Without clarity, there is no prosperity
Julia Cameron, The Prosperous Heart: Creating a Life of “Enough,” Location 1180 Kindle version
This week’s chapter was all about clarity. Cameron begins by instructing us to clear out the clutter. Our outer environment and situation is always a reflection of what’s going on inside. So, a cluttered home is indicative of a cluttered mind. Many people insist that they think better with clutter, but that is usually just resistance and a clinging to the familiar. Usually, when these people clean up, they realize that they feel different, lighter. Also, unless you spend all of your time alone, your clutter may be harming the people around you. Cameron provides an example in the book of a professor who functioned well in his overly cluttered classroom and office. He was forced to clean up, though, due to an administrative inspection. He was surprised to hear from his students how much easier it was for them to study and learn in the cleaned-up environment. He felt ashamed. He had inadvertently been hurting his student’s efforts to learn. He also had to admit that even though he could think well in the midst of clutter, his thinking was clearer in a clean environment!
Cleaning up the clutter tends to lead to greater clarity, overall, in one’s life. Cameron suggests that other things will be uncovered once the clutter is gone. You may realize that there are toxic relationships in your life that you’ve simply been tolerating. Gaining clarity in one area will likely transfer into other areas. I have seen shows about people who have cleaned up their finances and, in the process, lost a lot of weight without trying. This is the magic of clarity.
The main clarity exercise Cameron provides in this chapter is the Money Autobiography. You divide your life up into 5-year segments and write about your relationship with money at those different stages. I did the exercise, but I didn’t use strict 5-year increments. Rather, I focused on certain phases of my life, regardless of the time span. What I learned was that I am innately good with money. This kind of surprised me because I hadn’t thought about it in a while. But, as a child, teenager, and young adult, I was a natural saver. When I spent money, such as on clothes, it was after saving up a certain sum and making a fun day of it. I only spent money on stuff that mattered to me, such as cheer camp and my class ring. I had only one credit card in college and it was an American Express which I paid off every month. My mother, though, was the opposite, and she shamed me for my ways, saying I was selfish and rigid. And she would “borrow” money from me and never pay it back because I was living under her roof, etc.
As I reviewed my life, I noticed that my financial woes were tied to periods of shame and sadness in my life. The under-earning phase of my life didn’t begin until the Great Recession. When I’m feeling great, such as now, I tend to naturally have good money habits. The exercise revealed to me that I don’t actually need extensive financial training (I remember attending a Debtor’s Anonymous meeting once, years ago, and feeling, instinctively, that it didn’t resonate). Rather, it’s important for me to feel good about myself and my life in general. Moving out of state has allowed me to curate the people in my life. I’ve been able to create a life that is a reflection of my highest values. The money is falling into place on its own.
I still have quite a ways to go to be in the financial position of my highest dreams. However, I do have clarity in my life, so I have a good foundation. I’ve never been into clutter. So, for me, clarity shows up in the form of maintaining appropriate boundaries with people, pursuing my dreams religiously, and protecting my connection with Source Energy.
Where do you stand in terms of clarity in your life? Have you had any struggles with clutter now or in the past? Do you agree that it has an affect on the mind and spirit?
I will be going through this book, and sharing whatever insights come up along the way. I welcome you to join me. Feel free to share in the comments any insights you gain from the process.
It is my hope that we start a revolution! We can become a subset of creatives and spiritual adepts who practice a new way-of-being around money. Creative people do not have to “sell out” or be broke. God is an artist who supports other artists if we let Her.
This week was mostly about foreshortening.
PTBB 