The Soul of MoneyBy: Lynne Twist Presented by: Angel McCormack Lynne Twist Lynne Twist has had four decades of fund-raising experience having led 4 major global initiatives: • End World Hunger, • Protect the Rain Forests, • Improve Health, Economic, & Political Conditions for Women, • To Advance The Scientific Understanding of Human Consciousness. Lynne Twist’s contributions • Trained more than 20. • Raised more that 150 million dollars from individuals working intimately with people at the intersection~ where the lives of those with money meet the lives of those with little or no money… .000 fundraisers from 47 countries. . Canada. Germany. the Rift Valley of Ethopia. villages in India. France. • Resource-rich people from affluent countries such as Sweden. Ecuador and Guatemala. as well as portions of the US…. and the US. Japan.Work with both Rich & Poor • Resource-poor people in Sahel Desert in Northern Senegal. Australia. United Kingdom. dominates and stresses people’s lives… .People’s Relationships with Money Lynne has been deeply engaged in many different cultures. which has enabled her to see not only the cultural differences but the striking commonalities in people’s basic relationship with money… and the way that relationship governs. as well as the immense healing power of even the smallest amount of money… when we use it to express our humanity. and our most soulful commitments and values.The Power of Money She has seen the powerful grip money has on people’s lives. both the wounds and hardships it can impose. our highest ideals. . fully and joyfully in our relationship with money. It is not a book about simplifying expenditures. doing budgets or financial planning. enabling us to live a life of integrity that is consistent with our deepest core values no matter what our financial circumstances are.The Soul of Money The Soul of Money offers a way to realign our relationship with money. and learning to understand and embrace it’s flow. it is about living consciously. . to paper bills.500-3. It has appeared in many different forms in it’s 2. to precious metals. . to a blip on a computer screen.500 year history. from shells or stones. it is a distinctly human invention.The History of Money Money is not a product of nature. It was invented to facilitate the sharing & exchanging of goods or services among individuals and groups of people. Money.Money’s Role Somewhere along the way. and even have enslaved themselves to joyless lives. enslaved other people for it. has become the single most controlling force in people’s lives. People have killed for money. . in the pursuit of it. the power we gave money outstripped its original utilitarian role. massed produced bills with no more inherent value than a notepad or box of kleenex. poisoned our soil with chemical waste from industry & agriculture. clear-cut redwoods. over-fished rivers.Destructive nature of Money In the name of money. . forced poor into housing projects. human kind has done immense damage to the Earth: destroyed rain forests. lakes & oceans. not to mentions having marginalized entire segments of our society. and have exploited whole nations for cheaper labor… just to name a few. dammed and decimated rivers. Money has become a playing field where we measure our competence and worth as people. .though it remains largely unconscious or unexamined. We all have an identifiable relationship with money. If we are not gaining ground we feel that we are losing it. Popular culture encourages an insatiable appetite for spending and acquiring without regard to personal and environmental consequences.The Money Culture We are born into a culture defined by money. Keeping up with the Jones’ Not even the wealthy find the peace and freedom that you would think comes with having so much. rich or poor. escapes the powerful push and pull of money. Nobody. but if your golfing partner just turned a deal for 10 million. . the more money there is to lose. As financial stakes get higher. and the more demanding the game becomes to stay ahead. it puts you behind in the money game. You can be a CEO who earned 7 million last year. more soulful process. their own connectedness with all of life.People’s inherent values Lynne believes the money culture has shaped us in ways that we would not choose in a conscious. and partake in the mystery of something greater than themselves and greater than comprehension. Lynne believes that people inherently desire to express their own divinity. . Lynne’s Turning Point Lynne’s Hunger Project involvement was her wake-up call to address her own inauthentic and inappropriate ways she and her husband and family were living. she couldn’t deny it. It was then that they purposefully began to turn their resources (time. energy & money) toward their desire to make a difference in the world. . She felt it was a call from her soul so deep and profound. they experienced a dramatic shift in not only how they used their money. Once they began to align their money decisions with their deeper core values and highest commitments.Lynne’s Relationship with Money This change of heart brought about a change in their relationship with money. about their lives and about themselves. . but how they felt about their money. Money • • • • • • • • Act with integrity Thoughtful Generous Courageous Committed Trusting of others Trustworthy At peace • • • • • • • • Selfish Greedy Petty Fearful Controlling Confused Conflicted Guilty .Act from a Domain of Soul vs. it is our interpretation with money and our interaction with it where the real mischief lies. When people come from a viewpoint that there is never enough (scarcity) as opposed to a viewpoint that there is plenty to go around (sufficiency). the trouble begins. .Money itself isn’t the problem Money in itself isn’t bad or good. it doesn’t have power or not have power. survival. entitlement. contributing. respect. resilience. integration. busy. striving. acceptance. outer riches Gratitude. mistrust. competition. control. fear. commitment. love. greed. separateness. wholeness.Acting from a viewpoint of Scarcity vs. emptiness. hoarding. faith. compassion. inner riches . partnership. fragmentation. responsibility. Sufficiency Never enough. envy. judgment. trust. fulfillment. that there is enough … although is finite. reverence and the managing of those resources with the knowledge that they are precious. Its finiteness is no threat.Abundance Theory Abundance is a fundamental law of nature. . it creates a more accurate relationship that commands respect. How we make our money… Vicki Robin. but in truth their spirit (or someone else’s) is being killed off. writes about people who instead of making a living at their work are more accurately making a dying or making a killing. in Your Money or Your Life. The money made this way will prove to be nothing but toxic to yourself & others. The work they are doing is unfulfilling. Some hate their work but pretend that it doesn’t matter. perhaps even detrimental to their own or other’s wellbeing. . to spend our money on products or entertainment that are violent and destructive to the psyche of our children. We can consciously choose. empower and express what we believe in. for instance. or to invest in activities that enrich their experience of life and deepen their appreciation of it… .How we spend our money… We have much more power than we realize to direct our financial resources in ways that support. How we spend our money We can choose to spend our money at companies whose products and people support the well being of the environment and the community. finding ourselves accumulating things that eventually burden us with excess. . clutter our homes. and end up in a landfill. or we can choose to get caught up in spending simply because we can. . it teaches us to bring quality and intelligence to our use of financial resources in ways that reflect our inner wealth. rather than gatherers of money.Stewards of Money If we learn to be stewards of money. When water slows down. the body becomes sick. Money is most useful when it is moving & flowing. it purifies. it cleanses. contributed & shared. and becomes toxic. it starts to sludge. When blood slows down and begins to stop or clot. it creates growth. . it makes things green.Money Analogy Blood in the body must flow to all parts of the body for health to be maintained. When water is moving and flowing. Accumulating and holding large amounts of money can have the same toxic effect on our lives. This is also true of money. directed & invested in that which is life affirming. Your relationship with money Your relationship with money can be a place where you bring your strengths and skills. your highest aspirations. you can be great with your money and be great in your relationship with it. . Whether you are a millionaire or just scraping by. and your deepest and most profound qualities. Strengths of the Book The Soul of Money is full of amazing real life examples from Lynne’s journey in her philanthropic endeavors…from meeting Mother Theresa to the Dali Lama. I highly recommend reading the book in its entirety as the true stories are absolutely riveting and provide a deeper understanding to all of the concepts herein. .