Alright, y’all I’m about to get real on here. Why is it so hard to talk about money? Do you want to talk about money, but get weird looks from people anytime you bring it up and *gasp* mention a specific dollar amount? If you’ve been shamed for discussing money openly and freely, then this post is for you.

I think a lot of money stigma comes from people not wanting to admit their own mistakes or fears regarding their money situation. They feel shame about having less money than they think they *should*, are unsure of whether they’re doing the *right* thing, feel they don’t earn enough, or just want to bury their heads in the sand and hope everything will work itself out. Mentioning anything remotely specific or deeper than surface-level immediately brings up the pain around those feelings, and makes people want to push those things away. 

I know I have dealt with a lot of equating my worth to how much money was in the bank, but I realized just how foolish that really was. I also know that by discussing money openly, little by little we can learn from each other’s situations, expand our knowledge and comfort with money and begin to develop a more positive relationship with money. 

I think this is especially pronounced with women. Girls are learning less about money from a very young age. They’re taught that it’s better to leave money business to men, or that it’s unladylike to discuss such things. That means they have less experience with money than men do and don’t think it’s something they need to worry about. Sometimes they feel so woefully unknowledgeable that they’ll never catch up. Given the fact that women are an increasing share of the primary breadwinners in America, I think it’s high time that we increase knowledge and comfort with money.

To that end, I’m planning on hosting a women’s circle event. It will be an intimate dinner of 5-8 ladies sometime in April to discuss all our money challenges, worries, and triumphs in a safe and welcoming space. If you’re in the DMV area and are interested in joining, please shoot me an email and I’ll put you on the event list.