How to Care For Your Unmet Needs and Desires
I’ve been deepening my understanding of the motivation for growing our income as I prepare for the next round of Earning Power.
In my experience, motivation is a primary pillar of increasing income, and a valuable one to understand.
The truth is, our unmet needs and desires are often what’s (unconsciously) driving our longing for more money. 💰
When people start Financial Coaching, one of our first steps is to identify the unmet needs and desires that are happening in their lives, and not getting their financial attention.
It may seem obvious, right?
We all navigate unmet needs and desires.
However, what most people don’t know is that until we make these unmet needs and desires conscious, and have a real plan to fulfill them — they can rule our financial behaviors and our emotional state, unbeknownst to us.
Getting real about the unmet needs and desires we’ve been ignoring, suppressing, or putting aside can bring up uncomfortable feelings.
It may point us to where we feel a sense of deprivation, lack, or scarcity.
Or where we feel powerless to change our situation, overwhelmed, or tired of trying.
But what if I told you that getting clear on your unmet needs and desires can be a superpower when it comes to growing your income?
Our unmet needs and desires live in our pain points.
Those arenas in life that feel stressful or consistently challenging.
You may know right away what these unmet needs and desires are for you, or it may take a little more digging.
Let’s dive in.
First, we have to distinguish between a need and a desire.
This is important, because it’s going to help you to prioritize your money. And your time. And your energy.
In other words, when you know what needs your attention, versus what can land second or further down on the list, you can make a clear decision as to how you allocate your resources of time, energy, and money.
So how can you differentiate between the two?
A need is always the highest priority. A need won’t go away until it’s addressed, and until your resources are allocated there. ⏳
If not addressed, it will most likely get worse over time, and eventually drain way more resources than if you had prioritized it initially.
A need can be a health issue that needs attention, like a dental procedure that, if pushed off into the future, will not only get more expensive for you, but also more painful.
Or a car repair that could threaten your safety. Or paying for a lab test to get clarity on a health challenge you’re facing.
Desires, on the other hand, come and go. Desires that sustain over time become high-priority. Desires can be that shiny new iPhone, a new pair of boots, a trip to Europe, or putting your child in private school.
Tune in and reflect:
✨ What is one need that you know requires your financial attention right now?
✨ And what is one desire that’s sustained for you over the past 6 months-1 year?
Now, let me tell you how to harness the power of these unmet needs and desires.
Once you’re in touch with them, you can begin to tap into the vision.
This is what’s amazing about our unmet needs and desires, and all of the pain and discomfort they bring: our vision for the future is born out of them.
And that makes them so much more purposeful. They can redirect us, show us exactly where to allocate our attention and resources, and where we will get the most fulfillment, peace, and well-being.
Our unmet needs and desires point us to what we really want to experience in life, and they invite us to begin to really define, clarify, and claim what that is.
Our unmet needs and desires are no longer burdens we carry around in our subconscious.
They suddenly become our prayers. Our divine intentions. And the vision we’re committed to holding, cultivating, and practicing.
Our money suddenly takes on a sacred purpose. And our relationship with our finances becomes filled with intention and meaning.
It’s all in this simple shift. And in our capacity to get really, really clear.
For example, let’s say your unmet need is that you need a safer vehicle.
But you feel you don’t have the money to get a new car.
Therefore, your unmet need invites you to get really clear, and start to define: What kind of car do you really want? What color is it? What’s the inside like? What are the safety features? What kind of gas mileage does it get?
Bonus points if you can tune in to how you will feel as you drive this car.
What feelings will you experience? What state of being will you be in? How will it change your life?
That’s the vision. And the vision also includes the practicals, which are just as important: How much will the car cost? And how much will you need to save, or allocate in your spending plan in order to get the car? How long will it take?
For some of us, it’s easier to get in touch with the vision. For others, the practical numbers are second nature.
Whichever part of the equation you need to strengthen is where you have the most potential to experience growth and transformation.
Tending to our unmet needs with financial vision and practical action can bring an immense sense of relief, and a deep-seated peace, knowing we’re taking care of ourselves and our future, which is an expression of true wealth.
The same process applies to unmet desires. And desires can be a lot of fun to work with, since they typically don’t imply any time pressure.
There is more room to play!
The journey to fulfilling our desires becomes an adventure. A co-creation with our own agency, and our partnership with a higher intelligence, too.
Recently, I went on a journey to fulfill an unmet desire: patio furniture!
We had two little green chairs and a small blue table in our backyard.
And we had been wanting patio furniture for some time. But since it was a desire, and not a need, we wanted to make sure we took our time and accumulated the resources to buy the kind of patio furniture we really wanted.
This is what happens when we choose to take care of an unmet desire: we can plan, prepare, and take right action, which is incredibly empowering.
My partner and I came up with our vision. And we also imagined what it would feel like! We would be able to invite people and enjoy being outside, or to host a party.
We started saving, and meanwhile, I kept holding the vision – this is the magical part.
Every time I looked outside, I felt my desire to have the furniture, and envisioned how much more we would enjoy our patio. I cultivated the vision.
When we had filled our savings bucket, we waited for the right patio furniture to come along.
And one day I had this feeling the furniture was out there. I took a trip to a local furniture store that day and there it was! No research, no mulling it over — it was clear and easy.
It was perfect. It was on the higher end of what we’d expected to spend, but we had the resources ready.
And there it was — our brand-new patio furniture, ready to come home with us!
We just put it up yesterday, and I reflected on how powerful it is to hold the vision while accumulating the resources for what we want.
Because it allows us to take our time and go for what we truly want, instead of rushing the process or settling for less because that’s what we can afford.
Of course, as soon as your unmet needs and desires are met, new ones will come along.
This is part of the ever-changing, ever-evolving nature of being human.
As Buddhist teachings remind us, nothing stays the same. Everything is impermanent.
But now we have a clear trajectory to meeting our needs and desires, and we can embrace it as an adventure of growth, and of course… this is where earning power comes in.
Our unmet needs and desires are key in growing our earning power. They transform into exciting goals and fuel to grow our income. 💰🚀
They help us develop a stronger and more inspiring vision for our lives.
And they help us to become proactive and get in touch with our agency — our power.
If you’re ready to tackle your unmet needs and desires, with the support of powerful money psychology practices, holistic money management tools, and financial hypnosis to accelerate your journey — consider joining us for Earning Power, my 12-week, financial-upleveling mastermind, starting September 20th.
In Earning Power, we dive deep into your most soul-aligned vision, as well as how to practically implement it, step-by-step.
We draw on money psychology to understand how your childhood experiences of getting your needs and desires met (or not) are often still an influence on your current experience.
We utilize powerful practices and financial hypnosis to release these influences, and earn and manage your money in a way that reflects your current values (and not the stories of the past).
You will learn and implement my signature holistic financial system, including a specific tool to contain, prioritize, and fund your needs and desires. My clients love this tool, and it often totally transforms the way they approach their money management!
And of course — we focus extensively on increasing your income so you can fulfill your most important needs and desires, and grow your earning power while you grow yourself.
Earning Power is my legacy program, and a vibrant environment where you can grow your financial power, receive real-time feedback and coaching, and stay accountable alongside others who share the same drive for an extraordinary relationship with money.
Learn more, and schedule your complimentary discovery call to discover what’s possible for you!
PS: Thinking of joining Earning Power? Be sure to take advantage of our Early Bird Special Offer, available until August 28th!