money – Pam Grout

Money? Who needs money?

July 20, 2020 41 Comments

“I cannot afford to waste my time making money.”–Jean Louis Rodolphe Agassiz

Creativity TEST — Taz made this cool meme from a creativity test in the book.

I’m speaking tomorrow at Marc Allen’s Summer Writing Workshop. To prepare, I re-read my 2017 book, Art & Soul, Reloaded. It was Taz’s favorite of my 20 books and, in fact, I dedicated it to: “Taz, the most creative person I know.”

One of the sections details the many myths about being a writer, the first of which seemed like a fitting excerpt for a rainy Monday morning. Enjoy!

I am forever grateful I never ran across the famous French novel Scènes de la vie de Bohème by Henri Murger.

I’d have probably loved the novel that was wildly popular in the mid-19th century. Revolving around a group of impoverished artists who lived in the bohemian quarter of Paris, this bestseller spawned Giacomo Puccini’s 1895 opera La Bohème and is widely credited as being the catalyst for the now-household term starving artist. Like Rocky and Bullwinkle, pancakes and syrup, the words starving and artist have been joined at the hip ever since. How many posters have you seen for starving artist shows or starving artist sales?

But it’s an exceedingly dangerous belief for any artist to subscribe. And it’s the first of our list to meet the chopping block. Using these words, even as a joke, perpetuates an energy field that does none of us any good. It cements an antiquated belief that (a) you can’t make art without money (so untrue, it’s preposterous), and (b) if you’re an artist, you’ll always be broke.

Luckily for me, I didn’t buy either maxim.

I was naïve enough to believe I could make a living as a writer. Without a trust fund. Without a bunch of savings in the bank. Without really anything but my own fool imagination.

You might have noticed my last name is not Rockefeller. Not only did I grow up with a glaring lack of silver spoons, but my father was a poorly paid Methodist minister in a tiny town in Kansas.

It was very clear to me that if I was going to reach my dream of being an author, of inspiring the masses with my words, I would have to rely on a different kind of capital. I would have to amass creative capital.

This unique retirement plan has been my saving grace, especially since I didn’t fare exceptionally well in the ranks of corporate America. Even after securing a college degree, my one concession to the normal paradigm, I bristled at thoughts of a “real job.” Even a semicorporate job (a theme park that, at the time, was owned by Lamar Hunt, the guy who owned the Kansas City Chiefs) frowned on my choice of footwear and my “let’s throw it out there and see what happens” attitude.

I’ve never felt the need for surveys, market research, and prescribed plans that, sure, might work for someone, but offer no guarantees for me. I prefer traipsing to the well of the unknown, the river of infinite potentiality, the field of the brand-new.

That’s not to say I always believed in myself. That would be like saying van Gogh didn’t suffer mental illness.

But between bouts of lying in bed and staring at my ceiling fan, I found the wherewithal to believe I could create work that someone might enjoy. Between thoughts of unworthiness and self-pity, I believed I could devise creative capital with nothing but a good idea.

I was able to self-publish not one, but two books. I put them out there even though I was a single mom with a three-year-old (for the first one) and a seven-year-old (during the production of the second one).

It’s one thing to call myself a freelance writer when it was just me, sharing homes with friends, trotting around the globe. But when I became a parent, it was expected I would settle down, be realistic, get a real job.

I am very grateful I didn’t listen to the conventional paradigm.

Because here’s the thing. You don’t need money to be an artist. You need but one thing. Persistence to keep getting up off the floor where you sometimes lie (or at least I did) with your face pressed against the cold concrete, moaning, “What was I thinking?” You just keep getting up and taking the next step.

When you have no budget, you’re forced to get creative. You have to find new and interesting ways to get things done. Like collaborating with others, like trading services.

Money offers a leg up, but it’s far from imperative. #222 Forever

Pam Grout is the author of 20 books including E-Squared, E-Cubed, Thank & Grow Rich and her latest book, The Course in Miracles Experiment: A Starter Kit for Rewiring Your Mind (And Therefore Your World).

