Reclaiming Your Financial Narrative: How To Rewrite The Money Stories That Hold You Back
It was only after I left my career as a professional theatre artist and started building my financial career that I fully realized the money conditioning I had inherited.
Oftentimes we look to our family of origin to identify where our money beliefs come from. But have you ever investigated how your profession informs the way you relate to money?
Once I started talking to others about their financial lives – creatives, entrepreneurs, high-achievers – I realized we all shared similar stories and limiting beliefs around money. Different details, same emotional core.
I have a bachelor’s degree in Theatre Arts. I – and many other artists – literally “grew up” being told:
“You’ll never make any money doing this.”
“You’re not in it for the money.”
And if you do make any money, “you’ve probably sold out.”
And you might think I’m exaggerating, but I’m not. These kinds of messages are everywhere – not just in the arts, but in the stories women are told about ambition, in how sensitive people are taught to equate worth with sacrifice, and in how so many of us are socialized to believe that “good people” don’t care about or need money.
The result? We’ve inherited a distorted sense of value that moves us in the direction of “opting out.” We disconnect from money as a tool for freedom, impact, and creativity. Instead, it becomes something “evil” and something “we’ll never have.” And often, we start building lives that are unconsciously shaped around those inherited limits. And way too often, too many people miss out on opportunities to build a secure financial foundation for themselves and their families because they feel “it’s not for them.”
Why do we feel the need to choose between purpose and prosperity? Between authenticity and abundance? Between generosity and stability? That is exactly the kind of binary and limited thinking that I want to challenge.
What if we rewrote the narrative entirely?
The Stories We Inherit
Every one of us carries a money story — a collection of beliefs and experiences that shape how we think, feel, and behave around money.
Maybe you grew up hearing:
“Money doesn’t grow on trees.”
“Talking about money is rude.”
“You have to work twice as hard to get half as far.”
Or maybe your money story is tied to fear, scarcity, guilt, or shame — especially if your self-worth has ever been linked to achievement, service, or perfectionism (hi! 🙋🏼♀️)
Those beliefs don’t disappear just because we learn to budget or start earning more money.
They live in our behaviors: in the avoidance, the overgiving, the overworking, or the undercharging.
As I often tell my clients: emotions drive behavior, and behavior drives results.
So the only way to change the financial results we’re seeing is to understand the emotional roots underneath them.
Truth Rewritten
The whole reason I needed to switch careers away from the performing arts and social justice realms was because I realized that by not prioritizing my own financial stability, my creativity – the thing I cherished most – was at real risk of peril.
And once I started talking with other creatives, artists, women, and highly sensitive achievers, I noticed we all shared a lot of the same unhelpful conditioning around money.
So as I was working on rewriting my own story and relationship to money, I started challenging the collective limiting beliefs around money, too. And I came up with a few “new truths” in response:
You may not be in it for the money, but that doesn’t mean you don’t deserve to earn a good living.
Making money doing what you love doesn’t mean you’ve sold out.
Choosing to make money outside your passion doesn’t mean you’re not still deeply connected to it.
Stability and creativity aren’t opposites. They’re symbiotic partners.
At the end of the day, you get to define your life.
You have choice – even when you feel stuck.
And that choice starts in the mind, when you decide to see yourself as the author of your own life and financial story.
How to Start Rewriting Your Money Story
If you’re ready to reclaim your financial narrative, start here:
Identify one limiting belief you’ve carried about money.
“I’m not good with money.”
“Money makes people selfish.”
“I’ll never have enough.”
Ask where it came from.
Who said it?
What experience(s) reinforced it?
What emotion does it trigger?
Reframe it into something truer and more empowering.
“I’m learning to manage money in a way that feels aligned.”
“Money is neutral — it amplifies the values of whoever holds it.”
“I have the capacity to build financial stability without losing my creativity or compassion.”
Remember: you are not your old conditioning.
You can respect where it came from without letting it define your future.
Stepping into Financial Ownership
Feeling safe – financially, emotionally, relationally – is the foundation of growth and creativity.
When we create stability, we open space for imagination, intuition, and inspiration to flow with greater ease.
Reclaiming your financial narrative isn’t about spreadsheets or net worth.
It’s about owning your self-worth – no matter what your numbers say.
When you define success on your own terms, money becomes one of many tools that supports your freedom, not the measure of it.
If this topic hits home, I’d love to hear what you’re uncovering in your own money story.
You can connect with me on LinkedIn or join my newsletter, Meaningful Money Solutions, for more values-driven insights on money, life, and freedom.
