Money
Who hasn’t struggled with money—finding it, keeping it, saving it
sweeping it
under the carpet
My husband experiences buyer’s remorse when he goes through a tollbooth.
I, on the other, hand think nothing of dropping $89 on a designer stash of chocolate
from France
hand painted with vegetable dyes
too pretty to eat
divine and dignified chocolate
Now, I don’t want you to think I lack money scruples. Admittedly, I’m not a bargain shopper. But then again, I’m not a shopper. Unlike many women who love to shop for beautiful clothing and designer handbags, I get a little overwhelmed when I walk into a department store. Too much stimulation, too many choices. Too much. . .
STUFF
Leo Babauta, in his book The Power of Less, tells me to identify the essential, eliminate the rest. His book is my bible.
Now food, that’s a different story. . .
For me, a well-appointed grocery store is a kaleidoscope of inviting colors, textures, scents and sounds. Yes, I even manage to find markets with the sound of Billy Holiday’s soulful, sultry voice singing softly from the speakers.
I learned the art of grocery shopping from my dad. Instead of looking for bargains, he’d travel the city from butcher to bakery (with about six stops in between) seeking the freshest, tastiest, most interesting ingredients. He had many friends in those shops. When the grocer saw my dad coming, he knew exactly what to pull from the display case, “Sam wait until you see the ricotta salata I’ve been saving for you!” My dad taught me to shop for quality. I learned at a very early age, “You get what you pay for.”
My dad also had a great respect for money. I learned from him that you
don’t
spend
money
you don’t have.
So even though my husband and I have very different spending habits, we have very similar values. We have no credit card debt. We don’t acquire a lot of “stuff.” And, like my dad, we don’t spend money we don’t have.
So why am I writing this article about money?
I just completed Bari Tessler Linden’s Tools for Financial Transformation Course. It was brilliant. Not only did I gain valuable insights into my relationship to giving, receiving, spending, and saving, I saw beautiful parallels in our work.
Bari is teaching people how to stop, look, and listen—to bring awareness to their money story or their patterns around money. I’m teaching women to pause and get curious about their food stories. What are they telling themselves about food, body image, digestion, weight and hunger?
I called Bari, my chocolate-loving friend and colleague, for a “virtual” tea and chocolate date.
I am always on the lookout for ways to enrich or expand the experience of my Inner Circle participants. Bari’s work seemed like the perfect fit. She has a Master of Arts in Somatic Psychology from Naropa University. She wrote a 150-page thesis on helping young women listen to their bodies using authentic movement. Can you see why I would want to interview her in the context of my Body Wisdom Boot Camp?
The holiday season can be a very stressful time of year for many reasons. Especially around finance.
I wanted to design a teleclass that would give my tribe some powerful tools to carry with them into the season of merriment. Sometimes we are faced with traditions we didn’t choose or the financial burden of purchasing all of the gifts on “the list.”
Pretty soon I found myself telling Bari about my own experiences around money and holidays, the boundaries I now have in place, and the fear I experienced when I began to examine my patterns around giving and receiving. The release I experienced when I tapped into my wisdom and found my voice.
And, in her infinite wisdom, Bari named it.
“Yes, yes, that’s your holiday money story,” she exclaimed, laughing.
Pretty soon we were talking and laughing and planning our collaboration: Your Holiday Money Story.
The concept became richer and richer. The chocolate sat untouched on our desks, pretty rare for two self-proclaimed choco-goddesses. This interview will serve both of our communities, in a big way.
Who doesn’t have a holiday money story?
So, grab your calendar and in big bold letters, fill in:
Tuesday, December 6th, 8 pm (eastern)
Your Holiday Money Story with Bari Tessler Linden
You can register right here
Grab a cup of tea and and hop on the phone with Sue Ann and Bari for a delightful look at food, money, choices and, of course, chocolate.
Oh, and be prepared to write a new script.
What’s YOUR story? Do you struggle with money matters during the holidays? Has your relationship to money shifted over the years? How do manage the season of giving and receiving? Leave a comment. We’d love to hear from you.
