August 27, 2025 • 42 mins
What if the biggest obstacle between you and wealth isn't your job or your income, but a hidden script running in your head? Your Money Mindset is the invisible force directing every financial decision you make, and today, we're making it visible.
In this episode, we reveal the five distinct levels of the money mindset, a roadmap that explains exactly where you are in your financial journey and how to get to the next stage. Are you trapped in the Scarcity Mindset, afraid to spend even when necessary? Or maybe you're stuck on the hamster wheel of the Price Mindset, hunting for deals but never truly investing in yourself?
We'll guide you through the game-changing shift to the Value Mindset and then into the powerful Growth Mindset, where money stops being a source of stress and becomes a tool to design the life you actually want. And finally, we'll explore the ultimate destination: the Freedom Mindset.
Stick with us to the very end, and we'll give you a simple, two-question test to instantly identify which level you're on right now and the single most important action you can take this week to level up.
It's time to rewrite your money story. Subscribe, share this with anyone ready for a financial breakthrough, and let's start your evolution from scarcity to freedom.
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/life-hacks-diy-more-transform-your-everyday-with-simple-tricks-and-diy-magic--5995484/support.
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In this episode, we reveal the five distinct levels of the money mindset, a roadmap that explains exactly where you are in your financial journey and how to get to the next stage. Are you trapped in the Scarcity Mindset, afraid to spend even when necessary? Or maybe you're stuck on the hamster wheel of the Price Mindset, hunting for deals but never truly investing in yourself?
We'll guide you through the game-changing shift to the Value Mindset and then into the powerful Growth Mindset, where money stops being a source of stress and becomes a tool to design the life you actually want. And finally, we'll explore the ultimate destination: the Freedom Mindset.
Stick with us to the very end, and we'll give you a simple, two-question test to instantly identify which level you're on right now and the single most important action you can take this week to level up.
It's time to rewrite your money story. Subscribe, share this with anyone ready for a financial breakthrough, and let's start your evolution from scarcity to freedom.
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/life-hacks-diy-more-transform-your-everyday-with-simple-tricks-and-diy-magic--5995484/support.
You May also Like:
🚑MyDisasterPrepKit.com
Create Your Perfect Disaster Preparedness Kit
🤖Nudgrr.com (🗣'nudger") - Your AI Sidekick for Getting Sh*t Done
Nudgrr breaks down your biggest goals into tiny, doable steps — then nudges you to actually do them.
🎁ThePerfectGift.app
Find the Perfect Gift in Seconds
⭐SkyNearMe.com
Live map of stars & planets visible near you
✔DebtPlanner.app
Your Path to Debt-Free Living
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Have you ever found yourself in that familiar spot standing
in front of the shelf maybe, or you're online, hovering
over the ad to carde button, Oh definitely, and you
hear that little voice in your head making some kind
of absolute judgment about whether you can afford.
Speaker 2 (00:14):
Something mm internal calculator exactly.
Speaker 1 (00:17):
Or maybe you've had that other debate, you know, wighing
whether to spend a bit extra for convenience or save
a few bucks, but well lose your precious time doing it.
Speaker 2 (00:25):
Yeah, the time versus money trade off.
Speaker 1 (00:27):
It's constant, it really is. And these small moments they
feel small, but they're actually like little windows, aren't They
glimpses into this much bigger system, often totally unconscious, that's
quietly guiding all your financial decisions.
Speaker 2 (00:42):
That's a great way to put it. Windows.
Speaker 1 (00:43):
From the tiny stuff like your daily coffee to the
really big life changing investments, it's all connected. So today
we're doing a really big, deep dive into something called
the money mindset. Think of it like the invisible operating
system running behind all your financial choices. It's the code
dictating how you see wealth, how you feel about spending,
(01:05):
how you judge value.
Speaker 2 (01:06):
It really is the foundation.
Speaker 1 (01:08):
Yeah, and we hear the usual advice all the time,
Earn more, save more, hustle harder, and look, that stuff matters.
Speaker 2 (01:16):
Obviously, sure action is important, But what if.
Speaker 1 (01:19):
The real key, the thing that actually changes your financial reality,
isn't just what you do, yeah, but fundamentally how you
think about money. What if that little voice saying I
can't afford it is actually the main thing holding you back.
Speaker 2 (01:34):
You've absolutely hit on something crucial there. Our mindset around money,
it's not just about the dollars and cents, is it.
It truly is that operating system for well, for almost
all your life decisions. It affects your piece, your choices,
your sense of security.
Speaker 1 (01:48):
Everything everything. Wow.
Speaker 2 (01:50):
So our mission today is to really unpack five distinct
levels of this money mindset. We're going to dig into
where they come from, you know, their origins, how these
beliefs show up in your everyday actions, the little thing
and the big things, and maybe most importantly, we want
to give you a framework to see how understanding your
current mindset can actually light up a path forward.
Speaker 1 (02:09):
A path forward.
Speaker 2 (02:10):
I like that, yeah, because by the end of this
deep dive you might find yourself shifting away from that
limiting question, can I afford it towards something much more empowering,
a question that could really change everything about your financial world.
Speaker 1 (02:24):
Okay, I'm intrigued.
Speaker 2 (02:26):
And this isn't just you know, positive thinking fluff. It's
about getting clear on the powerful, often hidden beliefs running
the show financially and by extension, in your life.
Speaker 1 (02:37):
So get ready, then we're going on a pretty fascinating
journey exploring this whole spectrum of financial thinking. That's right, Well,
go from that really tight, almost suffocating feeling of scarcity
all the way to the other end, that feeling of
absolute financial freedom. It's quite a range, it is, and
it's a journey that hopefully reveals not just you know,
(02:57):
how much money you have in the bank, but what
you really believe money is for. And yeah, maybe even deeper,
what you believe you're capable of, what you think you
deserve exactly.
Speaker 2 (03:06):
It gets quite deep. Hashtag tag the five levels of
money mindset.
Speaker 1 (03:10):
All right, let's start at the very beginning of that
level one, the scarcity mindset.
Speaker 2 (03:14):
The foundation.
Speaker 1 (03:15):
Yeah, the foundation. At its heart, this is basically the
belief that money is well, it's fundamentally limited. It's really
hard to get hard to hold on to, and so
you just have to hoard it, cling to it for
dear life.
Speaker 2 (03:28):
Mm hmm.
Speaker 1 (03:28):
Survival mode totally money equal safety, like a shield and
the biggest thing. There's just never ever enough. It's this
constant low hum of anxiety. What if it runs out.
Speaker 2 (03:40):
That what I ish is powerful? It drives so much
it feels.
Speaker 1 (03:43):
Almost primitive, doesn't it like a survival instinct kicking in,
bracing for a future disaster that might not even be coming,
no matter what your bank account actually says. Now?
Speaker 2 (03:51):
Racing, Yeah, that's a good word for it. And the
origins well, they often go way back deep into our
childhood's or formative years, right.
Speaker 1 (03:58):
Do it makes sense many people opting from scarcity grew
up in let's say, modest circumstances where the main focus
for the parents was just survival, getting by, making it
to the end of.
Speaker 2 (04:10):
The month, paying the bills, keeping food on the table, exactly.
Speaker 1 (04:14):
Think about maybe growing up where most clothes.
Speaker 2 (04:16):
Were hand me downs, Oh yeah, been there.
Speaker 1 (04:19):
Or maybe your favorite toy wasn't something fancy from a store,
but like a really cool stick you found in the woods, Yes,
the perfect stick, right, And that kind of environment. It
doesn't just teach you to be frugal. It actually like
rewires your brain's reward system safety preservation, making those become
the priorities.
Speaker 2 (04:39):
So it shapes your actual brain chemistry.
Speaker 1 (04:41):
In a way. Yeah, it can create what psychologists call
an availability heuristic. Yeah. Basically those past experiences of lack,
even from way back, they're easily recalled and feel more important,
more real than maybe your current situation.
Speaker 2 (04:55):
Wow, so the past overrides.
Speaker 1 (04:57):
The present often, Yes, And it leads to see the
world split into haves and have nots, and you automatically
put yourself in the have not camp.
Speaker 2 (05:05):
Right, that's your identity. The belief becomes deep down. My
family didn't have much, Their parents didn't have much, so
naturally I won't either. It feels like destiny.
Speaker 1 (05:15):
That sounds incredibly limiting.
Speaker 2 (05:17):
It is, And the really tragic part, even if you,
as an adult achieve way more financial success than your
parents ever did, that core operating system, that scarcity program,
it often keeps running in the background, like a ghost
in the machine, dictating your choices.
Speaker 1 (05:34):
Wow, so you can be objectively well off but still
feel poor and act poor.
Speaker 2 (05:38):
Precisely powerful stuff.
Speaker 1 (05:41):
That connection between early experiences in current choices is fascinating.
And when you apply that scarcity principle day to day, yeah,
well it leads to some really telling behaviors, doesn't it.
Speaker 2 (05:51):
Oh? Absolutely.
Speaker 1 (05:51):
It's like the classic DIY to a fault thing. Let's
say David Sink springs a leak, Okay, instead of calling
a plumber, David, running on scare city software, spends maybe
his whole weekend trying to fix it himself and probably
doing a terrible.
Speaker 2 (06:04):
Job making it worse potentially right.
Speaker 1 (06:07):
And his internal thought isn't just all save money. It's
often more like defiant. You know, why should I make
that plumber rich? I can't afford luxuries like that.
Speaker 2 (06:16):
It's almost a moral stance against spending exactly.
Speaker 1 (06:19):
It's not about being handy. It's this deep, gut level
resistance to letting money go, even when hiring an expert
is clearly the smarter, faster, and probably.
Speaker 2 (06:29):
Cheaper option in the end, because the principle of not
spending feels more important than the outcome totally.
Speaker 1 (06:36):
So David might end up with a bigger leak, water
damage and a much bigger plumber bill later, all because
of that initial impulse to.
Speaker 2 (06:43):
Hoard the cash and that need to protect every penny.
It doesn't stop at home repairs, does it. It seeps into
everything you buy or other don't.
Speaker 1 (06:50):
Buy right like consumption choices.
Speaker 2 (06:52):
Yeah, there's this really strong belief, almost unshakable, that nice
things are for other people, people who can really afford them,
since in your mind you can't. Anything seen as nice
or higher quality is just off the table, not even considered.
Speaker 1 (07:07):
So you just default to the cheapest option.
Speaker 2 (07:09):
Always, pretty much. It leads to this persistent lack of
quality stuff or even just enjoyable experiences. You might own things, sure,
but they're almost always the most basic, stripped down versions,
chosen only for their low price, not for durability or
how they look or the joy they might bring.
Speaker 1 (07:28):
There's no room for enjoyment, just function.
Speaker 2 (07:30):
And there's almost this like moral judgment against anything that
feels like a splurge, even if it would actually last
longer or make life significantly better.
Speaker 1 (07:39):
And what about the time costs you mentioned that.
Speaker 2 (07:41):
Earlier, Oh, the opportunity costs blind spot. It's huge and
often incredibly damaging.
Speaker 1 (07:46):
Okay, explain that.
Speaker 2 (07:47):
People deep in scarcity often waste incredibly valuable time, high
leverage time on what you might call ten dollars tasks
when they have a one thousand dollars brain.
Speaker 1 (07:56):
Okay, give me an example.
Speaker 2 (07:58):
Think of a small business owner, let's call her ERA.
She should be focused on strategy, growth, big picture.
Speaker 1 (08:04):
Stuff, right, the one thousand dollars brain.
Speaker 2 (08:06):
Activities exactly, But instead she might spend hours wrestling with
some fiddly tech task like formatting a spreadsheet just right
or fixing a tiny website glitch, stuff an expert virtual
assistant could do in like fifteen.
Speaker 1 (08:21):
Minutes, because she thinks I can't afford to pay someone.
Speaker 2 (08:24):
Precisely, But those hours she pours into that low value task,
that's time she cannot spend on the high value work
that would actually grow her business or even just recharge
her batteries.
Speaker 1 (08:35):
So she's creating potentially huge gains for tiny savings.
