When trying to define what factors affect a person’s potential for wealth, money experts and people who have interviewed uber-successful people all agree that wealthy people have a completely different mindset than low and average earners. Some key elements of the wealth mindset include a lack of entitlement, and an abundance of curiosity, and grit. While a college degree can give you an edge when it comes to earning potential, it surprisingly has less influence than your attitude and belief systems. The subconscious mind drives our decisions, which determine how we actually live. Fortunately, we do have the power to build our self-esteem and self-confidence, reminding us that we are not powerless over our circumstances. This is where herbs can be helpful.
First step: de-stress
When money woes have your mind in a spin, remind yourself that stress and worry don’t bring money in the door. When your body and mind are in a state of calm, you can see the situation clearly, and plan what actions you need to take to better your circumstances. This is when soothing herbs, in conjunction with deep breathing and meditation, can really help you. Many calming herbs are safe and gentle and effectively take your stress level down a few notches without making you feel drowsy or mentally tired. The most useful herbs for relieving stress and worry are:
- Passionflower, the herb for worrywarts. Passionflower soothes a restless mind, and calms tension in the body.
- Lemon balm gently calms the nerves, while uplifting the mood and soul during times of depression. One of the main herbs for ADD, lemon balm can help you stay focused.
- Chamomile tea can help you unwind, and settle your digestion, if worry has your stomach tied in knots. It makes a sweet iced tea, if you need to cool down your emotions.
- Daily Calm tea contains all of the above ingredients, and soothes frayed nerves rather quickly.
Get motivated and take action
You have heard the quote “the definition of insanity is repeating the same thing over and over, and expecting different results”. When we find ourselves in a financial tailspin or are constantly broke, we can only disrupt that cycle when we start doing things differently. I learned this lesson the hard way when I became a divorced single mom, and had to work four part time jobs in order to make ends meet. This crazy schedule required tremendous physical energy, but I was able to pull out of the dive and get us back on our feet again. So whether the answer is a second job driving for Uber, or going back to school to learn some new skills, you will need physical energy to support the extra efforts. Herbs can help in two ways: build our energy and provide a caffeine boost that’s a cleaner burn than coffee. Herbs that build energy include a special class of botanicals called adaptogens, which build the body’s vital energy by nourishing the internal organs and adrenal glands. Some of the adaptogenic and caffeine-containing herbs include:
- He shou wu, a Chinese herb that helps build deep reserves of energy when used regularly. I leaned on this herb when I was a new business owner and experienced extreme burnout; he shou wu helped me regain my strength again.
- Ashwagandha, an Indian herb that means “like a horse”. This herb aids recovery from burnout, while encouraging restful sleep at night.
- Rhodiola is a plant that promotes endurance, recovery, as well as memory and focus. This herb has been used by world-class athletes to improve performance naturally, and without negative side effects.
- An Elephant Never Forgets tea contains rhodiola, and is a caffeine-free energy booster.
- Green tea is often the favored choice when looking for a caffeinated beverage without feeling jittery. Green tea, along with black tea and oolong, is easy to brew, which is important for people on the go.
Sleep on it
Many of our “aha” moments happen during the state that’s between sleeping and wakefulness. Our incredible brains perceive far more than we realize consciously, and when we sleep, the brain processes our experiences of the day. When we’re looking for solutions to pressing problems, we can be proactive and engage the power of our subconscious mind to work on a problem while we sleep. To do this, before you go to sleep, write down your issue, question, or problem in a journal or on a piece of paper. Ask your deep subconscious to present a solution, or some direction. When you wake up, write down your dreams, if you recall having any, or just write down whatever is in your mind. You may get the guidance you’re looking for on the first go, but it’s more likely that you will have to repeat the process a few times. Don’t do it just once and dismiss it if you don’t have all of your answers on the first go. Dreams and the thoughts that occur between sleeping and waking can provide incredible insights and creative solutions, but you have to work for it. Calming and sedating herbs can help you relax, quiet your mind, and get the sleep you need to allow for deep sleep and helpful dreams. These herbs include:
- Valerian root, a strongly scented herb that helps to dull the senses so that you can drift off to sleep. Valerian root works for about 90% of the people who use it, so I highly recommend it. However, the other 10% find that it keeps them awake.
- Hops (the same thing they make beer with) is another sedating herb that calms the nerves and relaxes the body for deep rest.
- Nitey Nite tea contains a blend of herbs that not only sedates the mind and body; many users report an increase in dreams.
- Sleep Serum is an herb-infused oil that can be applied to the wrists and soles of the feet. Even a small amount helps with deep sleep and lots of dreams.
The smell of success
Our sense of smell is connected to the most primitive part of our brain, the limbic system. This area of the brain controls our emotions and feelings. When we feel stress, agitation, and discomfort about our finances, we reinforce to ourselves that money is bad because it makes us feel terrible. Great news: we can retrain ourselves to associate money and finances with positive emotions using pure plant fragrances. Here is how you do it:
- Choose an essential oil with a fragrance that you love; that uplifts your mood and gives you a feeling of warm fuzzies when you smell it.
- You are going to use that oil in conjunction with a positive message or mantra about money. For example, your mantra could be “I have more money than I will ever need”, or “I am filled with gratitude for all that I have.” Sniff the oil from the bottle, or apply it to the skin, diluted in a little coconut oil, then meditate on your positive message about money.
- Do this at least once a day; the more you do it, the more effective it will be.
Pretty soon, you will notice the positive effects of this ritual in your day-to-day life. This is especially important for women, who usually need to feel well before they can do well. (With men, this tends to be the opposite: men feel well when they do well. Interesting, isn’t it!)
Here are some essential oils to try:
- Sweet orange oil, a natural antidepressant, which buoys the mood pretty much instantly.
- Sandalwood oil, which has a “quiet” fragrance, and is calming and grounding
- Peppermint oil, which is bracing, energizing, and bright. For those of you who enjoy symbolism, money is made at the mint!
- Money Magnet oil! I created this blend at the beginning of the recession, to help people feel more calm and peaceful about their financial woes. I used essential oils that smell great, and also were associated in ancient times with wealth and riches.
How about a little magic?
Let’s face it: no matter how much our modern sensibilities cringe at the idea of luck or magic, the subconscious mind absolutely loves ritual and symbolism. We like to reason things out and look at the numbers, but our ancient human psyches respond powerfully to things that stir the emotions and awaken the senses, so we might as well use it to help us in our efforts. You can incorporate a little herbal magic into your life very easily, but remember, it will only work when used in conjunction with real effort. Here are some ways you can get started:
- Drink a cup of tea, and visualize the energy of the tea infusing your body, lighting you up to attract opportunity and good luck. The best teas for this are Go Chai and Lucky Morning Spice, as both contain cinnamon and other herbs and spices that are associated with luck, wealth, and abundance.
- Make an herbal amulet to carry with you everywhere. Take a 4x4 square of cloth in either red (energy and power) or green (growth and money) and add a pinch of any of these herbs: mint, basil, cloves, cinnamon, fenugreek seeds, sesame seeds. You can either gather up the four corners to form a bag, or fold all the sides inward to cover and enclose the herbs. Tie this securely shut with string, and carry it with you so that you can touch it frequently and remind yourself that your luck is now changing for the better.
Wishing you prosperity and good luck!
Read also: Can Drinking Tea Actually Increase Your Luck?