Every story is a ghost story

We’re all haunted by emotional ghosts of the past, present, and, future…

The older I get, the more I realize I’m surrounded and consumed by ghosts.

There are obvious ghosts of the past, sure, like my deceased mom and grandmother. But then there are the more insidious and illusive ghosts in everyday life like people known, places lived, and stories — both mine and others.

Of course, not all of these subconscious influences are harmful. They’re human. But without awareness some ghosts can be quite powerful.

Plus, next to each type of ghost — ghosts of the body and blood; ghosts of the mind; ghosts in the language; ghosts of things; the natural ghosts, familial and familiar; and ghosts of perception running through the eyes — there’s a twin-ghost.

Yes, for every ghost that is and has-been, there’s a ghost of never-was (aspirations, fantasies, imagination, and desires).

And that’s just me. Multiply this by everyone you’ve ever known, and that’s a lot of hauntings.

Why this matters: to not know about the emotional ghosts we carry is a fantasy. Even if you were above your ghosts, somewhere, somehow, in every way, everyone you know is led by a crowd of specters. And they’re experiencing you through their own subconscious influences.

Plus, this is how marketing workings. For example, there’s no “Miller Time,” yet many think they deserve one. This is how media works, too. Case in point, I used to think an “apartment” looked like it did on Friends; I was disappointed when I finally got one. And this is how imagination works, also. The mind projects an image onto the present to avoid painful repetition of the past or to develop a desired future.

In total, we’re all walking around surrounded and consumed by ghosts.

So the next time you bump into a tricky situation, ask yourself: “Who or what am I actually struggling with here?” The answer is likely a ghost of the past or future. Whether it’s yours or someone else’s (or both) remains to be seen.

A book that changed my finances: I Will Teach You to Be Rich by Ramit Sethi

Perhaps the most self-help-y book-to-date, I Will Teach You to Be Rich, nonetheless, improved my financial picture. When I picked it up, I was over $30,000 in debt, broke, and without a savings or retirement. Ramit turned that all around. He even gave me the confidence to become an investor.

Like most things, this isn’t a magic bullet. It may not make you a millionaire (though I suppose it could). Mostly, I Will Teach You to Be Rich will give you a framework to think differently about money, to put your money to work, and to think and feel rich — without skimping and saving — as you move toward your richest life.

Resources I use to manage my wealth: Charles Schwab Brokerage and IRA accounts

I’ve been using Charles Schwab as my personal bank since 2015. At the time, I opened it because it had zero foreign transaction fees and out-of-network ATM reimbursements. Since, I’ve leveraged their many resources to build an IRA and an individual brokerage account. You don’t have to be an investor to use Schwab, but they will make it easy for you to become one, if that’s the path you desire. And should you start investing, Schwab provides tons of support.

*As with all things financial, please consult with a certified financial advisor. These are intended as inspiration, not advice.