Rewriting Your Money Story: How Money Beliefs Shape Your Financial Decisions
Welcome back to my newsletter series on financial wellness. In this edition, we explore a transformative concept: rewriting your money story.
Your money story is made up of the beliefs and attitudes you hold about money. These beliefs are often deeply ingrained from early life experiences and can significantly influence how you manage your finances today.
This article will guide you through understanding and reshaping those narratives so you can develop healthier financial habits and a better relationship with money.
Understanding Your Money Story
Each person carries a unique set of beliefs about money, often unconsciously absorbed from family, culture, or personal experience. These beliefs can profoundly affect how we approach financial decisions—from spending and saving to investing and earning.
Whether you believe that “money is the root of all evil” or that “money is a powerful tool for creating good,” recognizing your existing money story is the first step toward rewriting it.
The Impact of Emotional Money Beliefs on Financial Decisions
Emotional beliefs about money significantly influence financial decision-making—up to 90%, according to some studies.
For example, if you were raised to believe that money is dirty or evil, you may subconsciously repel it when it comes into your life. You might avoid accepting money or spend it as quickly as possible instead of allowing it to support your future goals.
These beliefs often lead to unhealthy financial behaviors, such as avoiding necessary expenses or preventing money from working effectively for you.
Do you recognize any of these beliefs?
I recently led a financial wellness training on money mindset at a large law firm and anonymously polled participants about their money beliefs. Here are some that came up:
I’m not good with money
Money leaves my hands as fast as I can make it
Money stresses me out
Money is dirty
Rich people are greedy
Being successful or having money changes people
Money is for giving to others, not for me
When I make more money, I spend more—this is just how life works
Simply acknowledging that you carry these beliefs is the first step in understanding how they may be showing up in your financial life.
Practical Steps to Rewrite Your Money Story
1. Identify Your Existing Money Beliefs
Take time to reflect on your core beliefs about money. Where did they come from? Are they based on your own lived experience, or were they inherited from family, culture, or society?
2. Assess the Impact of These Beliefs
Consider how these beliefs have shaped your financial decisions. Do they cause stress, anxiety, or limit your financial potential?
To explore this further, ask yourself:
What specific memories or experiences come up related to this belief?
What moments in your life seem to reinforce it?
What moments—either in your life or outside of it—prove it wrong?
Do you want to change this belief?
3. Envision a New Money Narrative
What would a healthier money story look like for you?
It might involve shifting from seeing money as a source of anxiety to viewing it as a resource for achieving your goals and supporting your values.
Here are some alternative money beliefs to consider:
I am good with money when I give it my full attention
My past experiences with money help me become wealthier
Money is a source of joy for me
Money is a pure and abundant tool
Rich people are often generous
Having money does not change who you are
I can manage all the money I make and control how it flows in and out of my life
4. Implement and Practice Your New Money Story
Begin living out your new money story by looking for evidence that supports these new beliefs in your daily life.
This might mean being more intentional with spending, saving more consistently, or asking for help instead of trying to do everything on your own.
Example of Changing a Money Story
One client came to me carrying the belief that “money leaves my hands as fast as I make it.” This is a very common money story among my clients.
Her father was an entrepreneur, and finances in her household followed a boom-and-bust cycle. When times were good, money was spent quickly out of fear that bad times were around the corner.
So she wasn’t surprised when she spent her entire annual hours bonus on a spontaneous vacation. That behavior fit perfectly with the money story she had learned.
But when we looked closer, we noticed something important: she had been contributing consistently to her retirement savings in both good times and bad. That behavior directly contradicted her belief.
She decided she wanted to work on a new belief:
Enough money comes into my life to enjoy the present and prepare for the future—and I can manage it.
This belief empowered her to take action toward a better future while protecting herself against financial instability. Together, we created a specific plan for allocating her next bonus so she could enjoy part of it while also making real financial progress.
The Power of a Positive Money Story
Rewriting your money story isn’t just about feeling better about money—it’s about changing your financial behaviors so you feel better about your financial position, too.
A positive money story can free you from old constraints and allow you to make financial decisions that are thoughtful, deliberate, and aligned with your long-term goals.
By identifying and transforming limiting money beliefs, you open the door to a healthier relationship with money—one that supports your values, priorities, and sense of fulfillment.
What’s Next in the Financial Wellness Series?
In the next newsletter, we’ll explore default patterns that may be affecting your overall financial health and how to shift them.
If you’d like help working through these issues—especially during a career or life transition—you can schedule a free consultation here:
https://www.jessicamedinallc.com/scheduling
About Jessica Medina
Jessica Medina is an Accredited Financial Counselor who helps attorneys improve their money mindset and financial wellness.
She is a former lawyer who graduated from Columbia Law School in 2004 as a single mom of twins with over $200,000 in student loans. She began her career in Biglaw, later served as Senior Counsel in the Division of Enforcement at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, and ultimately left government service to teach lawyers how to use their money to finance their dream lives.
Jessica is also the host of the monthly podcast Beyond Biglaw: Money Management for Lawyers.
If you enjoyed this article, join the community of lawyers seeking better personal finance advice at:
https://www.jessicamedinallc.com/email
