Spirituality
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Unexpected Miracles & Exciting Changes

Written by Barbara Huson

Sometimes change comes quietly, unexpectedly, when everything lines up perfectly. Tiny miracles, cosmic winks, unmistakable signs that a Higher Power is orchestrating the whole thing. That’s exactly what happened for me last weekend.

It all began at a Seattle Lady Bosses event, an amazing gathering of women entrepreneurs. Seated in small groups, we were asked to briefly introduce ourselves. When my turn came, I said, “I’m Barbara Huson, a Wealth Coach.”

Then something surprising happened. That title didn’t feel right, like a dress that no longer fit.

“Wait!” I said, without a clue what was coming next. “What I really am is a Financial Therapist.”

I’d never used those words before! Yet it felt like a moment of self-revelation, a declaration of a deep-seated truth.

I’ve always called myself a coach. Yet I was trained as a psychotherapist. My true passion is diving in deep with a financially challenged client, tunneling through the darkness to find the light, revealing and removing what’s blocking her from creating the wealth she desires, the life she deserves and the power she’s denied.

I also love talking about investing, creating wealth. But number crunching…not so much. I guess I assumed I had to do it as part of the package.

Meanwhile, sitting next to me is Linda Lingo, a ReWire client, Wealth Connection member, a CPA and financial coach for women. I’d had my eye on Linda for years, impressed with her knowledgeable (and compassionate) responses to financial questions from others on our calls.

And there she was, having just flown in from California. Divine intervention at its finest. The next day, we met. We talked. We got excited. And a few days later, we signed an agreement.

I’m thrilled to announce that the incredible Linda Lingo, CPA, is joining my team as a Financial Planning Coach. She’s ready to help you with budgeting, retirement planning, investment strategy, debt repayment. Click here for the details.

Now I can focus on what I do best: Financial Therapy. Truly a miracle!

Have you experienced any unexpected miracles lately? I’d love to hear about it. Leave me a comment below.

And if you live near Seattle, I urge you to check out Lady Bosses: http://seattleladybosses.com/lady-bosses/ 

The world needs financially empowered now more than ever. That’s why I’d like you to join me for a FREE call on April 16th. Register now for The ReWIRE Response: Mind Training for Wealth & Well-Being.

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How an Ancient Mystic Transformed My Work

Written by Barbara Huson

Yoga class begins.  “Hold out your hands,” the teacher says, “to receive something you truly desire.”

Then he quotes Rumi: ‘What you seek is seeking you.”

And I, arms outstretched, stand transfixed. What if that were true? What if that which I desire is heading to me like a heat seeking missile? And even more, what if I believed, without doubt, it will swiftly hit its target (me), no struggle required.

During Downward Dog, I make a decision.  I’m taking Rumi’s words as gospel truth.

As I sink into Child’s Pose, I flash back to a poster that once hung in my office, a quote from Richard Bach: “You are never given a wish without also being given the power to make it come true.” At the very bottom, in tiny letters: “You may have to work for it, however.” At this point, I am in Warrior Pose, which feels quite fitting. 

By Savasana, the final resting pose, I’m fired up. I race home to start working on my deepest desire, a proposal for my next book–The Rewire Response: Mind Training for Wealth Building—which I’d long been procrastinating…for good reason..

Writing proposals has always been an excruciating experience. My ego would scream, “You write like s**t!” I literally had to force myself to keep going.  

This time, my desire was not just to write, but do it with ease and joy.

Now, a few months later, my proposal almost complete, I can honestly say it was a much different process.  Not because the writing was easier. Hell no!  Writing’s never easy for me. But instead of panicking when I wrote crap (my early drafts are always crap!), I actually delighted in the process of polishing each word until the sentences sparkled. 

Amazing how a tiny shift in perception can make such a major difference.

What about you? Do you have a desire you want to bring to fruition this year? How are you feeling about it? Share below.

Do you struggle to understand investing? Men and women view wealth & power through very different lenses. Join me for this FREE call: Women & Wealth: We’re Different than Men & Why that Matters and I’ll help you become a Savvy Investor and begin to build Wealth, as a woman. Register Now!

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The Prayer of Self-Acceptance

Written by Barbara Huson

Today’s Words of Wealth are dedicated to all of us (yes, me included) who would never treat a friend the way we treat ourselves…who have no idea what self-love actually looks like…who are painfully searching for, but never finding, self-acceptance. 

