WHAT IS A MONEY MINDSET?

Show me the money. It’s what we all want. Right? Well, it’s also what we need with the cost of living increasing interest rates on the rise. Increasing our income in the current climate is important, but easier said than done. I know that, but what if I told you, or more importantly, my guest today told you that a simple shift in your mindset could help you achieve more financial abundance than you ever thought possible. Sounds too good to be true. Well keep reading. Have you ever thought about your relationship with money now? I have recently delved into the space of money mindset and boy, oh boy. Is it eye opening? So let me share a little bit about my relationship with money. And I know a lot of people get uncomfortable around conversations about money, but I think it’s a conversation we’ve avoided for far too long. Now I’ve been that person who lived week to week. I was all about the experience. If there was an adventure to be had a night out on the town or trip overseas, well, I was your girl. I’ve never had savings. I’ve never had a rainy day fund, but geez, I’ve had some wonderful life experiences. So I don’t regret it for a minute, but there comes a time when you have to go, okay, I’m not going to work forever. I’ve got wages to pay and I’ve got school fees to meet. It’s kind of time to sort out my money situation. And what I have found super interesting on this journey is that your relationship with money extends into your working life as well. Now, if you are constantly discounting your fees, it’s more than likely you are holding onto some sort of limiting belief around not being good enough or deserving. And if you are struggling to grow your income past a certain point, you might have a block around receiving money and you can spend all the money in the world on marketing or lead generation strategies or advertising to grow your business and income, but none of that will actually work unless you go right back to the very foundations and address your mindset. So I’m super excited to share my guest with you today. Claire Woods is a money mentor. She’s a former accountant who has found a niche, helping business owners, entrepreneurs, and pretty much anyone else in between make more profit in a wholistic way. Yes, you have to know your numbers, but there’s way more to creating financial abundance than looking at a few spreadsheets. So let’s dive in and get you started on this life changing money mindset journey. And I don’t say that lightly.

 

HOW DID YOU GET STARTED AS A MONEY MINDSET COACH?

‘So my background is I’m actually an accountant by trade. I started my career out in, you know, boring, old accounting. And then I moved into the commercial space, which was providing advisory services to commercial entities about how to make more profit in their business. When I got pregnant with my first child, I got made redundant while on mat leave I was helping my husband with his business and he said, babe, you’re all really good at this. And I was like, yeah. So he said maybe people would pay you to be doing this sort of work. And that’s essentially how I got into the space of mentoring and coaching. And, over the years, I’ve really niched down on how I best help people, which is helping them to unlock their limiting beliefs and really get excited about what’s possible. And also to, I guess, make that really practical as well. So rather than just like dream big, I’m showing people how to like create a budget, how to actually set plans for themselves because across a whole range of service based industries, I sort of find that most business owners don’t really have a strong handle on their money. So I sort of help them, you know, unlock the possibility, but also convert it into really practical actions.’

 

WHAT IS A MONEY MINDSET?

‘So our mindset is what we believe. And sometimes we can think that our beliefs are a truth. So you might think in my industry, it’s not possible to make this much money or, you have to be a really sleazy salesperson to make a lot of money. And we have these stories that we believe to be truths. And what mindset is, it’s starting to challenge and really unlock, are these things a truth or is this just something that I am perceiving that’s going on? And then once we start to discover what it is that we believe about money, then we can start to reprogram our beliefs around money. So rather than just say, you know, I need to be a sleazy salesperson to make a ton of money and we can start to say actually lots of really beautiful, kind, down to earth. People are very, very successful and very wealthy. And I would like to become one as well. So it’s really the process of uncovering, like what we believe about money and then deciding is that a story that serves me or that I want to continue forward or do I want to create a new belief or mindset around this so that I can make more money myself?’

 

HOW DO WE WORK OUT WHERE OUR MONEY MINDSET IS RIGHT NOW?

