It Is Only Money

By Cara MacMillan

It was noon on a Sunday, and I was volunteering at our local homeless shelter with friends. We were preparing and serving lunch. My job was to serve in the chapel—the room was reserved for those who needed extra help. It had been a busy day, and just as we were about to close down, two young people walked in. I went over to ask if they would like some water to drink, and there sat two of my college students. Our eyes locked, and they quickly looked away. I brought them both glasses of water and asked if I could join them.
We spoke and laughed about life. They complained about the home-work and the readings. We shared a cup of tea, and then they left, say-ing, “See you tomorrow, Miss.”
That evening, I sat down and began to write this book and workbook. I was so inspired that two of my students were working so hard to get ahead and get an education while living on the streets. I wondered how they submitted their assignments, where they studied, and how they managed to always be so cheerful in class. I wanted to teach then so much more...
...and that is how It Is Only Money, and It Grows on Trees! began.
This book is for anyone who is sacrificing to build a better future. When we learn to break free of our patterns and choose to recognize that money is just a resource, we too can become rich and truly enjoy today.
As you journey, check out ItIsOnlyMoney.com for ideas, suggestions, and other tools, such as this workbook, to help you achieve your goals.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Cara MacMillan
• Release date: Oct 28, 2015
• ISBN: 9780993986338

Cara MacMillan

Cara MacMillan, MBA, is a thought leader in sustainability and financial management. As an adjunct professor in the School of Business at Algonquin College in Ottawa, Canada, her vision is to empower people to think and act for themselves financially. Cara has the privilege of teaching and learning with courageous indi-viduals who are committed to making a difference for themselves, their world, and future generations. As a thought leader, Cara regularly publishes in the areas of personal finance and investments. Cara lives in Ottawa with her life partner and best friend, David, and their two children. On weekends, you can find her hik-ing through the beautiful Gatineau Park. CaraMacMillan.com

Book preview

Introduction

As the students walked in to the classroom, they looked up to see MONEY written in large letters on the whiteboard. Grumbling could be heard as kids elbowed each other and pointed to the board.

David finally spoke up. It’s about time this class got interesting.

The kids sat down just as the guest professor walked in.

"Hi, my name is Catherine. I am here to teach you about money. Let’s start with a question—let me qualify, every answer is right—so, what is money?"

There was silence for a while. Then finally, the answers started to come…

Money makes you popular.

Money is power.

Money means shopping.

Money means rich.

Money means you can buy whatever you want.

Money means you don’t have to work.

Money is something you fight over.

Money is greed.

Money is fun.

The answers paused at this point, so Catherine asked if anyone else had anything to say.

Amal spoke very quietly. Money is responsibility.

Joseph smiled. Money grows on trees!

Everyone laughed.

Dayo spoke up. Money is everywhere.

Prisha added, Money is necessary.

Sean said, Money is abundance.

"And what is abundance?" Catherine asked.

Sean smiled. I don’t know, but I saw it on the board over there.

With this the whole class laughed again. Catherine smiled and looked around the classroom. "You each have a true definition of money. Yes, they are all very different, but we each are very different. Our definition of money comes from our families, our cultures, and our society. We each have a paradigm, or a picture in our heads, about what money means to us. Today we are going to look at those definitions and try to come up with a class definition.

"So, what is money? Simply put, money is the resource that we use for exchange. We exchange work for money. We exchange other resources like food or shelter for money. But that definition did not come up in our brainstorming.

"It seems that we have added so much to the meaning of money that we all mean something very different when we say the same word. Why?

Many aspects of our lives have become complicated. It is the price to pay for industrialization and globalization. The truth is, as we became industrialized, our demand for resources dramatically increased. So we wanted more things, and for that we needed more money. And we kept accumulating.

And the more things that we have, the richer we are, and the more popular we are, Zoe said.

"But each culture still has its own teaching about money and our relationship with it. Each family has its own history and experience with money on top of the cultural teaching. So when we add this all up…it’s complicated.

