So many of us don’t know any better when it comes to “Keeping up with the Joneses”. Why are we so plagued in always comparing ourselves to others? Why do we need the newest device, car, suit, house, watch, etc. when we barely have two cents to rub together, let alone a retirement savings and owe a shit load in debt?

I have seen this very notion of “Keeping up with the Joneses in a few clients this past year and some are living outside of their means. Why do they persist on increasing their debt? Why are they not saving for their future – their retirement? One client in particular answered: “Well, I am living in the present, who knows what will happen tomorrow and if I will be here to enjoy it all.” Perhaps, he is, yet he is not safeguarding himself for the future and his well-being.

Many of our present actions will affect our future either negatively or positively. When it comes to finances, it is imperative to ensure that your logical mind is active and you are also flexing your intuitive muscle. There needs to be a balance between present day spending and future saving. So how can this relate to you flexing your intuitive muscle? Very easily as many of the financial mistakes and oversights that are occurring now are most likely rooted in a past relationship with money or an emotional bond to feeling as though you will not have enough. Then again maybe it is all about the perception.

I had been working with a man in his early forties this past year that struggled financially. He came from a family he described as middle class until his dad lost his job. Afterwards, the family’s finances drastically changed, forcing my client at a very young age to find a job to help support his brothers and sisters. He had had dreams of attending university to become an accountant. A little ironic, don’t you think? I thought so. As his other siblings became old enough to work, they did too. Eventually, his father found employment, which allowed my client to concentrate on his studies and to save his earnings for his post-secondary education. He did manage to attend a local university and became an accountant.

What troubled him the most was his inability to save money now that he was making “The Big Bucks”. He owns his firm, has approximately 6 staff members and is thinking of expanding his firm to a different city, yet he has no retirement savings. How can this be, I recall questioning him in a session. His answer was silence. He had no answer. He knew he should have a retirement savings, he knew he should stop living outside of his means, he knew he should not spend so much money on outings, drinks and dinners. He confessed that consciously he knew he needed to cut back his spending but sub-consciously he felt his mind tell him if he didn’t spend his money, he’d lose it.

So he agreed to a few sessions of Reiki. Reiki is a natural and ancient technique using healing, universal life force energy to help clear toxins, negativity, stagnancy, blockages that steam from the emotional, spiritual, physical, mental or even energetic bodies. During a Reiki treatment, I as the practitioner will evaluate using my spidey senses, my gut instincts, my X-ray vision, my bionic ears, and my intuition to what is going on in his body. I will sense with my hands where I need to focus the Reiki energy to allow your healing to take place. What I noticed with this client was that his perception was way off the mark. As a movie reel ran through his mind, I “picked up” his thoughts of how he measured his worth by comparing himself to others. He needed to have the most expensive shoes, wardrobe and car. He needed to spend the most money when out with his friends. The end result was massive amounts of debt. I could easily sense this in the lower part of his legs. I felt a huge drop, a hole. Later on, he confirmed his debt following the Reiki treatment.

I wanted my client’s perception of everyone else and of himself to change. I wanted him to stop comparing himself to others, as he did not know the extent of their financial situations. He decided it was time to look at his life differently and started recording three to five items that he was grateful for during the day. I advised him to concentrate on the many “gifts” he already had or was receiving through the week in order to bring awareness to the good and positive. I specifically asked my client to focus on material goods that he possessed and to record why he was grateful for them. For example, his brand new shiny car because it transported him to work every day and was in pristine condition. He found this task quite easy to incorporate into his day. Furthermore, I asked him to take note of non-material items he was grateful for. These might include time spent playing with his children. Once again, he found this task effortless and simple.

Over time, I noticed his sessions were more about the positive aspects around his financial situation then the lack of it. As he began to appreciate the many things he had in his life, the easier it was for him to save money. His perception of what money could “buy” or bring into his life also changed.

Eventually, his spending became under control, he started paying off some of his debt and he automatically started savings for himself. He realizes that even the perceived wealthiest people can also have debt and not everyone is a Jones.