What you think deep down about money comes out in your day to day reality. And so the question is always — how is your money feeling? For many of us the answer is not too good.

While we don’t have the stats in Jamaica, our friends in England provide some interesting research.

According to new research from the British-based Debt Advisory Centre, seven per cent of adults (that’s 3.5 million people) have taken out a payday loan in the last year, with some 20 per cent of these saying that they did so in order to pay for a holiday.

Furthermore, five per cent took out a loan in order to treat themselves to handbags, clothes or shoes.

Further, many Brits use payday loans in order to pay bills (22 per cent) and buy essentials like food (44 per cent).

So turning back to us here in Jamaica, land we love, are we blocking our wealth and using loans to get by because we think ourselves into financial blockage? And note that the stats from England show that financial pressure is worldwide so let’s take this opportunity to look at some of the limiting beliefs about money that we need urgently to clean up.

NEGATIVE SELF-TALK

“Money is the root of all evil.” “Money is neutral and a resource to do good in my life.”

“Money is not that important. It’s only money.”

“Money is one of my priorities in life.”

“Money is there to be spend.”

“The money I don’t spend makes me rich.”

“The rich get richer and the poor get poorer.”

“My financial reality is entirely up to me. Everything I need to create financial abundance is already inside me.”

“I’m just not good with money.” “I learn and use knowledge about money every day.”

“My family has never been rich.”

“I can create my financial independence by learning and acting on it.”

“Money is a limited resource.”

“There is enough money to create financial abundance.”

“You have to work (too) hard to get wealthy.” “To get wealthy, I just provide real value for others and ask for a good price.”

“It’s selfish to want a lot of money.”

“The money I earned is showing the value I created for others.”

Are these new messages going to solve your financial problems right away? Not likely. However, if you take the time to listen to how you talk to yourself and agree to have a more positive mentality, you would be surprised at the new opportunities that come your way.

And of course, reach out to a licensed financial advisor or financial coach to help you create a different vocabulary about money. It’s time to think of money as a tool to create the life you want and not something that is here today and gone tomorrow.

Dennise Williams, MBA (banking and finance) is a journalist, TV producer and certified practioner NLP coach who has 15 years’ experience in the financial services industry. You can see more of her work at www.youtube.com/financiallyfocused.