14 thoughts on “It’s the Money, Honey”
Sue Ann:
Your Holiday Money Story–how wonderful! I can’t wait to listen in.
Your dad is a man after my own heart. Forget sales and shopping in one large supermarket: I enjoy traveling around NYC looking for freshest, tastiest and most interesting ingredients like your dad and I’ve found Indian spice stores, a 24-hour fruit and vegetable store, a market housed in old shipping containers and other interesting shops. It definitely beats shopping at the mainstream stores.
I am looking forward to tuning into the choco-goddesses!
Yes, Tracey, we are kindred spirits for sure. My father would have loved following you around New York City finding all of those specialty stores and taking in the aromas, the sights and the sounds. May we carry on that tradition and all that it evokes! Your daughter will reap the benefits of the luscious legacy you are leaving her.
I love your story of how your father travels to butchers, markets and so on and how you have spent $89.00 on chocolates. Oh, and your virtual date for tea and chocolates sound divine and with Bari (I am such a fan of her work around money) love her videos. I am looking forward to listening to the both of you discuss some of the most important elements in life food, money, choices and, of course let’s not forget chocolate!
So glad you’re going to be on the call, Nasrine. I love looking at all the beautiful foodie finds you post on Wassa Weekly. I know just where to eat when I visit Dubai!
oh, i do hope you visit dubai one day! just saw that i will be having a time zone challenge on the call. but i am sure i will hear all about it!
I hope you’ll be able to listen to the recording, Nasrine. It was a wonderful call!
Oh how inspired I am by your story and your adventures with your father growing up. Truly what a gift in valuing food and nourishment for your body. I have learned to do some of this… go to the places where I can find foods that appeal to me in settings I enjoy (music et. al.) and so hang and take my time in really looking at and choosing my foods. I dooooo feel I need some infusion of LIFE and PURPOSE in the area of food. I feel a bit burned out after years and years of feeding so many. I so look forward to continuing this relationship with you to nurture and develop that! As far as the stories around money go particularly during this season, well… there are many. That is another area which I have come to a new place with, and look forward to infusing new life and joy in.
Thank you for making this workshop available to alllll of us! What gift!!
I am so honored to share this nourishment journey with you, Kathleen. I think we all feel like the beleaguered cook from time to time because, frankly, the kitchen can be a lonely place. I look forward to reclaiming the joy and finding ways to reignite the spark. Perhaps it is a means of keeping all that I hold dear about my father and our foodie escapades alive and flourishing in both myself and others.
Sue Ann, this is so perfect! I, too, am not a shopper, but I will indulge in small and select ways. And this call with Bari is going to be great–what a fantastic alignment 🙂
I will share this with several *money-fearing* babes–they need this!
Thank you, Shanna! I hope you enjoyed the call. . .
Hi Sue Ann!
Like you, I dread department store shopping. I’m also, admittedly, anti designer labels. My mom always told me as a kid that I could wear a potato sack and still make it look elegant. 🙂
What I do spend my money on though is high-quality food – just like you. With food, you get what you pay for. Yes “labels” matter here. Plus, I always feel like a kid in a candy store when I’m shopping at a farmers’ market. It’s better than shopping for any coach bag or Jimmy Choos.
Thanks for reminding everyone to think about spending on quality – when it comes to food…
Marion
Yes, Marion, as Bari would say, it’s all about what we value. I like to think that I am “wearing” my vegetables on a cellular level!
Sue Ann, how true that we often sweep this topic under the rug! Spending impacts everything we do and our attitudes toward money are sometimes so ingrained we don’t even realize why we shop the way we do. This sounds like a great way to examine our motivations, with chocolate and camaradarie for a backdrop. (You sure know how to put together an enticing teleconference!) Loved the stories about shopping with your Dad, too — sounds like he was rich in food friendships — like father, like daughter. 🙂
Yes, Kimby, rich indeed, in both food friendships and so much more. . .