How to Impress Even Yourself with the Money You Don't Have

Lately, my life has been full of adventure.

Anyone who knows me understands my delight for spontaneity. I love meeting new people and learning exotic cultures. Recently, I've thrown myself right into events that are providing me with more adventure than usual. 

The events I'm referring to? Living in AirBnbs until my move out West.

Now, meeting new people is not a new occurrence for me. I do it everyday on Instagram and via email. I hold phone calls with business owners and entrepreneurs in all different time zones, and what intrigues me most, is that everyone, no matter where or who they are, talks about money,

What really interests me is seeing the different attitudes towards money based on other peoples' mindsets.

Here are some recent dispositions I've encountered with beautiful souls I've met:

- An Indian who wears golden handcuffs at a job he is okay with but not happy at and has just been ordered to give his ex-wife money simply because he has it. (No children in the picture) He doesn't complain though and is content. 

- I met an American entrepreneur who comes from a lineage of humble yet prominent American-made wealth which he didn't get a dime from, but built himself from the ground up. (Does anyone know Freihofer's bread?) Yea, this guy is related to that family. 

- I met a family who is stoked to have just purchased their first home and is working to afford the American dream on a corporate paycheck, a WAH mother's freelance salary, and AirBnb supplemental income. All while raising two beautiful children.

The Friehofer's Man

All of these stories are interlaced with our human inclination to serve money. The one story that stood out to me is the Friehofer's man. Yes, his family has a history of wealth. However, he did not come from it. And even more impressive, he did not serve it. 

And it made me think ...

Sometimes, when I don't make a sale, when I don't get that client, I ask myself, "what did I do wrong?" 

And I'm more disappointed with not getting the money than I am with putting the person on the other end of the phone call, the Instagram message, or the email as my first priority.

The thing is when my heart is in the right place, I should always be impressed with myself, sale or no sale, because I am focused more on impact than I am on dollars.

Money Serving Us vs. Us Serving Money

If we are limiting your life decisions to what we think we can or can't afford, we are servants to money. If we are making decisions on people based on how much money they have, we are servants to money. If we are chasing money in business and not desiring to FIRST impact others in the process, we are servants to money.

This is my challenge to you this week:

• As you go about your days, be aware of how you respond to money and to those who possess more or less of it. 
• Consider how you may be neglecting your responsibility to impact people with your business when you're looking for the sale.
• Then consider how you can impress yourself even without getting the sale, i.e. the money you don't have

Impress Yo'Self

Personally, I can tell when I am serving money first because I stop asking prospects questions. The instant I hear myself talking more than I am listening, I reframe my mind and remind myself to put the other person before my success. 

To help me remember why I am consulting, coaching and writing, I've written this quote to keep with me if I get tempted to be more focused on getting a sale than giving impact:

"Be impressed not with money, titles or status; anyone can achieve wealth and make a name for themselves. Be impressed instead with integrity, humility, kindness, and compassion. One who possesses these traits in success can guarantee these in times of adversity and will be wealthy long after the money is gone."

Go on now, and impress yo'self with the money you don't have so you can impact others long after you have it.