Money is everywhere

February 28, 2018 45 Comments

“Happiness comes from many sources, but none of these sources involve car or purse upgrades.”—Mr. Money Mustache abundance

Last November, at an executive women’s retreat in Orlando, I met a brilliant CPA named Christi. I feel compelled to mention that I wasn’t at this weekend retreat because I’m an executive woman. I work in my pajamas. I was there because I was invited to give a two-hour presentation which, you’ll be happy to hear, I didn’t give in my PJ’s.

But this story isn’t about me.

It’s about Christi who is brilliant, not just because she helps clients with taxes and financial planning and all that other left-brain rigamarole, but because she helps them really understand money. Not in the way most of us understand money, but in the way money really is.

She considers it her duty to make sure they know that money is energy and that those numbers on their balance sheets and tax forms are a direct result of their thoughts and beliefs. She loves to tell them that money is unlimited and that it is only their thoughts and beliefs that could ever keep it away.

I’m thinking about money today because I just received my yearly bill from WordPress. WP is a free blogging platform, but I actually pay an annual fee so they’ll take all ads OFF my site. I figure it’s the least I can do for those of you who so generously take the time to read my posts

I write them out of sheer joy, as my own spiritual and creative practice. I write from my heart and I view them as a gift to anyone who cares to read them.

Which is why I don’t use my blog to promote what’s known as affiliate programs. You know–those posts that have the same spiel, the same wording and everything, from five different people. While there’s a certain kind of mad genius in promoting someone else’s program or product in exchange for a percentage of sales, I choose to turn down such invitations because I don’t view you as “a list.” You are my compadres in spiritual mischief, my friends, my sounding board. If I write about something, it’s because I’m genuinely excited about it.

So while Christi’s mission is to maximize and optimize finances, mine is to maximize and optimize joy. That’s why, as I often say, my goal is to become the Warren Buffet of Happiness.

And that’s what A Course in Miracles does. It helps us realize that the way we see ourselves and the world is upside down. It teaches us that living a wonderful, fulfilling life has nothing to do with finances and everything to do with how we see the world.

ACIM Lesson 59 encourages us to give up our pitiful illusions, to reach in and grab the absolute peace that abides within. It’s there within everyone, hidden under our thoughts and crazy beliefs, hidden under worry and stress and belief that money (or really anything at all) is limited. Limitation is a false construct that we have cemented in with our thoughts. It can be changed at any time.

Today, I encourage you to notice that, like Christi preaches, money (and abundance of all kinds) is everywhere.

You’ll find it by getting on a frequency of joy and gratitude. By taking off the blinders that block the presence and the radiance and the unforced generosity of the universe.

My service is to this presence. And to you, my dear friends, who have put a little bit of trust in me. For that, I say thank you, thank you, thank you.

Pam Grout is the author of 19 books including E-Squared, E-Cubed, Thank & Grow Rich and her new book, Art & Soul,Reloaded: A Year-Long Apprenticeship to Summon the Muses and Ignite Your Daring, Audacious, Creative Side.

Jobs and money are separate entities with very little in common

February 1, 2017 22 Comments

“You should be dancing in your shoes at all times.”—The Way of Mastery

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I frequently get emails beseeching guidance on prosperity. Readers ask, “How do I overcome my fear around money?”

So here goes:

The best way I know to prosper is to separate the notion of “having money” from the notion of “having a job.”

In our consciousness, which provides the blueprint for our life experience, we believe the two are inseparable. Can’t have the first without the second.

But is that true?

In the field of infinite potentiality (FP), there are a gazillion ways for money to appear. In my life, money comes in all sorts of unexpected ways. In fact, that’s one of the greatest benefits of being a freelance writer. I’ve never made the hard and fast connection between jobs and money. So my consciousness has never blocked the tremendous gifts the universe wants to bless me with.

In our society, it’s quite true that money and jobs are dating, but, take it from me, they’re not in a monogamous relationship.

I was once in a workshop where we came up with 200 sources for obtaining moolah. A job wasn’t one of them.