Speaker 2 (08:39):
It's a direct, often self defeating exchange, high earning potential
time swapped for a minimal saving.
Speaker 1 (08:45):
That really puts it in perspective. And it can get
emotional too, right, affecting relationship.
Speaker 2 (08:50):
Oh absolutely, it can lead to some really profound emotional sacrifices,
missing out on those big, irreplaceable life moments like what
like imagine missing your mom's big milestone birthday party because
it's across the country, and that voice inside just screams,
flights are way too expensive.
Speaker 1 (09:04):
Oh that's rough.
Speaker 2 (09:05):
In that scenario, the perceived cost of the plane ticket
completely overshadows the immeasurable, priceless value of actually being there,
the connection, the shared joy, the memory you'd create.
Speaker 1 (09:18):
It doesn't even factor in.
Speaker 2 (09:20):
Not really. The price tag is the absolute gatekeeper, that
feeling of presence, the emotional return on investment, It just
doesn't compute in the scarcity calculation.
Speaker 1 (09:30):
And the regret from missing that could last forever, way
longer than the.
Speaker 2 (09:33):
Money saves, exactly, years and years of regret, far outweighing
any temporary savings.
Speaker 1 (09:38):
Wow. And you know a phrase that just sums up
this whole mindset for me, especially growing up. We have
food at home. Yes, the classic rights, that immediate shutdown
of any potential outside spending, even something simple like grabbing
a bottle of water when you're out running errands.
Speaker 2 (09:55):
Why buy water when it's free from the tap at home?
Speaker 1 (09:57):
Exactly, every single dollar spent out sid the absolute bare minimum,
gets scrutinized, often with this little side order of guilt
like you're being wasteful.
Speaker 2 (10:06):
No room for convenience, no room for a small pleasure.
Speaker 1 (10:09):
None. The message is always conserve, conserve, conserve. That's why
you see people you know, bringing their own snacks everywhere,
even when food is provided. It's not about liking the food.
It's the habit of not spending.
Speaker 2 (10:21):
It's deeply ingrained. So as we look at this level,
what really stands out. The crucial thing to grasp is
that the mindset itself is the main blocker.
Speaker 1 (10:33):
Not the actual bank balance.
Speaker 2 (10:34):
Not necessarily. No, even when someone's income goes up significantly,
even when they have decent savings, that deep seated belief
that money is scarce often just hangs on.
Speaker 1 (10:45):
It doesn't automatically update, right.
Speaker 2 (10:47):
It stops them from investing wisely, or enjoying the money,
or using it effectively to actually improve their life. They
have more money objectively, but they still act like they.
Speaker 1 (10:57):
Don't well, perpetuating the cycle exactly.
Speaker 2 (11:00):
They're stuck in this self imposed deprivation that isn't necessary anymore.
Maybe it wasn't logical even before, which is why we
call it a mindset, not just a financial situation.
Speaker 1 (11:08):
Okay, that's a key distinction.
Speaker 2 (11:10):
The real takeaway here, genuine financial freedom isn't just about
getting more money. It's about consciously seeing and then dismantling
those internal stories, those beliefs that limit how you see
and use the resources you already have or could potentially have.
Speaker 1 (11:26):
It's a mental liberation first.
Speaker 2 (11:28):
Absolutely, that often has to happen before the real financial
transformation can take root.
Speaker 1 (11:33):
Okay, So, if level one is being totally gripped by
scarcity level two the price mindset, that sounds like maybe
loosening the grip a little, a cautious step.
Speaker 2 (11:43):
Out, exactly. It's a cautious, hesitant step out of that
really suffocating feeling of level one. There's a little spark
of curiosity now about actual costs. Okay, But and this
is key, the decision making is still overwhelmingly governed by
the immediate price tag, not by real value yet.
Speaker 1 (12:00):
So it's like you're trying to outsmart spending now, minimize
the damage.
Speaker 2 (12:04):
That's a good way to put it, trying to outsmart it,
play the angles rather than seeing spending as a potential tool.
You're still nervous, still very wary, but you're starting to
cautiously engage with the financial world instead of just hiding.
Speaker 1 (12:16):
From it, right, You're looking, not just avoiding.
Speaker 2 (12:19):
That Cautious engagement is a huge step. Actually, that constant
feeling of lack in level one, it eventually just becomes
unbearable for a lot of people. You break out somehow, Right,
so they start to like our source material, says peek
through the door, tentatively asking, Okay, how much does that
actually cost? Is it really as bad as I think?
(12:39):
That first question is big, It's crucial, and the more
they look, the more they might realize, huh, maybe maybe
I can actually afford some of these things.
Speaker 1 (12:48):
A little bit of possibility creeps in.
Speaker 2 (12:50):
Exactly, but only if they check every single price, compare
every option relentlessly, and stick rigidly to the rules that
they've set for themselves the rule. Yeah, it's a shift
from total avoidance to this cautious, almost forensic examination of cost.
But the main filter is still absolutely how much they're
(13:11):
trying hard to rebuild, maybe get some stability, but with
this very strict, almost punishing rule book that puts saving
above everything else.
Speaker 1 (13:19):
Okay, so how does that look day to day? Let's
take the water bottle example again.
Speaker 2 (13:23):
Okay, so level one, you wouldn't buy it free at home.
Right level two, you've moved past that total refusal. But
now now you might spend twenty minutes meticulously searching for
a bottle that's say twenty cents cheaper.
Speaker 1 (13:36):
Walking three extra blocks to a different store.
Speaker 2 (13:39):
Or endlessly scrolling price comparison apps. Yeah, it's still about
minimizing the outflow, protecting every cent, but now you're actively
doing the minimizing.
Speaker 1 (13:50):
But at a huge cost of time and.
Speaker 2 (13:52):
Energy, hugely inefficient cost. Often you're trying to be prudent, responsible,
but responsible still just means cheapest, even when the saving
is totally negligible.
Speaker 1 (14:01):
Got it? And this leads to that tracking you mentioned.
Speaker 2 (14:03):
Yes, this often goes hand in hand with really rigorous,
sometimes obsessive.
Speaker 1 (14:08):
Tracking, like checking the bank balance constantly.
Speaker 2 (14:10):
Constantly tracking every expense, keeping every single receipt, tallying it
all up down to the penny.
Speaker 1 (14:15):
Sometimes, why, what's the driving force there?
Speaker 2 (14:18):
The internal story is, this is how you stay not broke.
This is how you climb out of the hole. It
provides a feeling of control, which can be comforting after
feeling powerless and scarcity.
Speaker 1 (14:29):
Okay, so it serves an emotional.
Speaker 2 (14:30):
Need definitely, But it doesn't necessarily lead to genuinely wise spending.
The focus is still tilted heavily towards preventing loss, avoiding mistakes,
rather than actively cultivating growth or well being. In a
bigger sense, it's defense, not offense exactly, a defense mechanism,
not a growth strategy.
Speaker 1 (14:49):
And this fear of making a mistake, it leads to
that rule book thing you mentioned, the rule book mentality. Yeah,
someone in this mindset lives by this very strict, often
kind of arbitrary set of financial rules they've made up.
Speaker 2 (15:04):
Like what kind of rules like.
Speaker 1 (15:05):
For them, going just ten dollars over their budget feels
emotionally the same as going one hundred dollars over. It
triggers the same feeling of failure of I broke the rule.
Speaker 2 (15:14):
Wow, no sense of scale.
Speaker 1 (15:16):
Very little. And this rigidity means real opportunities, maybe for
personal growth, a time saving service, a valuable experience, they
just get missed because they don't fit into the neat
little boxes of the budget.
Speaker 2 (15:27):
Even if breaking the rule would actually be beneficial.
Speaker 1 (15:29):
Absolutely, the fear of breaking the self imposed rule often
overrides any rational assessment of the potential benefit. Okay, I see,
and how does this play out with quality, like buying things.
Speaker 2 (15:41):
Ah yes, it almost always translates into sacrificing quality for
the upfront cost.
Speaker 1 (15:47):
The cheap shoes.
Speaker 2 (15:47):
Example, the classic cheap shoes. You know they'll fall apart
in two months, but you buy them anyway because the
slightly better, more durable pair cost twenty dollars more.
Speaker 1 (15:57):
Today, even though you'll buy the cheap ones three.
Speaker 2 (15:58):
Times exactly the long term cost buying replacements. The frustration,
the discomfort, it gets ignored or rationalized away. The price
right now is the absolute gatekeeper. It blocks any thought
about long term value, durability, or even just the simple
pleasure of owning something decent.
Speaker 1 (16:17):
And that applies to more than just choose.
Speaker 2 (16:19):
I imagine, oh, across the board, tools, close household goods,
sometimes even services, cheapest wins regardless of the hidden future costs.
Speaker 1 (16:26):
Okay, so let's bring back mom's birthday flight. How does
that look in the price mindset?
Speaker 2 (16:31):
Right? So here there's a genuine desire to go, You
really want to be there. That's different from level ones
outright refusal. Okay, progress, but the price tag is still
the absolute boss. So you'll spend hours, maybe days, scouring
kayak skyscanner, Google.
Speaker 1 (16:46):
Flights, refreshing, constantly, trying.
Speaker 2 (16:48):
Different dates, different airports, maybe flying at three am with
three layovers, all hoping, praying that the price drops below
your magic.
Speaker 1 (16:57):
Number, your self imposed budget limit.
Speaker 2 (16:59):
Exactly when you mean it. If it hits a two
hundred ninety nine dollars boom, you book it instantly, you
feel like you want.
Speaker 1 (17:05):
But what if it stays at like three hundred nine
dollars just ten dollars over?
Speaker 2 (17:10):
Yeah, then suddenly it's unjustifiable, too much, not worth it.
That carefully crafted rulebook slams the gate shut, even against
that strong emotional pull to see your mom, Wow.
Speaker 1 (17:20):
That ten dollars makes all the difference between possible and
impossible in this mindset.
Speaker 2 (17:24):
Yes, the rule is the rule.
Speaker 1 (17:26):
So the bottom line here, the main filter is still just.
Speaker 2 (17:29):
How much, absolutely how much does it cost? That's the
primary question and the crucial missing piece. The thing this
mindset really struggles with is the concept of value.
Speaker 1 (17:38):
Right, they're not asking what's it worth?
Speaker 2 (17:40):
Not really, they're deeply afraid of spending, sure, but they
mistakenly think they can manage that fear by being hyper
vigilant about price, by checking everything, budgeting rigidly.
Speaker 1 (17:51):
Trying to control the outflow through sheer effort.
Speaker 2 (17:55):
Exactly, rather than fundamentally shifting their perspective to what something
actually provides quality, time saved, joy, connection, long term benefit.
Speaker 1 (18:03):
So the implication is it's a step up from scarcity.
Definitely more aware awareness is growing, but it still keeps
you trapped right in this cycle of penny pinching, missing
out on long term value because you're so focused on
the immediate saving.
Speaker 2 (18:16):
Precisely, they haven't yet started asking the deeper, much more
powerful question, what is this truly worth to me?
Speaker 1 (18:23):
Okay, this feels like a big one level three the
value mindset you said, this is where the penny drops.
Speaker 2 (18:29):
It really is often a pivotal moment. This is where
you start to grasp a really profound truth. Anything genuinely
worth having, anything that truly enriches your life, Well, it.
Speaker 1 (18:39):
Costs something, right, There's no free lunch, essentially pretty much.
Speaker 2 (18:43):
And with that realization, the focus makes this huge powerful shift.
It moves away from that limiting question how much does
it cost to the far more empowering, more expansive question,
how much is it worth worth?
Speaker 1 (18:57):
Okay, that feels like a completely different.
Speaker 2 (18:59):
Lens it's a total paradigm shift. You move from being
reactive just trying to avoid costs to being proactive intentional
seeking value. You start aligning your spending with what actually
matters to you.
Speaker 1 (19:11):
What triggers that shift? Usually, how do people get here
from the price mindset?
Speaker 2 (19:15):
Often it's simply lived experience, making enough calculations, enough mistakes,
perhaps to finally realize that, yeah, cheap is rarely smart.