‘I think a, a great place to start is to write down everything that you believe to be true about money. So people who are rich have come from money, people who, um, are rich are. I don’t know. You might have a whole ton of, of stories. And I just want you to put them all down on paper, everything that comes up like money comes easily, but it goes out just as easily. Anything that kind of springs up around the subject of money, put it all pen to paper. Then you get to ask yourself, is this something that firstly is true and is this something that’s going to help me to step into my next level? And what I realized was that a lot of my money stories that came from my childhood were not going to help me to become a wealthy person because, my dad used to talk about the elite as they were awful. And so I was like, well, as long as I believe that rich people are not nice people, I’m not going to become a rich person because I correlate that, the idea that I can’t be a, a kind nice person with being wealthy. So I realize that that story wasn’t going to serve me anymore. So the first thing to do is really go, what are my stories? And the interesting thing is once you start doing this work, you will see in other people so much their stories. And that’s another thing that you can do is watch what other people say about money. Like some people will be very forthright about how much they’re earning other people will be very secretive and we don’t talk about money. That’s embarrassing. It’s something we, you know, we, we, we don’t talk about. And so you can start to observe how other people are around money as well. And they go, oh my gosh, I do that. I always speak really negatively about money. Oh, well, yeah, I’ve got a nice house, but the interest rates, you know, dog, I’m going to lose all the value, like catch yourself and just go, whoa, listen to how I talk about anything related to money. And that can be a really powerful way to start to unlock what your money beliefs are.’

That’s fantastic advice. So, so the first thing you said was to work out what your money stories are and then change those stories, or, you know, find a better story. That’s gonna serve you better. I have some crazy money stories as I’ve done this work. And, uh, not only at the retreat that you held recently, which to anyone listening was amazing. Um, thank you so much for that, but I honestly did not realize some of the, the money beliefs and stories that I was carrying. And one of mine is, you know, people with money are tight asses. Um,

IS MANIFESTING MONEY A THING?
‘So have you heard of the red car theory, which is like, when you want to buy a red car, you see red cars everywhere. Right. And this can be true for anything I know at the moment I want to build a Hamptons style house. I see them everywhere, right? Because it’s something that I’m focused on. And, you know, from a scientific perspective, our brain actually sees what we are looking for. So if you are looking for evidence to back up your belief that you know,rich people are not nice people, that is exactly what you are going to see. You are going to really hone in on that. But when you open your mind and start to say, okay, is this a truth? You can start to look for other pieces of evidence. So when I first started my journey, I started to go, I wonder if there are rich people who were nice. Is there anyone out there? And, as I’ve started to sort of mix in different circles, the thing is I’m overwhelmingly finding that there are so many beautiful, lovely, very generous, very kind, very humble down to earth people who have a ton of money, but before I wasn’t looking for them. I was looking for evidence to back up my belief. And now I’m looking for evidence to back up my belief that there are lots of lovely people. And I don’t want to pretend like I don’t have rose collared glasses about it. There are lots of wealthy people who are horrible people, but there are also lots of people with no money who are horrible people. And there are also lots of people with a moderate amount of money who are horrible people. I guess what I’ve done is removed the correlation between someone’s wealth and what kind of person they are, because I’ve no longer have that lens that I’m looking for that. So whatever your story is, you can start to say, okay, does everyone who is a successful salesperson have to be super sleazy, and then you can start to go, well, do you know, who’s not that person’s not. And actually, when I went into the, the shop the other day and bought that, they just did it in really, really beautiful, like guiding me in the right direction. They weren’t sleazy at all. They were just helping me find a solution and more and more and more, you start to find evidence of people that aren’t sleazy at all that are extremely successful salespeople. And you go, oh, that isn’t a truth. And yes, you know, there are still going to be exceptions. But if you are focusing in on that, that’s what you’re going to see. So choose the way that you are focusing your attention and the story that you want to create.’

 

MINDSET IN PROPERTY MANAGEMENT

‘I’ve worked with many, many property managers over the years, and I can see such a difference in the way that people show up to, you know, to a, a sales conversation. Whether it’s like, well, this is the price. Or they’re like, oh gosh, they’re not going to pay that. I have people who are offering me a discount without me even asking for it. And I’m like, I wasn’t even going to ask for a discount. I think you’re really nice. I was happy to fail. And it’s just really interesting how all of these stories really shape how we do show up how we sell, which in turn affects the outcomes that we achieve. And I guess this is why it’s so important because our belief shapes the action that we take. If we believe that, you know, someone’s not going to pay the fee, well, we’re not going to go into the conversation with like, well, that’s my price. There’s an energy that you show up to a conversation as compared to, if you’re going everyone’s going to ask for a discount, oh, just quickly offer them a discount straight up, then see how you are almost attracting the outcomes based on your belief system. So I think that’s why this belief work is so important because it shapes your outcomes.’

