Its Time to Talk About Money

I was in Vegas this past weekend (more on that later) working on my laptop from my hotel room, while watching MONEY advisor Suze Ormand do her show on CNBC. She commented that people saw discussion of money as a thing to avoid in social situations and something dreaded within family conversations. That we fear talking about money to those we are closest with is just plain wrongheaded and backward.

A young college student guest talked about her fear and concern over her father's lack of money and how poorly he handled his finances, about recent bankruptcies and credit card debt and worry over his ability to support the family, with creditors at the door. She told how she slipped a $20 in his empty wallet when he wasn't looking! Note the negative emotions surrounding money there - fear and worry.

Ormand had the father on the phone and asked him about the money troubles, admonishing him to bail out by selling his home and a rental unit he owned that was currently not rented, which was sinking him further into debt.

I agree that those in situations like this hold on too long and can attest to the difficulty of that situation myself. I agreed with Ormand that he should sell and get out from under the debt load. But the thing that struck me as I tapped away on my laptop, earning enough money while on a weekend getaway to pay for the trip, the hotel and my weekend gambling money - was that there was so much discomfort, unease, worry, fear and anxiety over that situation discussed by Ormand and her guests.

Those feelings came from a LACK of MONEY and having more would have resolved most of the issues faced by those squirming under such heavy feelings caused by not having enough.

I have always believed that money should not be such a drag and that discussion of money should bring feelings of the happiness it brings when you have enough and the joy it brings if you have more than you need. We all need to be willing to talk openly about MONEY and enjoy it, not fear and worry about losing it. We need to lighten up about it and, while treating it with respect and care, enjoy it and what it can do to make our lives better.

This blog is dedicated to that end. Let's talk about MONEY and celebrate it and all it does for us. This past weekend my money went to seeing the Zumanity Show at the New York, New York Casino. I'm happy to be able to tell you it's not worth the $95 per person ticket and save you some money, that's why I went back to my hotel room and worked on the weekend to make that MONEY back instead of feeding more to the slot machines and poker tables in an effort to "get lucky" and win something.