A simple question offers immediate relief

I commonly ask my clients some variant of the question, "How much money do you have right now?"

This can be a painful question to answer for many reasons. A lot of people, even people who earn a lot of money, don't have very much of it in the bank. When they start working with me, they can't reconcile their income with their bank balance. Where has all the money gone?

Cue stress, anxiety, embarrassment, and shame.

I've been thinking lately about the weakness of facts compared to the power of narrative.

Q: "How much money do you have right now?"

A: "$800"

Narrative 1: I make $150,000 a year and yet I feel broke. I am bad with money. Inflation is killing me. Everything is so expensive. I can't get ahead. I guess I'll just make minimum credit card payments until the day I die or the world ends, whichever comes first.

A simple follow up question can help change the narrative.

Q: "What do you need this money to do between today and the next time you get paid?"

Well, I just paid the mortgage, so that's not due for another month. I get paid in 5 days. I will probably need to buy a few groceries, pay my cell phone bill, fill up the car with gas. After all that, I'll still have maybe $200 left. Then I'll get paid and have more money in the bank.

Narrative 2: I only have $800 to my name right now. I have plenty of money to cover all my expenses this week and still have extra.

Cue immediate relief.

The facts remain unchanged. What changed is perspective and the story being told.