 

I share with you “The Other Serenity Prayer*:

 

God, grant me the serenity to stop beating myself up for not doing things perfectly, the courage to forgive myself because I am working on doing better, and the wisdom to know that You already love me just the way I am. ~~Eleanor Brownn

 

*Thank you Joan Goldberg for sharing this with me! Please feel free to share this with others.  

How do you show yourself love? Leave a comment below.

I’d love to share one way to show yourself self-love. Join me and an amazing group of women in my virtual community, The Wealth Connection.Learn More!

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What’s $hame Got To Do With It?

Written by Barbara Huson

It was a conversation with a friend I’ll never forget. Her family was dirt poor. Mine was quite wealthy.

Our childhoods were starkly different, but we shared a startling similarity. Growing up, we both felt a lot of shame around our family’s finances. 

I hated being different from my friends. She loathed feeling less than her peers. I never knew if people liked me for me or my rich parents. She always suspected others pitied or looked down on her.

That’s when I realized: Money Shame is ubiquitous regardless of one’s economic status. 

Recently, I’ve also realized: Money (or lack of it) is not the source of our shame. Money simply magnifies the shame we’ve always carried.

Shame is the intense pain of feeling so awful, so flawed, so defective that I’m worthless and unlovable.

I’m convinced that unhealed shame is perhaps the major reason smart, capable women struggle financially.  

Here’s why. When shame is triggered, the logical thinking part of our brain virtually shuts down. 

“It’s like our IQ drops 30 points,” Bret Lyon, founder of the Center for Healing Shame, told me. “We can’t think. We freeze. We feel stupid. We’re at a loss for words.”

Bret noted, during a workshop I attended last week, that because shame is so unbearable, we’ll do anything to avoid feeling it. He described 4 common reactions:

  1. Denial—numbing the pain, often through addictions (compulsive spending, chronic debting, and codependency).
  2. Attacking others—lashing out or blaming another, taking the onus off ourselves
  3. Attacking ourselves—slipping into brutal self-flagellation for being less than perfect.
  4. Withdrawal—isolating from others, going within to lick our wounds,

Each reaction, if left unchecked, can radically erode one’s financial stability. Which confirms my suspicion: the secret to financial security, for many women, lies in transforming toxic shame (self-loathing) into healthy shame (self-compassion).  

To demonstrate how to do this, Bret led us through a 2-part exercise.

First, we adopted a shame-based posture: head bent, eyes lowered, shoulders slumped, heart heavy. Honestly, I felt horrible!

Next, we paired up and shared something we were proud of.  The difference was astounding!

Recalling a past success quickly shifted my feeling horrible to “Yeah, I’m a flawed human being like everyone else and I have strengths.” That, in a nutshell, is the definition of healthy shame.

Shame and money is a relatively new topic I’m exploring. I’d love to know if you can relate. Leave me a comment below.

If you enjoyed this Words of Wealth, click here to receive a copy in your inbox every week.

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The Miraculous Power of Taking Responsibility

Written by Barbara Huson

I clearly remember when I was in the depth of despair, unable to restrain my gambling husband. He had depleted our bank account, putting me and our daughters at terrible risk.

I turned to A Course in Miracles for solace. Instead of the solace I sought, I opened to a passage that shook me to the core.

The Course told me, in no uncertain terms: “I am responsible for what I see. I choose the feelings I experience and I decide upon the goal I achieve. And everything else that seems to happen to me, I ask for and receive as I have asked.”  

In other words, the Course said, “You are doing this unto yourself.” Quite a harsh pill to swallow…even from my beloved Course.

At first I was furious. How dare anyone even suggest I’m responsible for my husband’s recklessness. He lost my money. Not me.

But as my anger subsided, those words—no one did this to me; I [was] doing it to myself—began to make sense. I finally understood what the Course promised—taking responsibility would be “my salvation.” 

This mess wasn’t solely my husband’s fault. I was as culpable as he. He may have gambled away my inheritance, but I was the one who gave him the keys to the kingdom by abdicating control.

Regardless of my husband’s actions, my choice to be a passive victim, was the real culprit. Once I realized my role in this disaster, once I started taking responsibility, everything changed rather quickly. 

Over time, I was able to not only forgive, but to actually thank my ex for losing my inheritance and my father for not bailing me out. After all, it was because of them that I discovered my calling.

Once I assumed personal responsibility, my passage to financial empowerment shifted into high gear. Sometimes, the best financial advice comes from the most unexpected sources.

I’d love to hear if miracles have occurred for you when you’ve taken responsibility…which isn’t always easy, is it? Share your story below.