Here are three stories from my inbox that demonstrate that obtaining prosperity has little to do with a job:

Numero Uno: “I spent much of my vacation-rereading your book. It truly revived and excited me to start the new year. I asked for January to be a great month full of good times with friends and a month of abundance with the universe sending me things all month. Well it has been two weeks of good times with friends and family and so far:

“Jan 5: Hotel $600 refund charged at arrival – the owner of resort just happened to come talk to us
Jan 9: Dyson part–$50 even though warranty three months over
Jan 10: Pickering rec center $20 swim credit – completely unexpected
Jan 13: Starbucks $1.50 in extra change
Jan 13: $20 bath and body – lady at cash out of nowhere gave daughter and I- two $10 coupons off our purchases
Jan 14/15: new clothes from a friend
Jan 16 – 2400 points – $240 travel credit from credit card – got an email out of no where – completely unexpected
First two weeks – $1000 .”

Although I haven’t heard the tally for the rest of the month, I did hear she was recently gifted with a Gucci purse.

Second story:

“I decided that I want to have 300€ but not from my parents (as I am currently in university) I didn’t know how I just believed it will happen and I left it like that.

“After a week I looked at my bank account and I had 300€ more from somewhere and I had no idea how that happened because only my parents have my bank account. So I thought it might be for my rent so I didn’t touch it and asked my landlord if my rent has been transferred. He said yes?!

“Then I told my boyfriend all about this and he told me that it’s probably the rent for next month and I shouldn’t spend it. My reaction was: “Nonsense, that’s a gift from the universe to me and I’ll buy myself a birthday present”. After all I was a bit suspicious so I spent only the half of it if in fact that was my next month’s rent. And this month it turned out it’s not. And it was a gift from nowhere.

“To be honest that’s just one of the many examples that happened. I’ve been able to attract everything that I want with the mindset that the universe knows what’s beat for me and I should just relax.”

Story #3:

“It’s as though the universe in many instances handles those wants in such a quiet way that we often miss the fact that our wants and desires have been met. I just woke up to that fact recently.

I wanted a watch which I really did not need that had the phases of the moon on it and I asked the universe to give it to me so that I would not have to purchase it myself. What happened was that I was on a cruise about three months later that gave us so much money to spend and when I went into the store that sold watches on the ship I saw a watch with the phases of the moon on it. I had actually forgotten that I had ask the universe for it and when I went up to the counter I asked the gentleman how much the watch was and he said it was $320. I actually had $350 on board credit to spend on this Cruise and I knew that the watch originally cost $895 but they were having a special sale that day on this particular watch.

“It didn’t register with me that I was getting a watch for free and it wasn’t until a couple of months later that I figured out that the Universe had supplied me the money on the cruise and had reduced the price of the watch so that I could purchase it.

“It is almost as though the universe is playing with us and every now and then tries to sneak something by us just for the fun of it.”

Pam Grout is the author of 18 books including E-Squared: 9 Do-it-Yourself Energy Experiments that Prove Your Thoughts Create Your Reality and the recently released, Thank and Grow Rich: a 30-day Experiment in Shameless Gratitude and Unabashed Joy.

Why unexpected money flows to me

February 16, 2015 31 Comments

“The world is awash in money.”–Ted Turner

I’m reading Tony Robbin’s new book, Master the Money Game. It’s 600 pages of quite fascinating advice. I particularly enjoyed learning that Warren Buffett is a fan of self-improvement guru Dale Carnegie. So it’s not just us spiritual types who are out here getting our woo-woo on.

I’ll probably even take some of Tony’s suggestions. I’ve been to his resort in Fiji and, hey, the guy knows how to live. My daughter and I, in fact, bunked in Namale’s 2500-square-foot Dream House, next door to he and his wife Sage. It had outdoor showers, two pools, a couple hot tubs, maid’s quarters and 200-foot windows overlooking the ocean. It also had a pull-down TV screen on which we were able to watch the Bachelorette episode that was filmed there. If you want to read the travel article I wrote about the house where Ashley Hebert was wooed, click here.

