What kind of relationship do you have with your money?

Is it healthy? Unhealthy? Toxic?

Are you intimately in touch with your money, or woefully out of touch — and headed for trouble?

Are you in control of your money, or is it in control of you?

Does it support you and serve you, or does it cause you anxiety and sleepless nights?

Listen to my recommendations about how to start developing a healthy relationship with your money on this CBC interview:

Relationship with Money CBC Interview

Want further support?
1. My simply $25 online program will get you in better touch with your money, and help you gain control of problem areas.
2. This book has some thoughtful research and great ideas. I’m not thrilled with the look and feel and tone of the advertising but it’s full of great stuff.

Photo Credit: Hipponotized

Anxious about money? Even paralyzed just thinking about it?

Over the next few days I’ll be posting various ideas and possible techniques to break free so that you have the mental and emotional energy you need to deal more effectively with your money.

Here’s one not-the-usual option. It’s called EFT, Emotional Freedom Technique. It’s a distant cousin of its more mainstream (and generally accepted by professional psychologists) technique called EMDR .

I recently tried it out on a non-money-related matter to good effect. Did it resolve everything? No way. But it certainly helped calm my anxiety and furthermore created some new possible ways of thinking about the issues.

I’ve embedded a video below that will lead you through the technique. You can find more details on this website here or via a google search. I also recommend a FB friend of mine, Sue Burness. I did a session with her resulting in a couple remarkable insights. You may also be happy to hear she has a pay-as-you-can policy.

Hang on to your hats, folks. We’re about to enter a crazy time of the year.

Your shopping is probably mostly done (right? RIGHT??) but there’s plenty of in-the-moment wallet busters in store (sic) for the next 10 days. Here are 5 last minute tips to spend smart between now and New Years.

1. Run, don’t walk, run to your nearest dollar store to pick up gift cards, wrapping paper and bows. You don’t want to spend a fortune on this at the Brand Name store on Christmas Eve! If you have 90 minutes of time, an even better idea: make your own bows from leftover wrapping paper like Karen does.







2. New Years Eve. Going out? Leave your keys and your plastic at home. Decide how much you’re doing to spend and use cash. Save yourself from yourself! No oops-overspending hangovers this January 1st on my watch!












3. Create your “standard-polite-decline” in advance to excuse yourself from potentially pricey on-the-spot invites you receive (we’re going out for lunch, join us!). Your line can be whatever works for you. Ideas: a gracious and classic, “Thanks so much but I have other plans” or “another time”; if suitable, ask if you can check your calendar first; have a standby excuse “I need to take the dogs for their walk”.







4. Travelling? Call your cel phone service provider today to be clear about extra charges. Avoid nasty surprises when you get your January bill! I usually purchase about $10 from Bell so I can make extra calls while in Vancouver.

5. Don’t apologize for not spending. I’m not saying cheap-out. But controlling your spending over the next 10 days should be a badge of honour. Settle that within yourself, and then let your actions and your words flow from that place.

Photo Credit: Vanou

Hmm.

I took a taxi from #yvr into downtown Vancouver last evening. The fare came to $38.70. I wrote the total as $43.70 thinking to give the guy a $5 tip. Am I cheap? (I never mean to be.)

I’m asking ’cause I ended up filling it out wrong and the guy had to rewrite it — and he put the total as being $45.70.
I’m not sure if he was being a lyin’, cheatin’ badass taxidriver, or if he transposed some numbers by accident, or figured I had been cheap and was giving me the hint.

What *are* we tipping taxi drivers in Vancouver these days?