AUTHENTIC ABUNDANCE: CAN YOU BE RICH, WITHOUT BEING A BITCH?

GUEST POST: WRITTEN BY DENISE DUFFIELD-THOMAS

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"Start saving your pennies now. People spend $300 on crazy things all the time, like handbags. So work all year, scrape the money together and come to my show. I'm worth it" -- Madonna

Remember how Madonna's Super Bowl performance burned up the Internet with criticism? She was too old, too slow, trying to be trendy, her songs were outdated... etc.

But I loved it and I think she is a great role model for exceptional women to emulate.

She doesn't care what anyone thinks. She is a self made, successful and strong woman who has banked an estimated $325m (and counting) from her career. Nobody can doubt her success but she's arguably not the best singer or dancer in the world. What she has in abundance is SELF BELIEF.

Did you see the video when someone gave her a bunch of flowers and she muttered (in to a live microphone) "I absolutely loathe hydrangeas"? It was awesome.

IS MADONNA A BITCH?

Yeah, kinda. But in a way I admire. The reason why many people hate Madonna is that she is strong, opinionated and utterly unapologetic about what she wants. She doesn't court love from the masses, she has never shared her wedding pictures or given a tell-all interview. She has become "lucky" by hard work and relentless reinvention. She knows she is worth every cent of her millions. 

ARE MILLIONAIRES DIFFERENT TO YOU OR ME?

Forget superstars and famous people for a moment. How about the average self-made millionaire - what makes them different to people who just earn regular money?

Recently I was invited to an event with guest speaker Heidi Alexandra Pollard of Leading Ladies International. The invitation described her as a self made millionaire. 

My first thought, before I had a chance to censor myself was "Wow, she's a millionaire? But she is so normal and nice!" My second thought was "Yikes, when I met her, I treated her like a normal person"

Woah, are you kidding me? Where did that come from ?! I obviously had some negative points of view about millionaires, that they weren't normal or nice.

I told Heidi this and we both had a good laugh about it. Heidi's seminar was all about the habits and mindset that millionaires have - and being a bitch (SPOILER ALERT) was not one of them.

Most women have some deep unacknowledged fears about money and wealth and it is my mission to root them out, so you can earn awesome money this year and beyond. Don't be afraid about going to the dark side and uncovering any potential negative consequences about extreme wealth. It is a great way to uncover how you really feel about money.

Of course you would know how you spend it (walk in closet and financing your own movie starting opposite Ryan Gosling, right?) that's not the problem. I want you to know why you're blocking outrageous wealth and more cash-ola in your pocket. Because everyone has "stuff" around money - worries about what others would think, fear of losing it etc.

IT IS TIME TO GRAB YOUR JOURNAL

+ Who would think you are a "stuck up bitch" if you were incredibly wealthy?

+ If you had a stellar year financially, would you be embarrassed to tell your friends?

+ Who would ask you for money if you had a lot to spare?

+ How would it feel to say no? Icky? 

+ What would your parents think if you made a lot more money than them?

+ Finish this sentence. "Millionaires are...."

Your guilt, shame or fear about money is what is going to derail your earning capacity. 

GET REALLY HONEST ABOUT YOUR MONEY

The personal development industry is full of people lying about how much money they make. When I went to Kendall Summerhauk's Secret Energy of Money event last year, if someone asked a questions at the microphone, she asked them how much they made that year. None of this "six-figures" vagueness would do. She wanted real numbers. She wasn't mean about it and she wasn't trying to embarrass anyone, she just wanted to create honest conversations around money.

Why? Because as she taught us - 

"How you do money, is how you do everything" -- Kendall Summerhawk

Could you stand up in a room full of strangers and tell them your income? I couldn't because I didn't know what it was.... exactly. 

I had a vague idea, but I didn't know to the penny - and you could tell that the people who worked with Kendall as a coach did know to the penny. They were that clean with their money, whereas I was cluttered and really vague.

So, I came home from that conference and I sorted some of my money sh*t out eg: sorting out my bank account, and hiring a lovely and understanding bookkeeper.

Cleaning up your money drama's is the first step to accepting money in to your life without guilt an without creating problems for yourself. 

How? Here's a start:

+ Clean out your wallet

+ Sort out your paperwork

+ Chase late payments

+ Pay your taxes

+ Get help (bookkeeper or accountant)

+ Put all your spare change in to a nice bowl instead of scattered around the house.

ACCEPT MONEY IN TO YOUR LIFE

Let's face it, if you're a bitch in real life, then you'll probably be the same with money. You'll just be a richer bitch. But if you're a nice normal person (like Heidi, although she's also an extraordinary woman) chances are that becoming ultra wealthy isn't going to corrupt your soul in any way. 

And don't wait until you' perfect. 

Relax and accept money in to your life now, knowing that you don't have to change yourself in any way. 

Not bitch required.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Denise is a life + business coach, and author of Lucky Bitch. Get her free book "The Lucky Bitch Secrets of Outrageous Success" 

at www.deniseduffieldthomas.com You can also connect with Denise on Facebook and Twitter.