Investments … I don’t know too many people that have this one figured out.   We all have some “good” ones along the way, probably outweighed by some “bad” ones.  I can’t count any longer the number of “tips” I’ve gotten along the way … some I’ve taken and regretted, and some I’ve let pass and wished I had not.

So how does one get a better return?

The key is in the “spirit” with which we circulate our money – not just in what we deem as our investments, but in all of our dealings with money.  We each have a unique spirit with which we handle money and its flow in our lives. 

When we spend, save or invest money, we have lots of expectations and hopes, and truth be told, probably lots of hidden agendas.  I can save money with a spirit of believing that I’ll only be safe when I have “enough”, or I can save money with a spirit of creating opportunity for myself or others.  I can spend money believing that the more material goods I have, the greater my self-esteem will be. Or, I can spend money with a spirit of appreciation and gratitude already knowing my self-worth and wholeness.  Can you feel the difference? 

I believe that the spirit we bring to what we circulate determines the return we receive .. not the investment itself.   In fact, the spirit with which we investigate potential investments has great influence on being guided to those “good” investments in life.

Think of it this way.  Spiritual teachers have suggested that there are two fundamental ways in which we give .. two fundamental spirits of giving.  The first is called Compensatory Giving – Placing our money in circulation with an expectation of the method and timing of it’s return to us, and with expectation of exactly what that money will be doing in the mean time.   The second has been called Gracious Giving – Placing our money in circulation as an expression of our gratitude for what has already been received and desire to express that gratitude.  By definition, gracious giving has to come from a spirit of abundance, or gratitude, of wholeness, while compensatory giving can sometimes mask something else.

Here is what I’ve observed:  Gracious Giving will always out-return compensatory giving.  Perhaps it is time to re-balance our portfolios in all the ways we invest in life.

You are Precious. You are Awesome.

Rev. Kristin