3 Different Ways Money & Happiness Are Connected

1. Stop limiting all your spending

The first way to create happiness with your money is to realize that Impulse spending is not all bad. We've talked about this time and time again, but in case you haven't heard, you need to have a specific fund within your budget called your play account for you to impulse spend.

Yes, there are correct ways to impulse spend. Stop beating yourself up. No guilt, no shame, no judgment. You get to spend money, and in fact, you need to spend money. So stop limiting all of it. Just don't do it.

2. Give money away

The second way that you can create more happiness with your money is actually giving money away. Creating a positive relationship with money is very important, and when you give money, you do that.

There might be some struggle in the beginning when you start doing this. If this is not something you're doing actively right now, especially if things are tight, there can be resistance to giving money away, but it's something you need to do.

There's a concept called Wealth Wednesday. Basically, every Wednesday, you do a random act of kindness for a stranger involving a financial exchange. So what you do is you pay it forward. You give money to somebody in a way that they cannot repay you.

This can be like paying for somebody behind you in the toll booth. This can be like tipping extra on your bill if you're going out to eat. This can be putting some money in a box of diapers at the store, reverse shoplifting, or something like that. We're giving money because giving money is more scalable than just giving your time.

It is definitely admirable to be giving with your time and being able to donate it and do those things. However, you can create a bigger impact when you give money, and you feel good about it, and there's nothing wrong with that. In fact, I'd encourage you to share it.

Make that your challenge today. No guilt, no shame, no judgment, with sharing that you were giving money and that you feel good about it. Because it's not about bragging. It's about encouraging others to do the same, to give back.

Can you imagine the change that can be created in the world if we are all more willing to give? We all have a healthier, positive relationship with our money; with your money and giving to others, you're going to see a difference.

3. Gratitude

The third way that you can create happiness with your money is with gratitude. Be grateful when you pay your bills. Be grateful for spending that money. Be grateful for what you have.

Gratitude increases our ability to receive more. We can't necessarily see that until we get out of the picture. There are always things to be grateful for. I personally do this, and I encourage my clients to do it.

Handwrite ten things that you're grateful for each and every day. It can be something simple. You have your eyesight. You have strength in your arms to hug those that you love. You have electricity. You were able to pay that electric bill. You were able to pay your car insurance. You were able to pay for your car payment. You're able to put gas in the car. That's a big one right now, right? We've seen gas prices.

You are grateful for what you have and are grateful when you're paying your bills. Yes, some of them suck. I get that, but when you do those three things, you're going to increase and create more happiness with your money because it is a powerful tool when you use it that way.

Money & happiness

So we're not limiting all of our spending. You're going to be spending so you'll create more happiness that way because you're going to spend on ways that rejuvenate yourself, that feel good. You're creating that positive relationship with money, even with your spending.

We're going to take it to the next level with our giving. You're going to give money. You're going to help others not just with your time but with your money as well. It doesn't have to be a big amount.

The third thing is we're creating that gratitude. We're grateful for what we do have and what we're able to do because, yes, it's something that we should do, but when you do that, you increase your ability to receive more because we are thankful and we are taking care of, and we're giving back to others with what we have now.

Those are the long-term principles that you need for actual financial progress.

Money and happiness are connected. So your challenge today is to give money in some way or some form. $1, $2, $5, $10, $20, or whatever you want to do. Post in the comments how you used your money to give to others.