 

WINNING THE FEE CONVERSATION

‘I would just check in on what your stories are. So, you know, again, if you have a belief that everyone’s going to be purely focused on price, you can go, I wonder where that stories come from and maybe it’s come from, you know, the past about that. Everyone asks for a discount, or maybe you’re like, do you know what, when I think about it, most of my clients have multiple properties. They don’t really care. They just want to work with someone. Who’s going to get the job done, who they can trust, who they can rely on. And I’m actually going to position myself as someone that charges a premium price, because I offer a different level of service to other people. And I guess this is again where you get to ask those questions and say, well, is this a truth, or is this a story that I’m creating about what people want? And, you know, as someone, myself, who’s had rental properties over the years, like, I don’t want the cheapest. I want someone I can trust. I want someone who answers their bloody phone. I want someone who’s not turning over staff all the time. I just want to work with one person. My property at the moment I’ve had, honestly, five different property managers in the last three months and I am so over it that I’m like, I would way rather pay a premium price and have consistency, have reliability and have someone that I can trust there. So look for a different story, maybe my dream clients, aren’t looking for the cheapest price. Maybe they’re looking for different things and I can offer that and I can charge a premium price for it.’

 

WHAT ARE YOUR MONEY BLOCKS?

‘Usually there’s three main kinds of blocks that people have. They have a block in receiving, a block in investing, or a block in holding. So sometimes people could have multiple blocks. You can have different blocks at different times, but I guess I just wanted to identify what each of those are.,I certainly have got multiple blocks, and I’m constantly unlocking them. This is the thing as well. I think people think, oh, I do money mindset. And then they’ve got a great money mindset. It’s kind of like going to the gym. This work continues all the time. So a block in receiving is feeling uncomfortable receiving, and this can look like someone says, oh, Hey, um, you know, here’s a tip or here’s a gift and you go, oh, no, no, no, thank you. That’s not necessary. It can even start with compliments. Someone gives you a compliment, and you go straightaway go, oh, this old shirt. No, no, don’t, don’t, you know when someone gives you a compliment on what you’re wearing. And so a block in receiving is essentially blocking money from coming to you. It’s when someone says, Hey, I’d like to get dinner and you go, no, no, I’ll get my own dinner. And rather than graciously saying, yeah, sure. I’ll gratefully receive money. And the way that this shows up in business, a lot of the time is that someone will offer to pay for something or, uh, pay. And you say, no, no, no, thank you. Um, don’t worry about it. So that is a block in receiving a block in investing is where we try and run things on the smell of an oily rag. My husband’s a recruiter and I see this all the time. It, it blows my mind. He’ll be hiring sales people and they want an extra $5,000 and a company won’t pay them an extra $5,000 a year for their dream sales gun candidate. And I think this person’s going to bring in a million to 2 million revenue a year for your business, and you won’t give them 5,000 bucks. And so investing is a fear of spending money. It’s a fear of investing in, you know, a coach or a training, or a course that can seriously up level your skill potentially make you a ton more money, but you go, no, no, no, I’ve gotta hang onto my money. And ultimately that comes from a place of lack. It comes from a place of I’m so scared. I can’t pay a team member, an extra $5,000. I can’t do a course. Even though, you know, it could potentially make you a ton more money in the long run. And then the last block is a block in holding. So this is where you love making money. It’s easy. Oh, money just comes to me all the time. You invest in yourself, you invest in your business, but you perhaps seem to go right down to the wire. And I have to admit, this is something I’ve definitely struggled with over the years. I can have a big, healthy, chunky savings account, and it’s safe for me not to spend every last cent. And this is, again, can be a block that people think, oh my gosh, I have to get rid of it all. And, um, sometimes the story that I hear around this is, um, what if it all goes away? I need to spend the money now while I’ve got money. So for example, um, you know, you have a big month and you think, okay, I’ll buy my laptop now because just in case I have a really slow month next month. So there’s nothing wrong with spending all of your money. If you’re investing intentionally, there’s nothing wrong with, having a big, healthy savings account. But I guess the thing is, ask yourself the question, why am I doing this? Do I need to have a big amount of money in my account? Cuz I’m terrified. It’s all going to go away or do I like to just have it because it makes me feel safe and secure. So it’s just checking in on why you are doing the things you’re doing. Why will I not receive money when people are offering to do that? Like why? So yeah, it’s just something interesting to explore.’

Go and grab a paper and start writing down all your limiting beliefs about money, achieving financial abundance really can be that simple, a simple shift in your beliefs. Use the red car theory and start looking for that pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.