Speaker 1 (19:22):
You've bought enough pairs of those cheap shoes.
Speaker 2 (19:24):
Exactly, or you've had enough DIY projects go wrong, costing
you more. In the end, you learn sometimes the hard way,
that always chasing the lowest price often leads to a
higher overall cost.
Speaker 1 (19:35):
Whether that's money, time, or just frustration all.
Speaker 2 (19:38):
Of the above, and that hard one understanding allows for
a much more objective, more nuanced look at what's genuinely
valuable and what isn't. You start to see beyond the
price tag.
Speaker 1 (19:48):
So you're still aware of cost, but it's not the
only factor anymore.
Speaker 2 (19:52):
Precisely, you're not necessarily rolling in dough, but you've definitely
stopped thinking like a poor person. You're really starting to
see money not just as to survive on, but as
a tool, a powerful tool that can actually improve your life,
not just keep your head above water.
Speaker 1 (20:06):
Okay, so let's unpack that. How does this value perspective
show up in daily life.
Speaker 2 (20:12):
Well, something means a lot to you if it brings real,
undeniable value, whether that's peace of mind, efficiency, joy learning,
you actively figure out how to make your money work
for it. That deep fear of spending that dominated levels
one and two, it starts to fade, replaced by what
replaced by intentionality, a clear sense of purpose behind your spending.
You're not just trying to get by or hoard cash
(20:34):
out of fear anymore. You're actively strategically trying to enhance
your life to invest in what genuinely matters.
Speaker 1 (20:40):
Investing in what matters. That sounds like prioritizing differently too,
like time and energy.
Speaker 2 (20:46):
Absolutely, that shift almost always leads to consciously valuing your
time and energy as the precious finite resources.
Speaker 1 (20:53):
They are, so you might pay more for convenience.
Speaker 2 (20:56):
You develop a willingness to pay a bit more for
things like that bottled water. Again, not because you're being frivolous,
but because you understand saving those few minutes or avoiding
that little hassle let's you put your time and energy
towards something more important, higher value.
Speaker 1 (21:10):
It's an investment in your own capacity.
Speaker 2 (21:12):
Exactly, an investment in your bandwidth, your focus, your well being.
You recognize your time has a value, and sometimes paying
for convenience isn't just smart, it's essential to stay effective.
Speaker 1 (21:24):
And that's saying by once cry once. Does that make
sense here?
Speaker 2 (21:28):
Oh? Absolutely? That phrase, which might have seemed crazy or
wasteful before, suddenly becomes crystal clear. It makes perfect sense now.
Speaker 1 (21:35):
So instead of the three cheap pairs.
Speaker 2 (21:37):
Issues, you make the conscious choice to invest in one good,
high quality pair that's built to last. It's a strategic move.
Speaker 1 (21:45):
And it's not just about saving money long term.
Speaker 2 (21:47):
No, although it usually does. It's also about valuing quality, reliability, craftsmanship,
and frankly, the peace of mind that comes from owning
things that just work well and don't cause constant frustration.
Speaker 1 (21:58):
Yeah, reducing that daily fraeme. What about investing in yourself?
Does that click now? Too?
Speaker 2 (22:03):
Big time? That phrase invest in yourself finally lands with
real weight and meaning. Here. Money is no longer just
about buying stuff. You deeply understand it buys options, opportunities, better.
Speaker 1 (22:17):
Outcomes, like what kind of options.
Speaker 2 (22:19):
Like having the financial cushion to say no to a
job that's draining your soul, or the ability to pay
for a course, a certification coaching, something that opens up
totally new doors for your career or your personal growth,
or even a passion project.
Speaker 1 (22:34):
So money creates momentum, Yes.
Speaker 2 (22:36):
It gives you leverage, runway, It allows you to actively
build the life you want, pursue your potential, create real change.
It's not just for security, it's for growth.
Speaker 1 (22:44):
Okay, let's go grocery shopping with a value mindset person.
What does that look like?
Speaker 2 (22:49):
All right? So prices are still noticed, definitely, you're not
being extravagant or oblivious.
Speaker 1 (22:54):
You haven't won the lottery.
Speaker 2 (22:56):
Right, But quality health benefits Maybe how much time I'm
a pre prepped item saves you, how long something will last?
Those things become equally sometimes more important than just the price.
Speaker 1 (23:09):
So you might spend more on organic or pre cut veggies.
Speaker 2 (23:13):
You're okay spending a bit more for those things, yeah,
or for ingredients that genuinely make you feel good or
that lasts longer because you understand their deeper holistic value
to your well being, your time, your energy.
Speaker 1 (23:25):
It's a balanced, intentional approach.
Speaker 2 (23:27):
Very much so, prioritizing the overall benefit, not just the
immediate cost.
Speaker 1 (23:31):
And mom's birthday flight. How does the calculation change here?
Speaker 2 (23:35):
Ah? Here the shift, it's dramatic. Instead of agonizing over
the price variations, your mind immediately jumps to wow, how
long has it been since I saw her? You picture
her face when you show up, That moment of surprise and.
Speaker 1 (23:45):
Joy, the emotional connection.
Speaker 2 (23:47):
Exactly, that connection, that shared experience, the memory you're creating.
That becomes immeasurably more valuable than saving say, fifty one
hundred dollars on the ticket.
Speaker 1 (23:57):
So you just make it happen.
Speaker 2 (23:58):
You make it happen, not necessar necessarily because it's suddenly
easy to afford, but because it's worth to you. Clearly
transcends the price you finally get it. Money at its
best is for creating moments and connections like that.
Speaker 1 (24:10):
So tying this all together, yeah, the core belief here
is that money is a.
Speaker 2 (24:14):
Powerful tool, an incredibly powerful versatile tool, and when you
use it intentionally, focusing on true value, it can profoundly
enhance your life, give you options, support your.
Speaker 1 (24:25):
Growth and wanting more money isn't necessarily greedy, not at all.
Speaker 2 (24:29):
In this mindset, wanting more is often a healthy recognition
of your own worth, your potential. It's a proactive desire
to align your resources with your deepest values and goals.
It's about being a strategic investor in your own best life.
Speaker 1 (24:42):
That feels empowering.
Speaker 2 (24:43):
It is this value mindset really breaks the shackles of
just looking at cost. It lets you make choices that
truly align with who you want to be and how
you want to live, and that paves the way for
much deeper financial growth and honestly, a much deeper sense
of fulfillment.
Speaker 1 (24:57):
Moving beyond just survival towards.
Speaker 2 (24:59):
Thrivingc living a life that actually reflects your values, not
just your bank balance.
Speaker 1 (25:04):
All right, climbing higher now level four the growth mindset.
This sounds like we're moving beyond just value. What's the
focus here?
Speaker 2 (25:13):
It's another really significant shift at this stage. Just getting
more money isn't really the main driver anymore?
Speaker 1 (25:19):
Oh? What is then?
Speaker 2 (25:20):
Instead? Money becomes this sophisticated strategic tool, a lever really
used intentionally to actively design and sculpt a life that's
centered around well around piece choice.
Speaker 1 (25:30):
And protection, peace, choice, protection. Okay, so it's less about
accumulating more about building, designing.
Speaker 2 (25:37):
Exactly, building, designing, optimizing. That's the focus.
Speaker 1 (25:40):
So how do you get here from the value mindset?
What's the transition?
Speaker 2 (25:44):
Well, once you've really grasped and embraced value, the next
logical step is to start using money purposefully to construct
the specific life you desire. That old cliche about money
being a tool, it finally makes deep practical sense here
because now you actually know what you want to build
with it. You have a blueprint, You have a blueprint.
(26:04):
You've moved beyond just earning and spending reactively. Now you're
deeply focused on how to use those resources proactively to
create a very specific, intentional kind of life.
Speaker 1 (26:14):
Less reacting, more conscious.
Speaker 2 (26:16):
Creating, absolutely strategic proactivity and pretty much every financial decision.
Speaker 1 (26:20):
Okay, let's see it in action. How does this intentionalfe
design look day to day?
Speaker 2 (26:25):
It feels like every action, every choice is deliberate, purposeful, aligned,
less haphazard, much less. The main focus is on designing
robust systems, financial systems, personal habits, professional structures that consistently
support the lifestyle you want, instead of constantly reacting to
money pressures or chasing random opportunities or always feeling like
(26:47):
you're playing catch up.
Speaker 1 (26:48):
So you're building frameworks.
Speaker 2 (26:49):
Resilient frameworks. Yeah, that allow life to flow with more ease,
more predictability. I think automating savings and investments, consciously, building
dever income streams, setting up U teams that protect your
time and energy. It's like building a well designed house
instead of constantly patching leaks in a shack.
Speaker 1 (27:08):
I like that analogy. What about Mom's flight now level four?
Speaker 2 (27:12):
Thinking right at this level, the flight is booked quickly,
almost effortlessly.
Speaker 1 (27:17):
Why still not impulse spending?
Speaker 2 (27:20):
No, not at all. It's booked quickly because you have
this inherent confidence that comes from your well designed systems
and your purposeful work. You know, deep down I'll make
that money back, not.
Speaker 1 (27:29):
Scrambling, but just through the systems you've.
Speaker 2 (27:32):
Built, exactly through the efficiency and strategy already in place.
So the main concern shifts entirely. It's no longer about
the cost. It's about getting there when you.
Speaker 1 (27:40):
Want to be there, prioritizing the experience and the timing.
Speaker 2 (27:43):
Absolutely, the experience, the timing, the connection the money part
is basically a solved problem. It allows you to focus
one hundred percent on the purpose of the trip.
Speaker 1 (27:52):
That sounds freeing. What about everyday things like the water bottle?
We're systems?
Speaker 2 (27:57):
Systemic efficiency becomes huge here. But it's not just about
saving money anymore. Like in level two, it's a strategic
investment in your future self. How okay, So you're beyond
hunting for the twenty cent discount. You're beyond just paying
for convenience. Sometimes now you might strategically bulk buy your
water or even subscribe to a high quality filtered water
(28:19):
delivery service for your home or office.
Speaker 1 (28:21):
Why what's the growth mindset angle?
Speaker 2 (28:24):
It's not just about saving money over time, though it might.
It's about perpetually saving precious time, saving mental energy, eliminating
decision fatigue around that one little thing.
Speaker 1 (28:34):
Forever, automating the mundane.
Speaker 2 (28:36):
Exactly, And that principle applies everywhere. Setting up routines, delegating
tasks you don't like or aren't good at, investing in
tools that streamline workflows. It's all about freeing up your
cognitive bandwidth for the important stuff, high level thinking, creativity, strategy.
Speaker 1 (28:53):
Okay, and groceries. How strategic does that get?
Speaker 2 (28:55):
Oh? It goes way beyond just planning tonight's dinner. You're
thinking longer term meal planning for the week or month,
aligning food choices with specific health goals, managing your energy
levels through nutrition. It's sophisticated.
Speaker 1 (29:09):
So maybe batch cooking or meal prep services.
Speaker 2 (29:12):
Could be batch cooking on Sunday for the whole we
could be meticulously prepping ingredients, could be subscribing to healthy,
pre portioned meal kits that cut down prep time and
decision fatigue. If you looked in their cart, you'd see
a clear strategy behind every item.
Speaker 1 (29:28):
It's a holistic approach to well being and productivity reflected
in the shopping.
Speaker 2 (29:32):
Perfectly put proactive, holistic life design.
Speaker 1 (29:36):
And you mentioned safety and peace earlier, how does that
build at this level?
Speaker 2 (29:40):
The ultimate goal here is to build genuine, unshakable safety
emotionally and financially, and you do that through these robust,
intentional systems. Okay, And the amazing thing is because you've
consciously built these strong, supportive frameworks managing your money, dealing
with unexpected stuff, just moving through life, it starts to
feel less like constant effort, less like reacting, and more
(30:03):
like an easy flow. Things just work more smoothly you're
definitely working smart, but maybe more importantly, you're living with
this foundational sense of security and effortless momentum that sounds like.