"It is time to simplify and break it down into its basic components. What is money? What are our beliefs about money? What are society’s beliefs about money that are similar to our own? How do we follow our own beliefs about money rather than someone else’s?

Are you ready? Let’s start.

1

Choose

"Money doesn’t grow on trees. This comes from the attitude that money is scarce. Many people believe that money is difficult to make and difficult to keep. There is an insufficient amount or a shortness of supply. The thing is, it is an attitude, not a reality. Let’s talk about it. So, what is an attitude?

"An attitude is a personal view or an accepted general opinion. People with the same attitudes usually hang around together. Remember high school? Once you found your group, you never quite changed friends, unless you changed schools. You were labelled—nerd, geek, druggie, jock, band, popular crowd, artsy, drama club, or in-between. Once you moved on from high school, you found that you were attracted to people with the same attitudes, goals, and values.

"How do we read someone’s attitude? Well, we read it from the words they say and speak. We read it from their body language. It’s in the way they walk—the speed and the posture. It’s the way they look—their physical appearance. Are they clean? Are they well dressed or dressed appropriately for the situation? Are they goth?

"I am sure by now that you get the idea. Your attitude tells the world a lot about you. Not just about you and your money, but you as a person. So, where does the attitude originate that money doesn’t grow on trees?

"For many of us, it began with the generation that grew up in the Great Depression when money was scarce. It was a time of severe economic depression that began with a stock market decline and culminated in the stock market crash of October twenty-nine, 1929, also known as Black Tuesday. Many of the industrialized cities worldwide, in every nation, were hit hard. International trade plunged by more than fifty percent. Farmers suffered as well, as crop prices dropped by sixty percent. Financial poverty was everywhere.

"But were people poor? Many people who grew up in that generation have no happy memories of these hard times. But for some they were great times.

"Let’s look at a story of two people who lived through the Depression. We will call the first man Frank. Frank speaks of the Depression with anger. When you bring up Christmas plans, he always acts strangely. ‘All I got for Christmas was some hard candy in my stocking. I appreciated things. Not like you kids. I worked hard on the farm every day, and I would never dare ask my parents for stuff like you do today.’

"Frank still lives in the Great Depression even though it ended decades ago. Every Christmas he becomes angry and lectures everyone. But talk is cheap. He complains about how the spirit of Christmas is not about stuff, but he doesn’t act to show his family and friends what the joyful spirit of Christmas is.

But Frank did more than just be miserable. He hoarded stuff, and he hoarded money. ‘Waste not, want not,’ he would say. But I am not sure he had the right idea. I mean, his basement was filled to the rafters with things he would never need again, while needy families in his city would have been happy to receive the food and clothing.

Why did he keep all that junk? asked Sean.

"Perhaps his hoarding made him feel rich. All those things he felt he needed to keep, yet he took care of nothing. He held on to things long past their ‘best before date.’ He held on to jobs he hated. He held on to attitudes and reactions that isolated him from the people he loved. He held on to stuff in his basement that rotted and became home to animals and bacteria. The home that he worked so hard to own fell into disrepair because of his attitude about money. Well, really, it was his attitude about scarcity.

"Then there is Mary. Mary raised her twelve children during the Depression. She had a city home with a large garden. Money was no longer her currency of choice. Mary bartered. She and her many friends in her church decided to work together. Sadie was a talented seamstress. She sewed and mended for the group. Annie was a great knitter. She made sweaters for everyone’s family.

"Mary was a natural green thumb. She set up everyone’s gardens and helped with all the harvests. Pearl was a fantastic cook. She was in charge of canning and preserving. This group of women did not let money define their attitudes. They looked at scarcity as an opportunity.

"You may remember that many people in the Great Depression rode the railway cars going from town to town, looking for work. Work was scarce, as unemployment hit almost every third family. At that time, the man was the breadwinner, and women did not work. So, if the man lost his job, the family had no income. The only solution was for the women to stay home with the family and for the men to ride the rails and look for work.

"Mary was a truly spiritual woman. Each day she thanked God for her abundance. She put up a sign in the small railway station. If you are travelling