Author Q&A: Finding Your Financial Harmony

Combining your money with happiness and well-being should be easy. But for many people, it’s just that.

When it comes to retirement, the anxiety about tapping into savings is real for retirees who desperately cling to their money for fear of outliving it.

In his new bookWealth is the Key to Life: Finding Your Financial Harmony“, Preston D. Sherry, a certified financial planner, attempts to show smart ways to navigate the mixed emotional and psychological aspects of financial planning.

Cherry provided insights and advice in a conversation with Yahoo Finance. Here are the edited highlights of that conversation:

Kerry Hannon: Why does money create such emotional chaos for some people?

Preston Cherry: That’s because we exchange ourselves for money. We are working for that. We exchange a part of our being every day in order to earn income. Because you give a part of yourself every day, this deal gives money a soul. It is a spiritual exchange. Your identity is in the money in your bank account.

How do we fail when it comes to handling our financial lives?

It’s about giving permission to oneself. To begin the deconstruction process, you need to ask the questions: Where are you on your journey? Where are you in your career or business? Where are you inside? Do you know what you don’t want to do anymore? What is something you want to do? Are you healthy?

Can you explain the importance of thinking about how we spend our money?

You must be able to do this thinking without shame or judgment and step back from societal norms and stigmas. God forbid you want to go buy a new car. My wife and I are looking to purchase a Cadillac Escalade. The price of the 2025 Cadillac Escalade starts at about $90,000. This is a choice and preference. We have the ability to do this. Our savings rate is achieved. There is nothing wrong with that. We do not owe our interpretation to anyone. We give ourselves permission to do this.

This is a book of permissions to live your life the way you choose, provided you have a financial plan. If someone makes you feel ashamed to spend your money in a certain way, you should say MYOB, which means mind your own business.

Read more: 5 psychological financial tricks to reduce spending and increase saving

How can money be our partner?

Money is not just a tool. He is your partner. You are dancing with a partner. The partner is a questioner. Your relationship is flexible. adjusts. She has a soul. I call it the humanism of money. You give yourself permission to have the resources you need to allocate that money to your preferences and goal.

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