But an even better financial tact than Tony’s is the affirmation of my power posse pal Rhonda who says, “Unexpected money comes to me every day.”

As I mention in E-Cubed, money is nothing but energy that forms around our beliefs and expectations, so if we want to believe the only way to acquire it is from a paycheck, that’s certainly one of the options. But Rhonda (yes, she’s the Never Say No to Fun gal) gets unexpected money every day.

Some days, it’s a penny. Often it’s five dollar bills. It seems five dollar bills stalk her like Mary Margaret Ray stalked David Letterman. Other days, a sales clerk at the counter where Rhonda (not Mary Margaret) is making a purchase will say, “Ya know, this sweater is going on sale tomorrow. I’m going to go ahead and give it to you for 50 percent off.”

Robbin, also in the posse, has been known to find up to five 20 dollar bills in her get this….clothes dryer. Who needs an ATM? As for me, I regularly get checks in the mail, sometimes really big ones, I wasn’t expecting.

The thing is, we can hold on with white fists to our beliefs around money or we can open up to the world’s abundance. We can argue for our limitations (a chief one being that money is scarce and hard to come by) or we can crack the window for a more-pleasing fiduciary story.

One of my favorite things about E-Cubed, in which I encourage people to seed money, is that readers are starting to leave notes and dollar bills inside the pages of E-Cubed at bookstores that some new lucky reader will eventually find. How cool is that?

As for me, I continue to believe in the world’s largesse and to know that plentitude is the only realistic way to fly.

Pam Grout is the author of 17 books including E-Squared: 9 Do-it-Yourself Energy Experiments that Prove Your Thoughts Create Your Reality and the just-released sequel, E-Cubed, 9 More Experiments that Prove Mirth, Magic and Merriment is your Full-time Gig.

“Money, my long lost lover.” –Felicia Spahr@felsgotswag

April 8, 2013 6 Comments

Here’s that guest post I promised on Friday. Thanks, Fel!!!

Money, My Long Lost Lover

by the inimitable Felicia Spahr

There was a time, not so long ago, that I was afraid to look at my checking account. Not because I wasn’t making any money, but because my relationship with money was a little off-kilter. We didn’t look each other in the eye. We weren’t honest. We didn’t communicate. I didn’t listen when my money said ‘too much’, and I didn’t listen when my money said, ‘Hey there—wasn’t our date supposed to be tonight?’ I never listened, and I became afraid. Afraid of what money would do to get back at me.

I realized that I needed to do a little remixing on how I felt about money. I was taught to believe that money was ‘bad’, that people who had a lot of it were ‘bad’, and that if life were free of money, I would feel freer, better, and happier. But, as my fine green friends are teaching me, a world without money is a world without value—and a world without value is people just walking around, saying hi on the street, then staring at their cup of a tea for a few hours and hearing that whisper in their heads: Now what?

As Kate Northrup has taught me, a great way to look at money is to see it as an exchange of value for value. For example, it’s a blessing to have hot water to shower with so that I can feel clean and ready for the day. It’s a blessing to have electricity so I can see, so I can plug in my computer, so I can run my online business and connect with some pretty amazing people. It’s a blessing to put gas in the car that takes me where I need to go. It’s a blessing to pay someone to help me get my life on track, so I can be free to be the person I’m meant to be. It’s a blessing to be financially independent, and live in a city I want to live in, with the people I love. All of this is extremely valuable because it amplifies our lives. It makes us better. It makes others better. Money is everyone’s BFF and they don’t even know it.

As I was going through this transformation of thought, the writer in me gently poked me a few times and asked me to write about it. Writing is how I explore and make sense of things, and of course I put a little creative twist on it and thought I would make something dashing, romantic—something for the books. And from that, my ‘Dear Money’ letter was born: a sweet love letter dedicated to a lover I had lost many moons ago.

Here it is, in its original form:

Dear Money,

Sweet green.

I know we’ve been on the outs for a while. But I think it’s time I told you how I really feel: I love you.

