As humans we aren’t great at asking for help or talking about our issues and concerns. The fear of being judged or embarrassed causes us to try and fix the problem ourselves, which can often makes things worse. We hear a lot about this when someone is dealing with a mental illness, where the fear of judgement stops them from talking about it with others.
As financial planners, we see this in our line of work where the major issue that clients have isn’t having too much or not enough money but rather the lack of communication about money. As the fear of judgement or embarrassment forces them to put it in the too hard basket or sweep it under the rug.
Money plays such a big role in our lives but when asked to talk about it we head for the hills, because like most things if we don’t understand it we try our best to avoid it. However sharing our concerns or issues can provide a sense of comfort knowing that someone else understands what you are going through. This person may be a partner a friend or a professional, the key is to overcome the fear being judged and talk to someone about your concerns.
A great example of this, was a recent conversations with a client. After our initial meeting where we discussed their current concerns and how they felt like they weren’t in control of their money. The client said it felt like a weight had been lifted off their shoulders and not because we had necessarily fixed the problem. But rather they knew that we understood their concerns, they weren’t alone and we would work together to fix these issues.
It is important to remember, a problem shared is a problem halved