Speaker 1 (30:14):
A really good place to be. Does work fit into
this differently too massively?
Speaker 2 (30:18):
There's a deep, profound appreciation here for having creative outlets
and for actively pursuing work, whether a job or your
own business, that aligns directly and authentically with your core values,
your passions.
Speaker 1 (30:34):
So work isn't just about the paycheck anymore.
Speaker 2 (30:36):
Not at all. Money in this context is actively used
to support those meaningful pursuits, to ensure your work feeds
not just your bank account, but also your sense of purpose,
meaning fulfillment. Your relationship with money totally transforms. You know
exactly how to use it as an ally to build
the life you actually want, not just the one you
feel obligated to live.
Speaker 1 (30:55):
Wow, and there was something about zooming out.
Speaker 2 (30:57):
Ah, Yes, that's a crucial insight here. You realize that
constantly playing those scarcity games from levels one and two,
the endless struggling, the needless sacrificing, the self deprivation that
keeps you perpetually zoomed in focused on tiny, often insignificant
self defeating detail.
Speaker 1 (31:14):
Lost in the weeds.
Speaker 2 (31:15):
Exactly, true sustainable growth you see with total clarity now
comes from zooming out, gaining that broader perspective, understanding why
you're doing things, the motivations, The long term consequence is
not just what you're doing in the moment.
Speaker 1 (31:31):
That's seeing the forest, not just the trees, precisely.
Speaker 2 (31:35):
And this ability to proactively shape your financial reality without
needing a major life crisis to force the change that
puts you in a very small, very fortunate group of people.
Speaker 1 (31:45):
Okay, So the underlying belief here is money is a
lever for life.
Speaker 2 (31:49):
Design, a powerful lever for proactive life design. It's all
about building a life where financial freedom isn't just a concept,
it's real. It creates the essential space for peace, choice, protection,
and you build it before crisis hits, not because of one.
Speaker 1 (32:02):
You're shaping reality, not just reacting to.
Speaker 2 (32:05):
It, consciously deliberately shaping it with purpose and foresight.
Speaker 1 (32:08):
So for the listener reflecting on this, yeah, the growth
mindset offers immense clarity control.
Speaker 2 (32:14):
Immense clarity, agency control. It empowers you to actively sculpt
your life with real purpose, real resilience instead of feeling
tossed around by circumstances, are held back by old beliefs.
You become the architect of your own.
Speaker 1 (32:28):
Well being, the dining a life that serve.
Speaker 2 (32:30):
You exactly your highest intentions.
Speaker 1 (32:32):
Wow, okay, we've climbed high level five the freedom mindset.
This sounds like the sunate, the ultimate stage.
Speaker 2 (32:40):
It really represents the pinnacle. Yes, this is where money
provides the unwavering, unshakable permission to live a life with
well with minimal compromise, if.
Speaker 1 (32:51):
Any minimal compromise. What does that mean? In practice?
Speaker 2 (32:53):
It means that fundamental human assets, things like your time,
your ability to be present, your inner peace, your personal bandwidth,
become absolutely.
Speaker 1 (33:01):
Non negotiable, more important than money, often.
Speaker 2 (33:03):
Yes, far more valuable. And freedom isn't some distant goal
you're striving for anymore. It's just your natural, effortless operating
baseline for every single decision.
Speaker 1 (33:13):
It's just how you live, not something you're aiming for.
Speaker 2 (33:15):
Exactly, a fundamentally different, deeply liberating wave of being.
Speaker 1 (33:19):
How do you get here? What's the refinement from the
growth mindset?
Speaker 2 (33:22):
Well, having meticulously design those robust systems in level four,
having achieved that growth, the focus now refines even Further,
it becomes about eliminating even the tiniest micro.
Speaker 1 (33:33):
Stressor micro stressors, like what.
Speaker 2 (33:35):
Little daily frictions annoyances grains on your energy. And it's
about continuously optimizing for holistic well being in every area
of life.
Speaker 1 (33:44):
So it's not about retiring early.
Speaker 2 (33:46):
Necessarily, not necessarily. No, it's not about just stopping work.
It's about having the profound autonomy to design your life
to perfectly match how and when you operate at your
absolute peak.
Speaker 1 (33:57):
Living in alignment with your own.
Speaker 2 (33:59):
Rhythm, your deep rhythms, your most authentic self, rather than
bending to external pressures, arbitrary schedules, or other people's expectations.
It's conscious, intentional living at its peak.
Speaker 1 (34:10):
Okay, let's see this in action. Mom's flight level five
freedom Right the flight.
Speaker 2 (34:15):
It's booked instantly, without a flicker of internal debate, no.
Speaker 1 (34:18):
Checking prices, no worrying about.
Speaker 2 (34:19):
Sales, zero concern about sales deals, optimizing dates. Why Because
the value of your time, your unwavering presence for that moment,
your inner peace. It's absolute, non negotiable, unquestionable, just done, effortless,
completely effortless decision made purely to serve your deepest well being.
(34:40):
In that connection, no financial gymnastics required or even considered.
Speaker 1 (34:45):
Wow, and everyday things, groceries.
Speaker 2 (34:48):
That principle of optimizing for ease and peace extends everywhere,
so grocery shopping. Maybe you choose go at ten am
on a Tuesday when it is practically.
Speaker 1 (34:56):
Empty, when everyone else is at work.
Speaker 2 (34:57):
Exactly, not because you're living some fantasy retirement, but because
you know that's when you operate best. It's quiet, calm
efficient for you. It saves you stress and effort precisely,
it allows for a focused, enjoyable experience. The goal isn't
just getting the cheapest groceries, it's making the entire process easier,
more peaceful. You leave with what you need, no mental
static because you optimized for mental and energetic ease.
Speaker 1 (35:20):
And paying more for things. How does that look here?
Speaker 2 (35:22):
This is where it gets really interesting. If something costs more,
maybe significantly more, but it demonstrably saves you effort, eliminates
one of those persistent micro stressors, or simply brings a
greater sense of calm and peace to your daily life.
It's acquired instantly, without.
Speaker 1 (35:41):
Hesitation, and that's not seen as frivolous.
Speaker 2 (35:43):
Not at all. It's seen as incredibly strategic peace building.
Maybe it's hiring more help around the house or business,
investing in premium time saving services, buying the best tools
that make life smoother. You've consciously curated a life that
actively avoids.
Speaker 1 (35:59):
Unnecessary, designing an unburdened.
Speaker 2 (36:01):
Existence beautifully put smooth, unburdened.
Speaker 1 (36:05):
Does this mindset change how you view speed or quantity profoundly?
Speaker 2 (36:09):
There's a deep understanding here that fast isn't always better,
and maybe even more radically, more isn't always worth.
Speaker 1 (36:15):
It, So you might intentionally slow down.
Speaker 2 (36:17):
There's a deliberate, conscious choice to slow down, to create
space to savor things rather than rushing through. And it
feels incredibly good because you have the agency to decelerate
and you're doing it on purpose.
Speaker 1 (36:29):
Why what's the benefit of slowing down?
Speaker 2 (36:31):
You understand the immense restorative power of that pace for
your creativity, your relationships, your health. You're thinking that constant
pressure to achieve, produce, always beyond it just dissolves.
Speaker 1 (36:44):
That sounds amazing. Yeah, and you mentioned valuing unseen assets.
Speaker 2 (36:48):
Yes, this is a huge shift. You start placing concrete,
real value on things most people barely even think about,
Like what mental bandwidth, genuine restedness, not just sleep, but breast,
the ability to be truly present in a conversation with
your family, with yourself.
Speaker 1 (37:04):
These are just nice ideas anymore.
Speaker 2 (37:06):
No, They're understood as precious, finite resources, often considered far
more valuable than dollars in the bank, and you guard
them fiercely because they're the bedrock of your highest quality
of life.
Speaker 1 (37:17):
How does that change decision making?
Speaker 2 (37:19):
Every single decision, big or small, gets filtered through one
ultimate powerful question, which is what will this cost me? Mentally, emotionally, energetically.
Speaker 1 (37:28):
That sounds intense.
Speaker 2 (37:30):
It sounds intense because the cumulative cost of not asking
that question, the cost of chronic stress, is intense. At
this level, you've had enough. You know your time, your focus,
your energy are incredibly limited and valuable. You treat them
like the irreplaceable.
Speaker 1 (37:44):
Assets they are, making choices that protect and amplify them
always so opportunity costs must be huge here too.
Speaker 2 (37:50):
It becomes a core, almost instinctive driver. Your very first
thought when considering anything new, a project, purchase, and invitation
is always how does it fit into and how will
it protect the life I've carefully built?
Speaker 1 (38:03):
Will it pull me off course or support my.
Speaker 2 (38:06):
Chosen pass exactly because you know deep in your bones
that every yes is also a no to something else.
You value peace, time, energy, presence, focus. The real cost
isn't just the obvious one. It's the invaluable alternative you're
giving up.
Speaker 1 (38:20):
You're always weighing that trade.
Speaker 2 (38:21):
Off constantly, but it becomes almost automatic.
Speaker 1 (38:23):
And freedom isn't the goal anymore.
Speaker 2 (38:25):
It's the baseline, your natural, uncompromised operating state. Why would
you settle for less once you've tasted it? Why choose
to fill your life with unnecessary noise or that exhausting
need to prove yourself or taking every call fixing every
problem that isn't really yours.
Speaker 1 (38:41):
To fix just doesn't make sense anymore.
Speaker 2 (38:43):
Doesn't make sense. Walking away from draining obligations, pointless distractions,
it becomes easy, second nature, an act of self preservation,
self respect, liberation.
Speaker 1 (38:53):
Okay, final piece, embracing doing nothing.
Speaker 2 (38:57):
That sounds radical, It is radical in our culture, but
it's not about being a lazy or idle. It's a
profound understanding that actively creating nothingness, creating empty space in
your schedule, in your mind, that actually gives you space
space for what space for genuine creativity to emerge, space
for deep rest and renewal, space for nurturing important relationships
(39:18):
without rushing, space for brilliant, unexpected ideas to surface. It's
the intentional white space that keeps you healthy, vibrant, connected,
truly alive.
Speaker 1 (39:26):
It's essential, not optional, absolutely.
Speaker 2 (39:28):
Essential for operating at this level.
Speaker 1 (39:29):
Wow, so tying this ultimate level together. Success isn't about
how much.
Speaker 2 (39:34):
You make, not primarily no. Success at level five is
defined by how little you have to compromise to live
exactly the life you choose. Money becomes permission, pure unadulterated permission.
It grants you the ultimate authority, the final say over
your own existence. It lets you live a life that
is truly, deeply authentically your own.
Speaker 1 (39:55):
Wow. That really is the pinnacle vent conscious living, where
money just serves your highest value, use your deepest piece.
Speaker 2 (40:01):
Your most authentic self expression. It's about creating a life
that is unequivocally, undeniably yours. Hashtag tag tag outro.
Speaker 1 (40:08):
Okay, Wow, we have really covered some ground today. We
journeyed through those five levels of money mindset, didn't we?
Speaker 2 (40:13):
We certainly did quite the spectrum.
Speaker 1 (40:15):
From that tight, anxious grip of scarcity through the meticulous,
sometimes fearful calculations of the price mindset, then blossoming into
the wiser, intentional investments of the value mindset. From there,
soaring into the strategic designs.
Speaker 2 (40:30):
Of growth, fielding those systems right.
Speaker 1 (40:32):
And finally landing in that place of expansive permission of freedom.
It's such a profound range of how we can relate
to money, how we let it shape our lives.
Speaker 2 (40:41):
It really dictates so much.
Speaker 1 (40:43):
So as you listening reflect on all this, just take
a quiet moment. Where do you honestly see yourself right
now on that spectrum?
Speaker 2 (40:53):
M hmm, good question.
Speaker 1 (40:55):
And maybe it's not just one place, right. You operate
at different levels in different parts of your life, which
is totally okay and actually a really powerful insight.
