June 2nd, 2016
I have just finished reading The Abundance Code by Julie Ann Cairns. She was one of the Hay House authors I listened to during the Hay House Summit. I was impressed with her interview, it really made me think so I decided to order her book.
The book's chapters dispel myths about money. Julie talks about the many myths we are taught as children and the impact they have on our success and happiness as we grow into adulthood. Her goal is to create doubt so the reader can stop believing in the myth and rewrite his or her own beliefs.
I examined some of my favourite moments growing up. None of them really had to do with money. I loved going to the beach, visiting my aunt Louise and going to my Grandmother's home in the country. Then I was asked to list some of my lowest moments. These were all times when I felt cut off from my loved ones like the year I spent in Montreal, studying and looking for work. I was broke and no one would hire me because I wasn't from Montreal. All my references were from Ottawa. I was in an amazing city with so many things to do but I couldn't afford to do them. I didn't know anyone and felt very lonely. What these two exercises did were outline how being in nature and feeling connected to others promoted wellness and joy while feeling isolated made really sad.
Next, I had to figure out how to associate wealth with what I love while imagining how money could help me avoid what I hate. If money was no object, I would go away each winter, somewhere warm and enjoy quality time with my family. We would travel a lot, learn about different cultures and taste different food.
The author compares roommates who are the same age and make comparable incomes. One was raised in a wealthy home and the other one wasn't. She explains their different approaches to every day life. I was shocked to see how similar my habits were to the roommate who grew up poor. I never carry big amounts of money and prefer using debit for purchases. The roommate who was raised in a wealthy family always carried a wad of cash with her because that felt normal to her. I am always paranoid when I have cash that I will lose it. It stresses me out.
Julie does a good job at illustrating how we learn to compete for what we perceive to be limited resources even though we live in a world of abundance. She shows us how we learn to see money as a reward for hard work, something we earned by working for a long time. She pointed out that many of us are able to make money but we can't hold onto it because we don't feel worthy of it. She asks what we do with our money-spend or invest?
I hadn't really thought about it but I do have some money I could invest. It's not that much but she says it doesn't need to be a big amount. Usually, when I get money, I spend it on my loved ones. I go out and buy stuff that I know people have wanted for some time but couldn't afford. I pay for experiences like sending my husband to the Rock N Roll hall of fame or getting the girls registered in a gymnastics class.
If I spend money on myself it's usually to complete a project I have been working on, like getting my book printed or paying someone to film my workshops. I like to see a tangible result. The other thing I spend money on is food. I keep our fridge full of food we love. It's a love and safety thing for me, an act of self-care to keep the provisions fully stocked. Growing up, my mother didn't make much money so our fridge was often bare. I don't want my daughters to ever feel hungry and helpless to do anything about it.
This book is an excellent tool because it shows you how each myth plays out in your life, then helps you change your perception about money so that you are feeling more positive about it. In the last chapter, you pick your most challenging beliefs about money and replace them with positive affirmations then you replace old habits with new behaviours. I am much more aware of the ways I sabotage my own success by either giving my services away or undercutting myself, always working harder than I have to because it's what I feel I have to do to earn and deserve money. I strongly urge anyone who is working hard and not getting ahead to read this book.
Anne Walsh
www.artnsoul.org
Showing posts with label savings. Show all posts
Showing posts with label savings. Show all posts
Thursday, 2 June 2016
Sunday, 17 January 2016
Geothermal Heating and Cooling
January 17th, 2016
As I sit here watching the thick snowflakes gently covering our property, I feel grateful. Now, don't get me wrong, I am NOT a Winter person at all. I could leave at the start of winter and return for Spring every year and NEVER miss it. However I am grateful to the heavy snow because it provides thick insulation, keeping the heat underground.
We moved to our old farm house in Spring 2008. I was expecting our second child, my husband was driving to Kanata to satisfy his former clientele while growing his business out here. As we prepared for the arrival of our second child, we noticed the lack of insulation in our home, specifically in our nursery. The previous owners had closed the door to that room to keep the cold out and used wool socks to fill the gaps under the many exterior doors of this home. The house was heated with oil and we worried that the cost of heating this home might be more than we bargained for.