If you enjoyed this Words of Wealth, click here to receive a copy in your inbox every week.

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What’s Anger Got to Do with It? Plenty!!

Written by Barbara Huson

Unexpressed anger is perhaps our biggest barrier to financial success.

We women tend to hold a lot of repressed anger, though few realize it. I’ve certainly experienced it in myself. I spot it in most women I coach.

Anger is a natural human emotion. Healthy when expressed in a timely manner. Toxic when regularly stuffed. Suppressed anger clogs up your thinking, drains your energy, weighs you down like a concrete block.

Yet for some, the mere thought of expressing anger feels frightening, if not forbidden.

So how do you release anger…safely and effectively?  Here’s what worked for me.

Write an Angry Letter.  Write it to another, your parents or ex-husband perhaps. Then write one to yourself. Write it by hand, not computer. 

Even if you hardly feel any irritation initially, start listing what you might be annoyed at.  Let yourself get into it. Liberate your fury, your rage, your frustration. Write until you’re done. 

Fold up the letter and put it away.  Within 3 days, reread it. Is there anything you want to add?  If so, write more. Continue until you feel complete. 

When you’re finally finished, burn the letter…ritualistically.  As it burns, say to your anger: “Thank you. You served me once.  I no longer need you. I release you. You are free. I am free.”

As one client told me after writing her letter: “At first it was scary. I felt really rageful. But I also felt a release that I had never felt before.” 

What if you’ve done a gazillion anger exercises and damn it, you’re still angry? Ask yourself: What is my payoff for holding onto anger? Why don’t I want to let it go? Believe me, the anger is giving you something. But it’s nothing compared to the lightness you’ll feel once it’s lifted.

If you write (or have written) an Angry Letter, I’d love to hear how it was for you. And please share below any other ways you’ve successfully released anger.

If you enjoyed this Words of Wealth, click here to receive a copy in your inbox every week.

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What do Dollars & Donuts Have in Common?

Written by Barbara Huson

I’ve long noticed an interesting fact. Women who have problems with money often have problems with food.

Then I read Geneen Roth’s extraordinary book, Women, Food and God, a New York Time’s bestseller. I’ve never met Geneen personally. But I instantly knew she was a kindred spirit.  

Geneen insists that food is never the problem. Just as I’ve always known problems with money are never about money. 

Rather, says Geneen, overeating is “a doorway to your true nature,” echoing my conviction that financial problems are a doorway to your true power.  

Her book is based on her own unhealthy relationship with food and her experience teaching others what she learned during her weekend retreats.  

Just like my book, Sacred Success, is based on overcoming my own devastating dealings with money and helping others do the same.

Her method of healing women’s relationship with food, similar to mine, mixes a hefty dose of spirituality with emotional transparency and practical actions.  

The key to success is not to focus on dieting…or budgeting.

Instead, success comes from combining self-awareness exercises with specific practices to heal the deep-seated wounds that lead to compulsive behaviors, like chronic busyness, over eating, binge spending. 

In fact, my favorite quote of all time came from Geneen: “The only people who don’t have insane relationships with money are those who were willing to examine their insane relationship with money.” 

Gosh, I wish I’d said that!

Have you thought about what you’re trying to fill up with compulsive behaviors—whether with food or money issues? Leave a comment below.

If you enjoyed this Words of Wealth, click here to receive a copy in your inbox every week.

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The Magical Power of Letting Go

Written by Barbara Huson

A long ago memory came to mind today. I was living in Kansas City, raising two little girls, running a thriving career counseling firm. Business was hopping, but I wasn’t happy.  I was longing to live near water and write.

Huh??? I’d never written anything. And there was no water in KC (at least none that I’d want to live near!).  Why would I give up a flourishing business, uproot my kids, leave behind a network of friends and reliable babysitters?

That’s when I stumbled on a quote by Carl Jung: “For better to come, good must stand aside.” 

I grabbed onto those words as if they were gospel.  Was it time for me to give up ‘good’? Was ‘better’ really out there…waiting?  It was a risk I was willing to take.

Seven books later and still living on water, I have enormous respect for the power of Letting Go.  And the scarier it is to release, the more magical the results.  

The moment I decided to give up my business, someone on my staff offered to buy it.  Within 6 months I was living on the side of a hill, outside San Francisco, overlooking water.

Then, out of the blue, a national magazine asked me to write a monthly career column. And they paid me!!! I was officially a writer.

Is there something ‘good’ you may need to let go of for ‘better’ to come? Think about it and leave a comment below.