Speaker 2 (41:02):
Absolutely, it's rarely uniform across the board. Yeah, And maybe
even more importantly than just identifying where you are, consider this,
what might it look like, just for today or this week,
to operate simply one level higher, just one step up. Yeah,
in one specific area where you feel maybe the most
stuck or constrained, maybe shifting from price to value on
(41:23):
one decision you've been agonizing over or from scarcity to
just looking at the price of something you assumed was impossible,
that understanding alone, just having this new framework, it fundamentally
changes how you move, how you interact with money.
Speaker 1 (41:36):
Just the awareness ships.
Speaker 2 (41:37):
This hugely, and then when you add intentional action to
that awareness, well your mind levels up, and very often
your income, your opportunities, your overall sense of well being,
they tend to follow suit.
Speaker 1 (41:50):
It's a ripple effect, it really is.
Speaker 2 (41:52):
This isn't just theory, it's a practical path to real transformation,
personal and financial.
Speaker 1 (41:57):
So final thought, then, if, as we've really dug into today,
money can ultimately give you that profound permission, permission to
say no, permission to walk away, permission to stop explaining yourself,
permission to choose the exact life you want, then the
question becomes, what is that true, uncompromised life that maybe,
(42:18):
just maybe you are holding yourself back from building right now?
Speaker 2 (42:21):
What permission are you waiting for?
Speaker 1 (42:23):
Exactly what permission are you finally ready to grant yourself
starting today
Have you ever found yourself in that familiar spot standing
in front of the shelf maybe, or you're online, hovering
over the ad to carde button, Oh definitely, and you
hear that little voice in your head making some kind
of absolute judgment about whether you can afford.
Speaker 2 (00:14):
Something mm internal calculator exactly.
Speaker 1 (00:17):
Or maybe you've had that other debate, you know, wighing
whether to spend a bit extra for convenience or save
a few bucks, but well lose your precious time doing it.
Speaker 2 (00:25):
Yeah, the time versus money trade off.
Speaker 1 (00:27):
It's constant, it really is. And these small moments they
feel small, but they're actually like little windows, aren't They
glimpses into this much bigger system, often totally unconscious, that's
quietly guiding all your financial decisions.
Speaker 2 (00:42):
That's a great way to put it. Windows.
Speaker 1 (00:43):
From the tiny stuff like your daily coffee to the
really big life changing investments, it's all connected. So today
we're doing a really big, deep dive into something called
the money mindset. Think of it like the invisible operating
system running behind all your financial choices. It's the code
dictating how you see wealth, how you feel about spending,
(01:05):
how you judge value.
Speaker 2 (01:06):
It really is the foundation.
Speaker 1 (01:08):
Yeah, and we hear the usual advice all the time,
Earn more, save more, hustle harder, and look, that stuff matters.
Speaker 2 (01:16):
Obviously, sure action is important, But what if.
Speaker 1 (01:19):
The real key, the thing that actually changes your financial reality,
isn't just what you do, yeah, but fundamentally how you
think about money. What if that little voice saying I
can't afford it is actually the main thing holding you back.
Speaker 2 (01:34):
You've absolutely hit on something crucial there. Our mindset around money,
it's not just about the dollars and cents, is it.
It truly is that operating system for well, for almost
all your life decisions. It affects your piece, your choices,
your sense of security.
Speaker 1 (01:48):
Everything everything. Wow.
Speaker 2 (01:50):
So our mission today is to really unpack five distinct
levels of this money mindset. We're going to dig into
where they come from, you know, their origins, how these
beliefs show up in your everyday actions, the little thing
and the big things, and maybe most importantly, we want
to give you a framework to see how understanding your
current mindset can actually light up a path forward.
Speaker 1 (02:09):
A path forward.
Speaker 2 (02:10):
I like that, yeah, because by the end of this
deep dive you might find yourself shifting away from that
limiting question, can I afford it towards something much more empowering,
a question that could really change everything about your financial world.
Speaker 1 (02:24):
Okay, I'm intrigued.
Speaker 2 (02:26):
And this isn't just you know, positive thinking fluff. It's
about getting clear on the powerful, often hidden beliefs running
the show financially and by extension, in your life.
Speaker 1 (02:37):
So get ready, then we're going on a pretty fascinating
journey exploring this whole spectrum of financial thinking. That's right, Well,
go from that really tight, almost suffocating feeling of scarcity
all the way to the other end, that feeling of
absolute financial freedom. It's quite a range, it is, and
it's a journey that hopefully reveals not just you know,
(02:57):
how much money you have in the bank, but what
you really believe money is for. And yeah, maybe even deeper,
what you believe you're capable of, what you think you
deserve exactly.
Speaker 2 (03:06):
It gets quite deep. Hashtag tag the five levels of
money mindset.
Speaker 1 (03:10):
All right, let's start at the very beginning of that
level one, the scarcity mindset.
Speaker 2 (03:14):
The foundation.
Speaker 1 (03:15):
Yeah, the foundation. At its heart, this is basically the
belief that money is well, it's fundamentally limited. It's really
hard to get hard to hold on to, and so
you just have to hoard it, cling to it for
dear life.
Speaker 2 (03:28):
Mm hmm.
Speaker 1 (03:28):
Survival mode totally money equal safety, like a shield and
the biggest thing. There's just never ever enough. It's this
constant low hum of anxiety. What if it runs out.
Speaker 2 (03:40):
That what I ish is powerful? It drives so much
it feels.
Speaker 1 (03:43):
Almost primitive, doesn't it like a survival instinct kicking in,
bracing for a future disaster that might not even be coming,
no matter what your bank account actually says. Now?
Speaker 2 (03:51):
Racing, Yeah, that's a good word for it. And the
origins well, they often go way back deep into our
childhood's or formative years, right.
Speaker 1 (03:58):
Do it makes sense many people opting from scarcity grew
up in let's say, modest circumstances where the main focus
for the parents was just survival, getting by, making it
to the end of.
Speaker 2 (04:10):
The month, paying the bills, keeping food on the table, exactly.
Speaker 1 (04:14):
Think about maybe growing up where most clothes.
Speaker 2 (04:16):
Were hand me downs, Oh yeah, been there.
Speaker 1 (04:19):
Or maybe your favorite toy wasn't something fancy from a store,
but like a really cool stick you found in the woods, Yes,
the perfect stick, right, And that kind of environment. It
doesn't just teach you to be frugal. It actually like
rewires your brain's reward system safety preservation, making those become
the priorities.
Speaker 2 (04:39):
So it shapes your actual brain chemistry.
Speaker 1 (04:41):
In a way. Yeah, it can create what psychologists call
an availability heuristic. Yeah. Basically those past experiences of lack,
even from way back, they're easily recalled and feel more important,
more real than maybe your current situation.
Speaker 2 (04:55):
Wow, so the past overrides.
Speaker 1 (04:57):
The present often, Yes, And it leads to see the
world split into haves and have nots, and you automatically
put yourself in the have not camp.
Speaker 2 (05:05):
Right, that's your identity. The belief becomes deep down. My
family didn't have much, Their parents didn't have much, so
naturally I won't either. It feels like destiny.
Speaker 1 (05:15):
That sounds incredibly limiting.
Speaker 2 (05:17):
It is, And the really tragic part, even if you,
as an adult achieve way more financial success than your
parents ever did, that core operating system, that scarcity program,
it often keeps running in the background, like a ghost
in the machine, dictating your choices.
Speaker 1 (05:34):
Wow, so you can be objectively well off but still
feel poor and act poor.
Speaker 2 (05:38):
Precisely powerful stuff.
Speaker 1 (05:41):
That connection between early experiences in current choices is fascinating.
And when you apply that scarcity principle day to day, yeah,
well it leads to some really telling behaviors, doesn't it.
Speaker 2 (05:51):
Oh? Absolutely.
Speaker 1 (05:51):
It's like the classic DIY to a fault thing. Let's
say David Sink springs a leak, Okay, instead of calling
a plumber, David, running on scare city software, spends maybe
his whole weekend trying to fix it himself and probably
doing a terrible.
Speaker 2 (06:04):
Job making it worse potentially right.
Speaker 1 (06:07):
And his internal thought isn't just all save money. It's
often more like defiant. You know, why should I make
that plumber rich? I can't afford luxuries like that.
Speaker 2 (06:16):
It's almost a moral stance against spending exactly.
Speaker 1 (06:19):
It's not about being handy. It's this deep, gut level
resistance to letting money go, even when hiring an expert
is clearly the smarter, faster, and probably.
Speaker 2 (06:29):
Cheaper option in the end, because the principle of not
spending feels more important than the outcome totally.
Speaker 1 (06:36):
So David might end up with a bigger leak, water
damage and a much bigger plumber bill later, all because
of that initial impulse to.
Speaker 2 (06:43):
Hoard the cash and that need to protect every penny.
It doesn't stop at home repairs, does it. It seeps into
everything you buy or other don't.
Speaker 1 (06:50):
Buy right like consumption choices.
Speaker 2 (06:52):
Yeah, there's this really strong belief, almost unshakable, that nice
things are for other people, people who can really afford them,
since in your mind you can't. Anything seen as nice
or higher quality is just off the table, not even considered.
Speaker 1 (07:07):
So you just default to the cheapest option.
Speaker 2 (07:09):
Always, pretty much. It leads to this persistent lack of
quality stuff or even just enjoyable experiences. You might own things, sure,
but they're almost always the most basic, stripped down versions,
chosen only for their low price, not for durability or
how they look or the joy they might bring.
Speaker 1 (07:28):
There's no room for enjoyment, just function.
Speaker 2 (07:30):
And there's almost this like moral judgment against anything that
feels like a splurge, even if it would actually last
longer or make life significantly better.
Speaker 1 (07:39):
And what about the time costs you mentioned that.
Speaker 2 (07:41):
Earlier, Oh, the opportunity costs blind spot. It's huge and
often incredibly damaging.
Speaker 1 (07:46):
Okay, explain that.
Speaker 2 (07:47):
People deep in scarcity often waste incredibly valuable time, high
leverage time on what you might call ten dollars tasks
when they have a one thousand dollars brain.
Speaker 1 (07:56):
Okay, give me an example.
Speaker 2 (07:58):
Think of a small business owner, let's call her ERA.
She should be focused on strategy, growth, big picture.
Speaker 1 (08:04):
Stuff, right, the one thousand dollars brain.
Speaker 2 (08:06):
Activities exactly, But instead she might spend hours wrestling with
some fiddly tech task like formatting a spreadsheet just right
or fixing a tiny website glitch, stuff an expert virtual
assistant could do in like fifteen.
Speaker 1 (08:21):
Minutes, because she thinks I can't afford to pay someone.
Speaker 2 (08:24):
Precisely, But those hours she pours into that low value task,
that's time she cannot spend on the high value work
that would actually grow her business or even just recharge
her batteries.
Speaker 1 (08:35):
So she's creating potentially huge gains for tiny savings.
Speaker 2 (08:39):
It's a direct, often self defeating exchange, high earning potential
time swapped for a minimal saving.
Speaker 1 (08:45):
That really puts it in perspective. And it can get
emotional too, right, affecting relationship.
Speaker 2 (08:50):
Oh absolutely, it can lead to some really profound emotional sacrifices,
missing out on those big, irreplaceable life moments like what
like imagine missing your mom's big milestone birthday party because
it's across the country, and that voice inside just screams,
flights are way too expensive.
Speaker 1 (09:04):
Oh that's rough.
Speaker 2 (09:05):
In that scenario, the perceived cost of the plane ticket
completely overshadows the immeasurable, priceless value of actually being there,
the connection, the shared joy, the memory you'd create.
Speaker 1 (09:18):
It doesn't even factor in.
Speaker 2 (09:20):
Not really. The price tag is the absolute gatekeeper, that
feeling of presence, the emotional return on investment, It just
doesn't compute in the scarcity calculation.
Speaker 1 (09:30):
And the regret from missing that could last forever, way
longer than the.
Speaker 2 (09:33):
Money saves, exactly, years and years of regret, far outweighing
any temporary savings.