You have helped me move from place to place—pretty much whenever I wanted to. You have helped me go on fun trips, give gifts to people—wash my hair and brush my teeth, and all that other sexy stuff that I might take you for granted for. So thanks for that.

You have also given me freedom. You’ve let me do what I need to do so I can still eat and be happy. You’ve let me have a life I’ve always dreamed of. You’ve let me help people. In fact, now that I think about it, you’re pretty much my number one fan. You’re committed, you’re invested. You’re always there. So thanks for that.

In order to repair any damage that’s been done—have I mentioned that I love you?—I think it’s fair to say that I owe you a couple of very sexy and romantic dates. We could buy a bottle of wine, peruse what you’ve been up to the past month. Maybe we’ll write some jokes about it, or a funny song. Either way, I think we should be friends. BFFs. With the forever and ever after it.

I know it will take time, but you’ve given me plenty of that.

So, let’s make out.

With love,

Fel

Since I’ve written this letter, my money and I have had dates daily. In fact, a few times a day. First in the morning, I look at my bank account and I wave, and say things like ‘Hi’, ‘Thank you’, and ‘You give me the freedom to live the lift I want’. When I go to the bank I give a loud and proud ‘yes’ when I’m asked if I’d like to see my balance. When I make a payment on my student loan, I say ‘thank you for giving me what I needed to change my life’. When I need to talk about my money, I talk about it like it’s my loyal friend, proudly showing it off; and smiling when I see that I’ve spent it on delicious food to munch, small gifts for people I love, ways to make my business even better. I didn’t know my money affair could be such an adventure.

And I can say to you, that reimagining your feelings around money is a little scary at first. You’re letting go of some hardcore ingrained beliefs. But for a first step, just give your money a look-see. A blind date if you will. You don’t know each other very well—but you at least want to give it a try. Dazzle with your best smile, and find what you can that makes your heart go pitter-patter. The rest, as with all things, is your journey.

Bio: Felicia Spahr is a writing rogue and adventurous guide who helps people achieve their creative writing dreams. She’s a published short story + prose author, and she created Write For You, a one-on-one virtual program that leads people on an exhilarating and inspiring journey of completing that short story, screenplay, novel, play (et al!) that has been swirling around in their heads for ages and is dying to run around and get out in the world. She also teaches class and workshops on creative writing and the art of teaching. All the explosions of creativity happen at Fel’s Got Swag.

Do your beliefs block the flow of the world’s limitless abundance?

March 15, 2013 4 Comments

“A child of God is a magnet for all things good.”
–Marianne Williamson

I’m more or less illiterate when it comes to anything electrical. I know what a plug looks like and I know how to attach it to a wall socket. Beyond that, I draw a blank.

But there’s a device used in electronics that provides a good metaphor for understanding why some intentions are so easy to manifest and why others seem darned near impossible.

The device is called a resistor and basically (All you electricians out there, please forgive my simplistic explanation) what it does is reduce the amount of electrical current flowing through a circuit. Resistors limit the number of electrons that can flow past a given point at any one time.

Our beliefs about ourselves and about the way the world works serve as resistors, blocking the flow of the world’s limitless abundance. Our beliefs are the brakes that stop the natural, always-flowing current of good.

Let me give you an example. Most people believe money is limited and hard to come by. That’s a resistor.

On the other hand, they don’t believe health or intelligence is limited. Just because I’m healthy doesn’t mean you can’t be healthy, too. Steven Hawking’s brilliant intellect doesn’t prevent Matt Groening or Steven Spielberg from using their brain power.

But when it comes to abundance, the belief there’s only so much to go around is a big, fat resistor, much better at blocking the flow than tungsten, carbon and other popular resistors.

The other family-size resistor is believing you know how to best accomplish a particular goal. Let’s take traveling, a popular intention for many. Most people I talk to believe the best way to become a world traveler is to get a job so they can accumulate enough money and vacation time to visit say, Cape Town or Monte Carlo or even Denver, Colorado.

I, on the other hand, had no expectations one way or another. I knew I had a burning desire to travel, but I had nary a clue how to make that happen. What I did have is the wherewithal to acknowledge I had no clue. It was abundantly clear to me that if I was going to jet around the world, my only option was to give it up to the universe.

