them. And how I have chosen to see you says nothing of you and everything to do with me. So here we are again.

I'm sorry.

You haven't come into my life more because, even as you have blessed me, It has never felt like enough. I haven't been grateful for all the ways you have taken care of me. I am always wanting more, feeling the need for more, that I haven't appreciated what I have already received. So instead of being ready for more and expecting more, I have focused on there never being enough. Not anymore. Now I'm ready for you. I am not scared of you anymore because there is nothing to be afraid of. In fact, I want you and need you because I want to work with you in order to make the world a better place. I want to use you to bless myself, my family, my community, and the world. I want to share you freely because you were meant to be shared. The illusion would be that you are limited and that there is not enough to go around, but that is not true. There is no limit to your value and reach. And when shared freely, you continuously bless others over and over again. I am worthy of you because everyone is worthy of you. No one person is more worthy than another. You are there and ready to bless in abundance when I am ready for you, and I am ready.

Let's do this!

There is so much we can do together. It is exciting to think about, and I know that the more I value myself, the more I will see you in my life. That is what you are there for, to be a reflection of the value we see in ourselves. Of course you are, because when we see value in ourselves, we are given the tools and resources to share that value with the world. I have given you a bad rap because I have made you all of these rules and hoops that need to be jumped through and followed in order for you to flow freely. I know these are all my own story and they have nothing to do with you. If I think earning you is hard, it will be hard.

If I think earning you will be easy, it will be easy.

It really is as simple as that. I also know that changing this history and story I have about you will not be easy. You will be patient with me, and it might not happen overnight, and maybe it will, but I know as my story changes, I will begin to see you more and more. The truth is, you will always be there. It is just that I will actually see you more as I change my story. Like it has always been, there's nothing you need to do differently. It's just me. So thank you, money, for being you. You are changeless. You are valueless except for the value I give you, and you have always been the reflection of how I see myself. Thank you for being patient and tolerant of me, and I really look forward to the fun and abundance we are going to spread together.

Much love, Travis.

And there you have it, everyone. Episode 89 of the Weekly Yap, Dear Money.

If you enjoyed this, please share with others.

If you want to give me a review on iTunes or a rating, that's great too. It's a great way to show your appreciation. But with that, with all that, that's it.

Episode 89. The weed whackers are outside my window.

I guess it is time to go. Have a wonderful, wonderful Yes And day, everyone.

Love you, Juju. Love you, too.