If you enjoyed this Words of Wealth, click here to receive a copy in your inbox every week.

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Financial Miracles or Financial Misery? A Metafiscal Solution.

Written by Barbara Huson

I spent much of my adult life in financial misery. Even as I learned more about money, I still felt out of control. Then everything changed.

The solution didn’t come from a financial text, but a spiritual one, A Course in Miracles.

From the Course I learned that we have “two thought systems” or two distinct “voices” in our head:

  • The voice of Fear (the Ego).
  • And the voice of Love (the Soul).

The Soul and the Ego have conflicting agendas. Thus they produce dramatically different results–either miracles or misery.

“You cannot follow two masters,” the Course warns. “There is no compromise between the two.”

My financial life radically shifted as I began to recognize their differing agendas.

The Ego’s job is to keep us safe.  A job it learned very early in life, when our survival depended on getting love, approval, and attention. The Ego is all about instilling fear as a means of self-protection. 

But know this: what helped us survive as a child will suffocate us as an adult.

The Soul’s job is to make sure we soar. The Soul, which gets its marching orders directly from God, pushes us to do what we’re here to do—which is usually way outside our comfort zone.

Up till then, I had no idea my resistance to managing money was my Ego’s misguided effort to protect me.

Mustering up the courage to ignore my Ego and heed my Soul—though terrifying at first—moved me out of misery and into miracles. It will do the same for you. 

Here are 3 steps for plugging into your Soul. They require persistant practice. It’s truly a lifelong challenge.

  1. Observe your feelings. Frustration, tightness, anxiety, fear, inadequacy, needing to control…all signs you’re in Ego (which always speaks first, screams loudest and never shuts up.)
  2. Don’t try to stifle the Ego. That’s part of its devious plan. The Ego depends on distractions such as busyness & other addictions to prevent you from surrendering to silence.
  3. Close your eyes, take some deep breaths, relax. Your Soul, which is quiet but tenacious, needs you to be still and listen. Only in stillness can you make out its muted whispers, its sacred wisdom, its loving guidance.

What’s your practice for plugging into your Soul?

If you enjoyed this Words of Wealth, click here to receive a copy in your inbox every week.

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Living with Uncertainty…AAAUGH!

Written by Barbara Huson

Transitions are a bitch.  I’m smack in the middle of one right now.  Maybe you are too.

I’m reminded of a cartoon.  A frog is leaping from one lily pad to another with a look of sheer terror as he realizes he’s about to miss his target. The caption read: ‘Just when you think you’ve made ends meet, someone moves an end’.

That’s exactly how it feels to be in transition—whether it’s a conscious choice (like my partial sabbatical) or an unwelcomed disruption (like a job loss).  You’re poised mid-air between the old and the new, wondering —what do I do now?

I remember my first big transition, back in the 80’s, when I moved to San Francisco…a dream come true. But as soon as I settled in, I wanted to jump out of my skin. This wasn’t what I expected.

By chance, I picked up the book Transitions: Making sense of Life’s Changes by Bill Bridges. To say it changed my life is an understatement.

Bridges points out that primitive societies had rituals to give meaning to life’s transitions. Initiates were taken out of their villages, into the wilderness, where they didn’t know what was going to happen next.

“Every time we make a change,” he explains, “We take a metaphorical journey into the wilderness.” But nowadays, no one is there to guide us.

Fortunately, Bridges became my guide, reassuring me that uncertainty is a vital part of the transition process.

This ‘in-between’ period is not a time to commit. It’s a time to contemplate, to feel our feelings, to grieve our losses. Even, like those primitive societies, commune with our spirit guides.  We need to unhook from the past before we can create a new future.

Even now, I hear Bridges reminding me:  the more you can tolerate, even embrace, uncertainty, the quicker you will get through it.

Eventually, at some point, you’ll feel a fresh burst of energy. Opportunities will appear. Loose ends will come together. Out of the chaos of uncertainty, new beginnings will inevitably emerge.

But until that happens, I have to say: Traversing uncertainty is like taking foul tasting medicine. Just because I know it’s good for me, doesn’t mean I have to like it.

How have you embraced uncertainty in your transitions?

If you enjoyed this Words of Wealth, click here to receive a copy in your inbox every week.

Meet Barbara Huson

When a devastating financial crisis rocked her world, Barbara Huson knew she had to get smart about money… and she did. Now, she wants to empower every women to take charge of their money and take charge of their lives! She’s doing just that with her best-selling books, life changing retreats and private financial coaching.

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