Speaker 1 (09:38):
Wow. And you know a phrase that just sums up
this whole mindset for me, especially growing up. We have
food at home. Yes, the classic rights, that immediate shutdown
of any potential outside spending, even something simple like grabbing
a bottle of water when you're out running errands.
Speaker 2 (09:55):
Why buy water when it's free from the tap at home?
Speaker 1 (09:57):
Exactly, every single dollar spent out sid the absolute bare minimum,
gets scrutinized, often with this little side order of guilt
like you're being wasteful.
Speaker 2 (10:06):
No room for convenience, no room for a small pleasure.
Speaker 1 (10:09):
None. The message is always conserve, conserve, conserve. That's why
you see people you know, bringing their own snacks everywhere,
even when food is provided. It's not about liking the food.
It's the habit of not spending.
Speaker 2 (10:21):
It's deeply ingrained. So as we look at this level,
what really stands out. The crucial thing to grasp is
that the mindset itself is the main blocker.
Speaker 1 (10:33):
Not the actual bank balance.
Speaker 2 (10:34):
Not necessarily. No, even when someone's income goes up significantly,
even when they have decent savings, that deep seated belief
that money is scarce often just hangs on.
Speaker 1 (10:45):
It doesn't automatically update, right.
Speaker 2 (10:47):
It stops them from investing wisely, or enjoying the money,
or using it effectively to actually improve their life. They
have more money objectively, but they still act like they.
Speaker 1 (10:57):
Don't well, perpetuating the cycle exactly.
Speaker 2 (11:00):
They're stuck in this self imposed deprivation that isn't necessary anymore.
Maybe it wasn't logical even before, which is why we
call it a mindset, not just a financial situation.
Speaker 1 (11:08):
Okay, that's a key distinction.
Speaker 2 (11:10):
The real takeaway here, genuine financial freedom isn't just about
getting more money. It's about consciously seeing and then dismantling
those internal stories, those beliefs that limit how you see
and use the resources you already have or could potentially have.
Speaker 1 (11:26):
It's a mental liberation first.
Speaker 2 (11:28):
Absolutely, that often has to happen before the real financial
transformation can take root.
Speaker 1 (11:33):
Okay, So, if level one is being totally gripped by
scarcity level two the price mindset, that sounds like maybe
loosening the grip a little, a cautious step.
Speaker 2 (11:43):
Out, exactly. It's a cautious, hesitant step out of that
really suffocating feeling of level one. There's a little spark
of curiosity now about actual costs. Okay, But and this
is key, the decision making is still overwhelmingly governed by
the immediate price tag, not by real value yet.
Speaker 1 (12:00):
So it's like you're trying to outsmart spending now, minimize
the damage.
Speaker 2 (12:04):
That's a good way to put it, trying to outsmart it,
play the angles rather than seeing spending as a potential tool.
You're still nervous, still very wary, but you're starting to
cautiously engage with the financial world instead of just hiding.
Speaker 1 (12:16):
From it, right, You're looking, not just avoiding.
Speaker 2 (12:19):
That Cautious engagement is a huge step. Actually, that constant
feeling of lack in level one, it eventually just becomes
unbearable for a lot of people. You break out somehow, Right,
so they start to like our source material, says peek
through the door, tentatively asking, Okay, how much does that
actually cost? Is it really as bad as I think?
(12:39):
That first question is big, It's crucial, and the more
they look, the more they might realize, huh, maybe maybe
I can actually afford some of these things.
Speaker 1 (12:48):
A little bit of possibility creeps in.
Speaker 2 (12:50):
Exactly, but only if they check every single price, compare
every option relentlessly, and stick rigidly to the rules that
they've set for themselves the rule. Yeah, it's a shift
from total avoidance to this cautious, almost forensic examination of cost.
But the main filter is still absolutely how much they're
(13:11):
trying hard to rebuild, maybe get some stability, but with
this very strict, almost punishing rule book that puts saving
above everything else.
Speaker 1 (13:19):
Okay, so how does that look day to day? Let's
take the water bottle example again.
Speaker 2 (13:23):
Okay, so level one, you wouldn't buy it free at home.
Right level two, you've moved past that total refusal. But
now now you might spend twenty minutes meticulously searching for
a bottle that's say twenty cents cheaper.
Speaker 1 (13:36):
Walking three extra blocks to a different store.
Speaker 2 (13:39):
Or endlessly scrolling price comparison apps. Yeah, it's still about
minimizing the outflow, protecting every cent, but now you're actively
doing the minimizing.
Speaker 1 (13:50):
But at a huge cost of time and.
Speaker 2 (13:52):
Energy, hugely inefficient cost. Often you're trying to be prudent, responsible,
but responsible still just means cheapest, even when the saving
is totally negligible.
Speaker 1 (14:01):
Got it? And this leads to that tracking you mentioned.
Speaker 2 (14:03):
Yes, this often goes hand in hand with really rigorous,
sometimes obsessive.
Speaker 1 (14:08):
Tracking, like checking the bank balance constantly.
Speaker 2 (14:10):
Constantly tracking every expense, keeping every single receipt, tallying it
all up down to the penny.
Speaker 1 (14:15):
Sometimes, why, what's the driving force there?
Speaker 2 (14:18):
The internal story is, this is how you stay not broke.
This is how you climb out of the hole. It
provides a feeling of control, which can be comforting after
feeling powerless and scarcity.
Speaker 1 (14:29):
Okay, so it serves an emotional.
Speaker 2 (14:30):
Need definitely, But it doesn't necessarily lead to genuinely wise spending.
The focus is still tilted heavily towards preventing loss, avoiding mistakes,
rather than actively cultivating growth or well being. In a
bigger sense, it's defense, not offense exactly, a defense mechanism,
not a growth strategy.
Speaker 1 (14:49):
And this fear of making a mistake, it leads to
that rule book thing you mentioned, the rule book mentality. Yeah,
someone in this mindset lives by this very strict, often
kind of arbitrary set of financial rules they've made up.
Speaker 2 (15:04):
Like what kind of rules like.
Speaker 1 (15:05):
For them, going just ten dollars over their budget feels
emotionally the same as going one hundred dollars over. It
triggers the same feeling of failure of I broke the rule.
Speaker 2 (15:14):
Wow, no sense of scale.
Speaker 1 (15:16):
Very little. And this rigidity means real opportunities, maybe for
personal growth, a time saving service, a valuable experience, they
just get missed because they don't fit into the neat
little boxes of the budget.
Speaker 2 (15:27):
Even if breaking the rule would actually be beneficial.
Speaker 1 (15:29):
Absolutely, the fear of breaking the self imposed rule often
overrides any rational assessment of the potential benefit. Okay, I see,
and how does this play out with quality, like buying things.
Speaker 2 (15:41):
Ah yes, it almost always translates into sacrificing quality for
the upfront cost.
Speaker 1 (15:47):
The cheap shoes.
Speaker 2 (15:47):
Example, the classic cheap shoes. You know they'll fall apart
in two months, but you buy them anyway because the
slightly better, more durable pair cost twenty dollars more.
Speaker 1 (15:57):
Today, even though you'll buy the cheap ones three.
Speaker 2 (15:58):
Times exactly the long term cost buying replacements. The frustration,
the discomfort, it gets ignored or rationalized away. The price
right now is the absolute gatekeeper. It blocks any thought
about long term value, durability, or even just the simple
pleasure of owning something decent.
Speaker 1 (16:17):
And that applies to more than just choose.
Speaker 2 (16:19):
I imagine, oh, across the board, tools, close household goods,
sometimes even services, cheapest wins regardless of the hidden future costs.
Speaker 1 (16:26):
Okay, so let's bring back mom's birthday flight. How does
that look in the price mindset?
Speaker 2 (16:31):
Right? So here there's a genuine desire to go, You
really want to be there. That's different from level ones
outright refusal. Okay, progress, but the price tag is still
the absolute boss. So you'll spend hours, maybe days, scouring
kayak skyscanner, Google.
Speaker 1 (16:46):
Flights, refreshing, constantly, trying.
Speaker 2 (16:48):
Different dates, different airports, maybe flying at three am with
three layovers, all hoping, praying that the price drops below
your magic.
Speaker 1 (16:57):
Number, your self imposed budget limit.
Speaker 2 (16:59):
Exactly when you mean it. If it hits a two
hundred ninety nine dollars boom, you book it instantly, you
feel like you want.
Speaker 1 (17:05):
But what if it stays at like three hundred nine
dollars just ten dollars over?
Speaker 2 (17:10):
Yeah, then suddenly it's unjustifiable, too much, not worth it.
That carefully crafted rulebook slams the gate shut, even against
that strong emotional pull to see your mom, Wow.
Speaker 1 (17:20):
That ten dollars makes all the difference between possible and
impossible in this mindset.
Speaker 2 (17:24):
Yes, the rule is the rule.
Speaker 1 (17:26):
So the bottom line here, the main filter is still just.
Speaker 2 (17:29):
How much, absolutely how much does it cost? That's the
primary question and the crucial missing piece. The thing this
mindset really struggles with is the concept of value.
Speaker 1 (17:38):
Right, they're not asking what's it worth?
Speaker 2 (17:40):
Not really, they're deeply afraid of spending, sure, but they
mistakenly think they can manage that fear by being hyper
vigilant about price, by checking everything, budgeting rigidly.
Speaker 1 (17:51):
Trying to control the outflow through sheer effort.
Speaker 2 (17:55):
Exactly, rather than fundamentally shifting their perspective to what something
actually provides quality, time saved, joy, connection, long term benefit.
Speaker 1 (18:03):
So the implication is it's a step up from scarcity.
Definitely more aware awareness is growing, but it still keeps
you trapped right in this cycle of penny pinching, missing
out on long term value because you're so focused on
the immediate saving.
Speaker 2 (18:16):
Precisely, they haven't yet started asking the deeper, much more
powerful question, what is this truly worth to me?
Speaker 1 (18:23):
Okay, this feels like a big one level three the
value mindset you said, this is where the penny drops.
Speaker 2 (18:29):
It really is often a pivotal moment. This is where
you start to grasp a really profound truth. Anything genuinely
worth having, anything that truly enriches your life, Well, it.
Speaker 1 (18:39):
Costs something, right, There's no free lunch, essentially pretty much.
Speaker 2 (18:43):
And with that realization, the focus makes this huge powerful shift.
It moves away from that limiting question how much does
it cost to the far more empowering, more expansive question,
how much is it worth worth?
Speaker 1 (18:57):
Okay, that feels like a completely different.
Speaker 2 (18:59):
Lens it's a total paradigm shift. You move from being
reactive just trying to avoid costs to being proactive intentional
seeking value. You start aligning your spending with what actually
matters to you.
Speaker 1 (19:11):
What triggers that shift? Usually, how do people get here
from the price mindset?
Speaker 2 (19:15):
Often it's simply lived experience, making enough calculations, enough mistakes,
perhaps to finally realize that, yeah, cheap is rarely smart.
Speaker 1 (19:22):
You've bought enough pairs of those cheap shoes.
Speaker 2 (19:24):
Exactly, or you've had enough DIY projects go wrong, costing
you more. In the end, you learn sometimes the hard way,
that always chasing the lowest price often leads to a
higher overall cost.
Speaker 1 (19:35):
Whether that's money, time, or just frustration all.
Speaker 2 (19:38):
Of the above, and that hard one understanding allows for
a much more objective, more nuanced look at what's genuinely
valuable and what isn't. You start to see beyond the
price tag.
Speaker 1 (19:48):
So you're still aware of cost, but it's not the
only factor anymore.
Speaker 2 (19:52):
Precisely, you're not necessarily rolling in dough, but you've definitely
stopped thinking like a poor person. You're really starting to
see money not just as to survive on, but as
a tool, a powerful tool that can actually improve your life,
not just keep your head above water.
Speaker 1 (20:06):
Okay, so let's unpack that. How does this value perspective
show up in daily life.
Speaker 2 (20:12):
Well, something means a lot to you if it brings real,
undeniable value, whether that's peace of mind, efficiency, joy learning,
you actively figure out how to make your money work
for it. That deep fear of spending that dominated levels
one and two, it starts to fade, replaced by what
replaced by intentionality, a clear sense of purpose behind your spending.
