By Ken Honda | Published on February 24, 2021

It’s very easy to feel like we don’t have enough money. When we think about the future or possible emergencies that might pop up, it’s almost impossible to feel like there’s ever going to be enough money! That makes letting go of our worry and anxiety about money even more difficult. We can’t seem to build a healthier relationship with our money is because we just don’t know how to let go of those anxieties and fears.

Interestingly, people at every level of income believe if they just earned 20% more than they are making now, they would finally feel their anxiety about money let up. This is true whether they earn a little or a lot; the feeling about needing 20% more money is the same regardless of salary.

In reality, the anxiety we have about money doesn’t change based on how much we make. At the end of the day, whenever our salary goes up, so does the average price of the things we buy. Our expenses rise to meet whatever amount our paycheck has. This is why before we can relieve some of that anxiety about money, it’s critical to realize that the world is set up to make us feel like we never have enough, regardless of how much we actually have. The consumer society we live in depends on it.

Define Your True Wants and Needs

We must learn to break free of the societal norms that push us to want bigger and better things as long as we can afford them. This doesn’t mean you’re not allowed to have nice things or enjoy spending money. It just means choosing to stop allowing outside influences to take over your rationality about what your true wants and needs are. This is the first step to healing some of the financial anxiety we have built up over the years.

Let Go of Anxiety: Do What You Love

The second step is learning how to manage the money anxiety we commonly feel. If you let anxiety take over, eventually your whole life will feel like a struggle. If you get serious about letting go of those stressful feelings, on the other hand, you may finally have the energy and positive creative boost you need to start something exciting and new.

People who find success doing something they truly love have a bit of an edge in this area because the resulting positive state of mind constantly lifts them up and fills them with energy to tackle any problem. Money flows their way like a magnet, and as long as their relationship with money is healthy, they rarely worry about going broke anymore. However, if you stay at a job you hate just for the money, struggles with money have a strange way of never getting any better. It’s time to take a serious look at your life and start making changes where you can.

Back when I was 20 years old, I decided I wanted total financial freedom as soon as possible. To me, that meant that by the time I was 30 I wanted to have enough money set aside to easily afford every meal for the rest of my life. In other words, I wanted to have the luxury if not needing to work, and to do work I found motivational and meaningful knowing I’d be alright no matter what happened. I knew anxiety about money would only hold me back from reaching that goal, so from about the age of 25, I truly set about changing the way I lived my life.

Looking back now, I think my anxiety about money disappeared the moment I started working towards my specific goal and seeing results. Money anxiety disappears once you start working towards a higher goal with a sense of purpose and see the positive results you are creating.

To get to a place where you’re earning comfortably more than you spend, you have to get outside of the box of beliefs that keep you doing something you dislike just to make ends meet. Doing what you love is the key to getting out of that box, but it does take courage and support.

Keep Your Focus On Abundance

Another important way money anxiety can be reduced is by realizing you can create and maintain the feeling of having abundance and prosperity no matter what your outer circumstances are. When you (mistakenly) believe you don’t have the ability to create or find new ways to earn money, the fear of money running out suddenly feels very real to you. When you stay in a positive state of mind, focused on having abundance and prosperity, the fear of not having enough money shrinks down to a manageable size — if it remains present at all.

Though it doesn’t happen overnight, the best way to achieve this is to know what you really want to do in life and begin working towards your plan to become an expert in that field. When you start seeing results from whichever life path you’ve chosen, those irrational fears about money will begin to fade away because you know you’ll be alright no matter what happens.

Transform Anxiety Into a Blessing

It’s possible to see money anxiety as a blessing if you can use it as motivation to take action on your most important life goals and make positive changes in your life. Clarity on what you really want is the first step for anyone who ever accomplished anything! If you don’t want to feel worry or stress about money anymore, start thinking about what kind of life you really want to have instead.

Click the link to read the full article: https://thriveglobal.com/stories/how-to-relieve-anxiety-about-money/