How To Examine Your Relationship With Money - Paula Pant

The Better Questions

"Look around: all of your clutter used to be money; all of your money used to be time."

Money is one of those topics (like health) that affects each of us, whether or not we're interested. However, it can be a particularly loaded topic due to all the emotions attached to our financial stories, so uncovering our ingrained beliefs around money can be both enlightening and overwhelming:

• “I can either do what I love, or make money.”
• “I have to work really hard to make money.”
• “Money is the root of all evil.”
• “I have no control over whether I become wealthy.”
• “Money doesn't buy happiness.”

Do any of these beliefs resonate?

On today's episode, we examine the most common psychological patterns around money with guest Paula Pant, creator of the podcast Afford Anything, which has received over 20 million downloads and is one of Apple’s top business podcasts. She is a sought-out expert in the financial independence space, or the FIRE community, an acronym that stands for Financial Independence Retire Early.

By the age of 34, Paula reached financial independence by owning eight investment properties. Her story is incredible regardless, but even more so because of her background — Paula was raised in an immigrant family, where she was given traditional financial advice that often focused on extreme frugality. We discuss:

• How to determine what matters most to you
• How to make peace with your decisions
• What it means to become financially independent
• Why consumerism and a scarcity mindset are inextricably linked
• How frugality can be linked to a lack of confidence
• The benefits of tracking your expenses

I’m particularly excited about today's conversation because for the past several years, my business has helped employees and freelancers organize their finances and reexamine their relationship with money. Book your free call here and never worry about money again.

I'd absolutely love to hear what stuck out to you in this episode — share your favorite takeaways or questions by tagging @thebetterquestions and @paulapant!

Do you have a question you'd like to hear discussed on the show? Submit yours here, or on Instagram — I'll always send you a message when your question is featured.

If you find these episodes valuable, leave a review on Apple or Spotify — this helps more people discover the show!

Would you like all the best quotes from each episode, plus a few extra? Sign up at TheBetterQuestions.com to receive the monthly curation. You can also respond directly to these emails any time, I'd love to get to know you better!