You're not just trying to get by or hoard cash
(20:34):
out of fear anymore. You're actively strategically trying to enhance
your life to invest in what genuinely matters.
Speaker 1 (20:40):
Investing in what matters. That sounds like prioritizing differently too,
like time and energy.
Speaker 2 (20:46):
Absolutely, that shift almost always leads to consciously valuing your
time and energy as the precious finite resources.
Speaker 1 (20:53):
They are, so you might pay more for convenience.
Speaker 2 (20:56):
You develop a willingness to pay a bit more for
things like that bottled water. Again, not because you're being frivolous,
but because you understand saving those few minutes or avoiding
that little hassle let's you put your time and energy
towards something more important, higher value.
Speaker 1 (21:10):
It's an investment in your own capacity.
Speaker 2 (21:12):
Exactly, an investment in your bandwidth, your focus, your well being.
You recognize your time has a value, and sometimes paying
for convenience isn't just smart, it's essential to stay effective.
Speaker 1 (21:24):
And that's saying by once cry once. Does that make
sense here?
Speaker 2 (21:28):
Oh? Absolutely? That phrase, which might have seemed crazy or
wasteful before, suddenly becomes crystal clear. It makes perfect sense now.
Speaker 1 (21:35):
So instead of the three cheap pairs.
Speaker 2 (21:37):
Issues, you make the conscious choice to invest in one good,
high quality pair that's built to last. It's a strategic move.
Speaker 1 (21:45):
And it's not just about saving money long term.
Speaker 2 (21:47):
No, although it usually does. It's also about valuing quality, reliability, craftsmanship,
and frankly, the peace of mind that comes from owning
things that just work well and don't cause constant frustration.
Speaker 1 (21:58):
Yeah, reducing that daily fraeme. What about investing in yourself?
Does that click now? Too?
Speaker 2 (22:03):
Big time? That phrase invest in yourself finally lands with
real weight and meaning. Here. Money is no longer just
about buying stuff. You deeply understand it buys options, opportunities, better.
Speaker 1 (22:17):
Outcomes, like what kind of options.
Speaker 2 (22:19):
Like having the financial cushion to say no to a
job that's draining your soul, or the ability to pay
for a course, a certification coaching, something that opens up
totally new doors for your career or your personal growth,
or even a passion project.
Speaker 1 (22:34):
So money creates momentum, Yes.
Speaker 2 (22:36):
It gives you leverage, runway, It allows you to actively
build the life you want, pursue your potential, create real change.
It's not just for security, it's for growth.
Speaker 1 (22:44):
Okay, let's go grocery shopping with a value mindset person.
What does that look like?
Speaker 2 (22:49):
All right? So prices are still noticed, definitely, you're not
being extravagant or oblivious.
Speaker 1 (22:54):
You haven't won the lottery.
Speaker 2 (22:56):
Right, But quality health benefits Maybe how much time I'm
a pre prepped item saves you, how long something will last?
Those things become equally sometimes more important than just the price.
Speaker 1 (23:09):
So you might spend more on organic or pre cut veggies.
Speaker 2 (23:13):
You're okay spending a bit more for those things, yeah,
or for ingredients that genuinely make you feel good or
that lasts longer because you understand their deeper holistic value
to your well being, your time, your energy.
Speaker 1 (23:25):
It's a balanced, intentional approach.
Speaker 2 (23:27):
Very much so, prioritizing the overall benefit, not just the
immediate cost.
Speaker 1 (23:31):
And mom's birthday flight. How does the calculation change here?
Speaker 2 (23:35):
Ah? Here the shift, it's dramatic. Instead of agonizing over
the price variations, your mind immediately jumps to wow, how
long has it been since I saw her? You picture
her face when you show up, That moment of surprise and.
Speaker 1 (23:45):
Joy, the emotional connection.
Speaker 2 (23:47):
Exactly, that connection, that shared experience, the memory you're creating.
That becomes immeasurably more valuable than saving say, fifty one
hundred dollars on the ticket.
Speaker 1 (23:57):
So you just make it happen.
Speaker 2 (23:58):
You make it happen, not necessar necessarily because it's suddenly
easy to afford, but because it's worth to you. Clearly
transcends the price you finally get it. Money at its
best is for creating moments and connections like that.
Speaker 1 (24:10):
So tying this all together, yeah, the core belief here
is that money is a.
Speaker 2 (24:14):
Powerful tool, an incredibly powerful versatile tool, and when you
use it intentionally, focusing on true value, it can profoundly
enhance your life, give you options, support your.
Speaker 1 (24:25):
Growth and wanting more money isn't necessarily greedy, not at all.
Speaker 2 (24:29):
In this mindset, wanting more is often a healthy recognition
of your own worth, your potential. It's a proactive desire
to align your resources with your deepest values and goals.
It's about being a strategic investor in your own best life.
Speaker 1 (24:42):
That feels empowering.
Speaker 2 (24:43):
It is this value mindset really breaks the shackles of
just looking at cost. It lets you make choices that
truly align with who you want to be and how
you want to live, and that paves the way for
much deeper financial growth and honestly, a much deeper sense
of fulfillment.
Speaker 1 (24:57):
Moving beyond just survival towards.
Speaker 2 (24:59):
Thrivingc living a life that actually reflects your values, not
just your bank balance.
Speaker 1 (25:04):
All right, climbing higher now level four the growth mindset.
This sounds like we're moving beyond just value. What's the
focus here?
Speaker 2 (25:13):
It's another really significant shift at this stage. Just getting
more money isn't really the main driver anymore?
Speaker 1 (25:19):
Oh? What is then?
Speaker 2 (25:20):
Instead? Money becomes this sophisticated strategic tool, a lever really
used intentionally to actively design and sculpt a life that's
centered around well around piece choice.
Speaker 1 (25:30):
And protection, peace, choice, protection. Okay, so it's less about
accumulating more about building, designing.
Speaker 2 (25:37):
Exactly, building, designing, optimizing. That's the focus.
Speaker 1 (25:40):
So how do you get here from the value mindset?
What's the transition?
Speaker 2 (25:44):
Well, once you've really grasped and embraced value, the next
logical step is to start using money purposefully to construct
the specific life you desire. That old cliche about money
being a tool, it finally makes deep practical sense here
because now you actually know what you want to build
with it. You have a blueprint, You have a blueprint.
(26:04):
You've moved beyond just earning and spending reactively. Now you're
deeply focused on how to use those resources proactively to
create a very specific, intentional kind of life.
Speaker 1 (26:14):
Less reacting, more conscious.
Speaker 2 (26:16):
Creating, absolutely strategic proactivity and pretty much every financial decision.
Speaker 1 (26:20):
Okay, let's see it in action. How does this intentionalfe
design look day to day?
Speaker 2 (26:25):
It feels like every action, every choice is deliberate, purposeful, aligned,
less haphazard, much less. The main focus is on designing
robust systems, financial systems, personal habits, professional structures that consistently
support the lifestyle you want, instead of constantly reacting to
money pressures or chasing random opportunities or always feeling like
(26:47):
you're playing catch up.
Speaker 1 (26:48):
So you're building frameworks.
Speaker 2 (26:49):
Resilient frameworks. Yeah, that allow life to flow with more ease,
more predictability. I think automating savings and investments, consciously, building
dever income streams, setting up U teams that protect your
time and energy. It's like building a well designed house
instead of constantly patching leaks in a shack.
Speaker 1 (27:08):
I like that analogy. What about Mom's flight now level four?
Speaker 2 (27:12):
Thinking right at this level, the flight is booked quickly,
almost effortlessly.
Speaker 1 (27:17):
Why still not impulse spending?
Speaker 2 (27:20):
No, not at all. It's booked quickly because you have
this inherent confidence that comes from your well designed systems
and your purposeful work. You know, deep down I'll make
that money back, not.
Speaker 1 (27:29):
Scrambling, but just through the systems you've.
Speaker 2 (27:32):
Built, exactly through the efficiency and strategy already in place.
So the main concern shifts entirely. It's no longer about
the cost. It's about getting there when you.
Speaker 1 (27:40):
Want to be there, prioritizing the experience and the timing.
Speaker 2 (27:43):
Absolutely, the experience, the timing, the connection the money part
is basically a solved problem. It allows you to focus
one hundred percent on the purpose of the trip.
Speaker 1 (27:52):
That sounds freeing. What about everyday things like the water bottle?
We're systems?
Speaker 2 (27:57):
Systemic efficiency becomes huge here. But it's not just about
saving money anymore. Like in level two, it's a strategic
investment in your future self. How okay, So you're beyond
hunting for the twenty cent discount. You're beyond just paying
for convenience. Sometimes now you might strategically bulk buy your
water or even subscribe to a high quality filtered water
(28:19):
delivery service for your home or office.
Speaker 1 (28:21):
Why what's the growth mindset angle?
Speaker 2 (28:24):
It's not just about saving money over time, though it might.
It's about perpetually saving precious time, saving mental energy, eliminating
decision fatigue around that one little thing.
Speaker 1 (28:34):
Forever, automating the mundane.
Speaker 2 (28:36):
Exactly, And that principle applies everywhere. Setting up routines, delegating
tasks you don't like or aren't good at, investing in
tools that streamline workflows. It's all about freeing up your
cognitive bandwidth for the important stuff, high level thinking, creativity, strategy.
Speaker 1 (28:53):
Okay, and groceries. How strategic does that get?
Speaker 2 (28:55):
Oh? It goes way beyond just planning tonight's dinner. You're
thinking longer term meal planning for the week or month,
aligning food choices with specific health goals, managing your energy
levels through nutrition. It's sophisticated.
Speaker 1 (29:09):
So maybe batch cooking or meal prep services.
Speaker 2 (29:12):
Could be batch cooking on Sunday for the whole we
could be meticulously prepping ingredients, could be subscribing to healthy,
pre portioned meal kits that cut down prep time and
decision fatigue. If you looked in their cart, you'd see
a clear strategy behind every item.
Speaker 1 (29:28):
It's a holistic approach to well being and productivity reflected
in the shopping.
Speaker 2 (29:32):
Perfectly put proactive, holistic life design.
Speaker 1 (29:36):
And you mentioned safety and peace earlier, how does that
build at this level?
Speaker 2 (29:40):
The ultimate goal here is to build genuine, unshakable safety
emotionally and financially, and you do that through these robust,
intentional systems. Okay, And the amazing thing is because you've
consciously built these strong, supportive frameworks managing your money, dealing
with unexpected stuff, just moving through life, it starts to
feel less like constant effort, less like reacting, and more
(30:03):
like an easy flow. Things just work more smoothly you're
definitely working smart, but maybe more importantly, you're living with
this foundational sense of security and effortless momentum that sounds like.
Speaker 1 (30:14):
A really good place to be. Does work fit into
this differently too massively?
Speaker 2 (30:18):
There's a deep, profound appreciation here for having creative outlets
and for actively pursuing work, whether a job or your
own business, that aligns directly and authentically with your core values,
your passions.
Speaker 1 (30:34):
So work isn't just about the paycheck anymore.
Speaker 2 (30:36):
Not at all. Money in this context is actively used
to support those meaningful pursuits, to ensure your work feeds
not just your bank account, but also your sense of purpose,
meaning fulfillment. Your relationship with money totally transforms. You know
exactly how to use it as an ally to build
the life you actually want, not just the one you
feel obligated to live.
Speaker 1 (30:55):
Wow, and there was something about zooming out.
Speaker 2 (30:57):
Ah, Yes, that's a crucial insight here. You realize that
constantly playing those scarcity games from levels one and two,
the endless struggling, the needless sacrificing, the self deprivation that
keeps you perpetually zoomed in focused on tiny, often insignificant
self defeating detail.
Speaker 1 (31:14):
Lost in the weeds.
Speaker 2 (31:15):
Exactly, true sustainable growth you see with total clarity now
comes from zooming out, gaining that broader perspective, understanding why
you're doing things, the motivations, The long term consequence is
not just what you're doing in the moment.