I let it go completely, trusting the universe was a heck of a lot smarter and more abundant than me.

Instead of following the “accepted path” of slaving away and accumulating money and vacation time, I now travel for free. The universe led me into travel writing, an occupation I’m not even sure I knew existed when I first made the declaration that I wanted to be a world traveler.

Money? Who needs money?

In the world of electronics, resistors sometimes come in handy (they can create heat and light), but for me, who longs for a life of ease and grace, I prefer to keep the flow as wide open as I possibly can.

Pam Grout is the author of E-Squared: 9 Do-it-Yourself Energy Experiments that Prove Your Thoughts Create Your Reality.

How to manifest: the power of baby steps

January 9, 2013 5 Comments

When we first learn about manifesting and the “law of attraction,” we tend to jump in with giant goals, things like new cars, new homes, boyfriends who look like Fabio. Those are all fantastic intentions and every single one of you deserves every one of those things.

But what I’d like to suggest is baby steps. Starting small. When you first learn to play golf, you break it down and master one step at a time. You spend a week practicing, say, keeping your eye on the ball. The next week you work on keeping your lead arm straight. It’s impossible to take it all in at once.

It’s the same with learning to manifest. In fact, jumping into the deep end, our normal inclination, tends to backfire and actually ends up being counterproductive. Let’s say you decide you want a BMW Z3 2.8 Roadster by oh.…next Wednesday. It’s quite possible that, instead of getting all worked up and excited about the new car, your predominant thoughts will be something like “eat my shorts.”

Needless to say, thoughts like those can only lead to disappointment. And I think that’s what happens. We get all fired up about this amazing idea that our thoughts create our reality. We start affirming and visualizing and being sure that this is our destiny and then the past starts creeping in. The negative thoughts. The way it’s always been.

Going from broke, depressed and loveless to rich, perpetually happy and a having a black book filled with numbers is a virtual chasm and can’t help but fail. When these intentions don’t happen overnight, which they won’t (They could. It’s possible. Gurus in India pull jewels out of the thin air), you’ll get discouraged and either give up or believe you’re not worthy.

What I’d like to suggest is starting small. Building muscle gradually.

Start with something you have absolutely no baggage around. Money, which is No#1 on most manifesters’ hit parade, comes with how can I say this politely, more suitcases than the Chicago airport.

If you start with something simple, something like say a blue feather, your thoughts won’t immediately put up their dukes and start yammering. In fact, small intentions are so nonthreatening that often we manifest them immediately.

For one thing, you’re not fighting the current. Most people, something like 95 percent of the human race, think manifesting money is supremely difficult. No doubt you’ve heard all the alleged facts about money:

It doesn’t grow on trees.
Making money is hard.
Blah, blah.

But I hasten to point out you don’t hear people going around saying, “It’s impossible to find blue feathers.”

So by starting with baby steps, you won’t immediately provoke the group consciousness. And, most importantly, you won’t trigger your own doubts and past failures.

Here are the three steps:

1. Go for something small, something you won’t be all “that’s impossible” about.
2. Make an intention and make it crystal clear.
3. Set a deadline.

In fact, for the next week, I’d like your help in creating some data for my new Hay House book: E-Squared: 9 Do-it-yourself Energy Experiments to Prove your Thoughts Create Your Reality.

I’d like your permission to enlist y’all as my test subjects, as my guinea pigs, if you will.

Using the three baby steps I just outlined, I’d like you to attempt to manifest the following five things:

1. Upfront parking spot
2. Blue feather
3. Free cup of coffee
4. Hearing from a friend from the past
5. Having something interesting and unexpected land in your mailbox or in-box

You’ve got a week.

And I hope you’ll send me an email or make a comment here to let me know which of these things you’ve manifested.

And just know that once you’ve got things like this down, moving on to money and that date with the Fabio look-a-like will be a piece of cake.

As we say in Manifesterland. “Today, a feather, tomorrow the world.”