We researched alternative forms of energy and applied for a grant to improve the energy efficiency of our home. We had the nursery insulated, we enclosed the front porch and, hired a company to install a geothermal heating and cooling system in our home. R&B Heating was recommended by the locals but, when we contacted them, they were fully booked and we were desperate to get it done before the baby arrived. In the end, we hired The Stove Store. We were in for a rocky road.
Our garden was dug up with trenches for the many pipes involved in the geothermal system. The geothermal system uses the underground heat to warm up the ethanol in its pipes which is carried to the house. The heat is then transferred to our forced air system, keeping our home nice and cozy. Initially, our Hydro bills went through the roof. Stella was born by then and getting massive Hydro bills was very stressful. We had engineers come to the house to inspect the system. The pipes needed to be "burped" as air was trapped in them. This had forced the system to use the tertiary source of energy, electricity. Now it all made sense! Once the system was working properly, we were able to save so much money on our heating bills.
Last year, there wasn't much snow on the ground and January was bitterly cold. This affected the efficiency of our geothermal system as it relies on the underground heat. That experience has made us very grateful for the snow this year.
The great thing about our system is that it works in reverse in the Summer. You know when you are paying like crazy to operate your air conditioning? The geothermal redirects the heat through the same pipes, back into the earth where the heat is absorbed. Then the cooled fluid returns to your home and is processed in order to fuel your air conditioning. I think the geothermal system was one of the best purchases we have ever made for this property. It costs less and helps the environment.
Anne Walsh
www.artnsoul.org
As I sit here watching the thick snowflakes gently covering our property, I feel grateful. Now, don't get me wrong, I am NOT a Winter person at all. I could leave at the start of winter and return for Spring every year and NEVER miss it. However I am grateful to the heavy snow because it provides thick insulation, keeping the heat underground.
We moved to our old farm house in Spring 2008. I was expecting our second child, my husband was driving to Kanata to satisfy his former clientele while growing his business out here. As we prepared for the arrival of our second child, we noticed the lack of insulation in our home, specifically in our nursery. The previous owners had closed the door to that room to keep the cold out and used wool socks to fill the gaps under the many exterior doors of this home. The house was heated with oil and we worried that the cost of heating this home might be more than we bargained for.
We researched alternative forms of energy and applied for a grant to improve the energy efficiency of our home. We had the nursery insulated, we enclosed the front porch and, hired a company to install a geothermal heating and cooling system in our home. R&B Heating was recommended by the locals but, when we contacted them, they were fully booked and we were desperate to get it done before the baby arrived. In the end, we hired The Stove Store. We were in for a rocky road.
Our garden was dug up with trenches for the many pipes involved in the geothermal system. The geothermal system uses the underground heat to warm up the ethanol in its pipes which is carried to the house. The heat is then transferred to our forced air system, keeping our home nice and cozy. Initially, our Hydro bills went through the roof. Stella was born by then and getting massive Hydro bills was very stressful. We had engineers come to the house to inspect the system. The pipes needed to be "burped" as air was trapped in them. This had forced the system to use the tertiary source of energy, electricity. Now it all made sense! Once the system was working properly, we were able to save so much money on our heating bills.
Last year, there wasn't much snow on the ground and January was bitterly cold. This affected the efficiency of our geothermal system as it relies on the underground heat. That experience has made us very grateful for the snow this year.
The great thing about our system is that it works in reverse in the Summer. You know when you are paying like crazy to operate your air conditioning? The geothermal redirects the heat through the same pipes, back into the earth where the heat is absorbed. Then the cooled fluid returns to your home and is processed in order to fuel your air conditioning. I think the geothermal system was one of the best purchases we have ever made for this property. It costs less and helps the environment.
Anne Walsh
www.artnsoul.org
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