Speaker 1 (31:31):
That's seeing the forest, not just the trees, precisely.
Speaker 2 (31:35):
And this ability to proactively shape your financial reality without
needing a major life crisis to force the change that
puts you in a very small, very fortunate group of people.
Speaker 1 (31:45):
Okay, So the underlying belief here is money is a
lever for life.
Speaker 2 (31:49):
Design, a powerful lever for proactive life design. It's all
about building a life where financial freedom isn't just a concept,
it's real. It creates the essential space for peace, choice, protection,
and you build it before crisis hits, not because of one.
Speaker 1 (32:02):
You're shaping reality, not just reacting to.
Speaker 2 (32:05):
It, consciously deliberately shaping it with purpose and foresight.
Speaker 1 (32:08):
So for the listener reflecting on this, yeah, the growth
mindset offers immense clarity control.
Speaker 2 (32:14):
Immense clarity, agency control. It empowers you to actively sculpt
your life with real purpose, real resilience instead of feeling
tossed around by circumstances, are held back by old beliefs.
You become the architect of your own.
Speaker 1 (32:28):
Well being, the dining a life that serve.
Speaker 2 (32:30):
You exactly your highest intentions.
Speaker 1 (32:32):
Wow, okay, we've climbed high level five the freedom mindset.
This sounds like the sunate, the ultimate stage.
Speaker 2 (32:40):
It really represents the pinnacle. Yes, this is where money
provides the unwavering, unshakable permission to live a life with
well with minimal compromise, if.
Speaker 1 (32:51):
Any minimal compromise. What does that mean? In practice?
Speaker 2 (32:53):
It means that fundamental human assets, things like your time,
your ability to be present, your inner peace, your personal bandwidth,
become absolutely.
Speaker 1 (33:01):
Non negotiable, more important than money, often.
Speaker 2 (33:03):
Yes, far more valuable. And freedom isn't some distant goal
you're striving for anymore. It's just your natural, effortless operating
baseline for every single decision.
Speaker 1 (33:13):
It's just how you live, not something you're aiming for.
Speaker 2 (33:15):
Exactly, a fundamentally different, deeply liberating wave of being.
Speaker 1 (33:19):
How do you get here? What's the refinement from the
growth mindset?
Speaker 2 (33:22):
Well, having meticulously design those robust systems in level four,
having achieved that growth, the focus now refines even Further,
it becomes about eliminating even the tiniest micro.
Speaker 1 (33:33):
Stressor micro stressors, like what.
Speaker 2 (33:35):
Little daily frictions annoyances grains on your energy. And it's
about continuously optimizing for holistic well being in every area
of life.
Speaker 1 (33:44):
So it's not about retiring early.
Speaker 2 (33:46):
Necessarily, not necessarily. No, it's not about just stopping work.
It's about having the profound autonomy to design your life
to perfectly match how and when you operate at your
absolute peak.
Speaker 1 (33:57):
Living in alignment with your own.
Speaker 2 (33:59):
Rhythm, your deep rhythms, your most authentic self, rather than
bending to external pressures, arbitrary schedules, or other people's expectations.
It's conscious, intentional living at its peak.
Speaker 1 (34:10):
Okay, let's see this in action. Mom's flight level five
freedom Right the flight.
Speaker 2 (34:15):
It's booked instantly, without a flicker of internal debate, no.
Speaker 1 (34:18):
Checking prices, no worrying about.
Speaker 2 (34:19):
Sales, zero concern about sales deals, optimizing dates. Why Because
the value of your time, your unwavering presence for that moment,
your inner peace. It's absolute, non negotiable, unquestionable, just done, effortless,
completely effortless decision made purely to serve your deepest well being.
(34:40):
In that connection, no financial gymnastics required or even considered.
Speaker 1 (34:45):
Wow, and everyday things, groceries.
Speaker 2 (34:48):
That principle of optimizing for ease and peace extends everywhere,
so grocery shopping. Maybe you choose go at ten am
on a Tuesday when it is practically.
Speaker 1 (34:56):
Empty, when everyone else is at work.
Speaker 2 (34:57):
Exactly, not because you're living some fantasy retirement, but because
you know that's when you operate best. It's quiet, calm
efficient for you. It saves you stress and effort precisely,
it allows for a focused, enjoyable experience. The goal isn't
just getting the cheapest groceries, it's making the entire process easier,
more peaceful. You leave with what you need, no mental
static because you optimized for mental and energetic ease.
Speaker 1 (35:20):
And paying more for things. How does that look here?
Speaker 2 (35:22):
This is where it gets really interesting. If something costs more,
maybe significantly more, but it demonstrably saves you effort, eliminates
one of those persistent micro stressors, or simply brings a
greater sense of calm and peace to your daily life.
It's acquired instantly, without.
Speaker 1 (35:41):
Hesitation, and that's not seen as frivolous.
Speaker 2 (35:43):
Not at all. It's seen as incredibly strategic peace building.
Maybe it's hiring more help around the house or business,
investing in premium time saving services, buying the best tools
that make life smoother. You've consciously curated a life that
actively avoids.
Speaker 1 (35:59):
Unnecessary, designing an unburdened.
Speaker 2 (36:01):
Existence beautifully put smooth, unburdened.
Speaker 1 (36:05):
Does this mindset change how you view speed or quantity profoundly?
Speaker 2 (36:09):
There's a deep understanding here that fast isn't always better,
and maybe even more radically, more isn't always worth.
Speaker 1 (36:15):
It, So you might intentionally slow down.
Speaker 2 (36:17):
There's a deliberate, conscious choice to slow down, to create
space to savor things rather than rushing through. And it
feels incredibly good because you have the agency to decelerate
and you're doing it on purpose.
Speaker 1 (36:29):
Why what's the benefit of slowing down?
Speaker 2 (36:31):
You understand the immense restorative power of that pace for
your creativity, your relationships, your health. You're thinking that constant
pressure to achieve, produce, always beyond it just dissolves.
Speaker 1 (36:44):
That sounds amazing. Yeah, and you mentioned valuing unseen assets.
Speaker 2 (36:48):
Yes, this is a huge shift. You start placing concrete,
real value on things most people barely even think about,
Like what mental bandwidth, genuine restedness, not just sleep, but breast,
the ability to be truly present in a conversation with
your family, with yourself.
Speaker 1 (37:04):
These are just nice ideas anymore.
Speaker 2 (37:06):
No, They're understood as precious, finite resources, often considered far
more valuable than dollars in the bank, and you guard
them fiercely because they're the bedrock of your highest quality
of life.
Speaker 1 (37:17):
How does that change decision making?
Speaker 2 (37:19):
Every single decision, big or small, gets filtered through one
ultimate powerful question, which is what will this cost me? Mentally, emotionally, energetically.
Speaker 1 (37:28):
That sounds intense.
Speaker 2 (37:30):
It sounds intense because the cumulative cost of not asking
that question, the cost of chronic stress, is intense. At
this level, you've had enough. You know your time, your focus,
your energy are incredibly limited and valuable. You treat them
like the irreplaceable.
Speaker 1 (37:44):
Assets they are, making choices that protect and amplify them
always so opportunity costs must be huge here too.
Speaker 2 (37:50):
It becomes a core, almost instinctive driver. Your very first
thought when considering anything new, a project, purchase, and invitation
is always how does it fit into and how will
it protect the life I've carefully built?
Speaker 1 (38:03):
Will it pull me off course or support my.
Speaker 2 (38:06):
Chosen pass exactly because you know deep in your bones
that every yes is also a no to something else.
You value peace, time, energy, presence, focus. The real cost
isn't just the obvious one. It's the invaluable alternative you're
giving up.
Speaker 1 (38:20):
You're always weighing that trade.
Speaker 2 (38:21):
Off constantly, but it becomes almost automatic.
Speaker 1 (38:23):
And freedom isn't the goal anymore.
Speaker 2 (38:25):
It's the baseline, your natural, uncompromised operating state. Why would
you settle for less once you've tasted it? Why choose
to fill your life with unnecessary noise or that exhausting
need to prove yourself or taking every call fixing every
problem that isn't really yours.
Speaker 1 (38:41):
To fix just doesn't make sense anymore.
Speaker 2 (38:43):
Doesn't make sense. Walking away from draining obligations, pointless distractions,
it becomes easy, second nature, an act of self preservation,
self respect, liberation.
Speaker 1 (38:53):
Okay, final piece, embracing doing nothing.
Speaker 2 (38:57):
That sounds radical, It is radical in our culture, but
it's not about being a lazy or idle. It's a
profound understanding that actively creating nothingness, creating empty space in
your schedule, in your mind, that actually gives you space
space for what space for genuine creativity to emerge, space
for deep rest and renewal, space for nurturing important relationships
(39:18):
without rushing, space for brilliant, unexpected ideas to surface. It's
the intentional white space that keeps you healthy, vibrant, connected,
truly alive.
Speaker 1 (39:26):
It's essential, not optional, absolutely.
Speaker 2 (39:28):
Essential for operating at this level.
Speaker 1 (39:29):
Wow, so tying this ultimate level together. Success isn't about
how much.
Speaker 2 (39:34):
You make, not primarily no. Success at level five is
defined by how little you have to compromise to live
exactly the life you choose. Money becomes permission, pure unadulterated permission.
It grants you the ultimate authority, the final say over
your own existence. It lets you live a life that
is truly, deeply authentically your own.
Speaker 1 (39:55):
Wow. That really is the pinnacle vent conscious living, where
money just serves your highest value, use your deepest piece.
Speaker 2 (40:01):
Your most authentic self expression. It's about creating a life
that is unequivocally, undeniably yours. Hashtag tag tag outro.
Speaker 1 (40:08):
Okay, Wow, we have really covered some ground today. We
journeyed through those five levels of money mindset, didn't we?
Speaker 2 (40:13):
We certainly did quite the spectrum.
Speaker 1 (40:15):
From that tight, anxious grip of scarcity through the meticulous,
sometimes fearful calculations of the price mindset, then blossoming into
the wiser, intentional investments of the value mindset. From there,
soaring into the strategic designs.
Speaker 2 (40:30):
Of growth, fielding those systems right.
Speaker 1 (40:32):
And finally landing in that place of expansive permission of freedom.
It's such a profound range of how we can relate
to money, how we let it shape our lives.
Speaker 2 (40:41):
It really dictates so much.
Speaker 1 (40:43):
So as you listening reflect on all this, just take
a quiet moment. Where do you honestly see yourself right
now on that spectrum?
Speaker 2 (40:53):
M hmm, good question.
Speaker 1 (40:55):
And maybe it's not just one place, right. You operate
at different levels in different parts of your life, which
is totally okay and actually a really powerful insight.
Speaker 2 (41:02):
Absolutely, it's rarely uniform across the board. Yeah, And maybe
even more importantly than just identifying where you are, consider this,
what might it look like, just for today or this week,
to operate simply one level higher, just one step up. Yeah,
in one specific area where you feel maybe the most
stuck or constrained, maybe shifting from price to value on
(41:23):
one decision you've been agonizing over or from scarcity to
just looking at the price of something you assumed was impossible,
that understanding alone, just having this new framework, it fundamentally
changes how you move, how you interact with money.
Speaker 1 (41:36):
Just the awareness ships.
Speaker 2 (41:37):
This hugely, and then when you add intentional action to
that awareness, well your mind levels up, and very often
your income, your opportunities, your overall sense of well being,
they tend to follow suit.
Speaker 1 (41:50):
It's a ripple effect, it really is.
Speaker 2 (41:52):
This isn't just theory, it's a practical path to real transformation,
personal and financial.
Speaker 1 (41:57):
So final thought, then, if, as we've really dug into today,
money can ultimately give you that profound permission, permission to
say no, permission to walk away, permission to stop explaining yourself,
permission to choose the exact life you want, then the
question becomes, what is that true, uncompromised life that maybe,
(42:18):
just maybe you are holding yourself back from building right now?
Speaker 2 (42:21):
What permission are you waiting for?
Speaker 1 (42:23):
Exactly what permission are you finally ready to grant yourself
starting today
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