Recently over a cup of coffee my friend announced that she will never be rich. Oh, I'll be OK she said, some months will be good money wise and some months won't. Some months I'll be able to pay my bills and have extra left over and some months will be tight. That's just the way it is. I'll always have enough money to get by, but I'll never be rich.

You're right I replied. You'll never be rich because what you believe about money and you ability to have it come into your life will create your financial status, your reality. If you believe you'll always have just enough to get by, with some months good and some months bad, that is exactly what you will experience.

As she sat there stunned, whether by my words or by hers I'm not sure, I said to her, do you even want to be rich?

I don't believe I can be rich, she said. There was silence, enough truth spoken.

What you believe is what you create in your life. The thoughts and beliefs you hold in your mind determine and create your experience on a daily basis. Right now take a look at your bank and credit card statements. Examine the status of your bills. What you see is a reflection of what you believe about money and your ability to manage it. Is what you see pleasing to you, or making you cringe?

Since beliefs are important, it's advantageous to know exactly what a belief is. A belief is simply a statement held by the mind as truth. We hold it over and over again until it becomes our belief, our perspective, and our reality.

We get our beliefs from a wide variety of sources. Some we brilliantly come up with on our own through experience and desire. Other beliefs we absorb from family, teachers, work, church, government and society. Often we accept the beliefs of others as our own without even questioning or testing them.

Beliefs are great to have. In fact, they are essential to our daily existence. We stand on our beliefs; we proclaim them as thoughts, opinions and suggestions. Remember my friend proclaiming, "I'll never be rich."

Once you realize how important beliefs are in creating your reality, the next step is to examine whether or not the beliefs you hold, consciously and subconsciously, are moving you forward in life. Are they helping you get what you want and be who you want to be, or are they creating roadblocks along your life's path?

Let's get back to the topic of money. What do you believe about money? Do you believe that there is enough money in the world for everyone, or that there's only so much to go around? If you believe in the latter, is lack and scarcity an issue in your life?

Do you believe you have to hold onto money tightly so that you never run out, or do you believe money in, money out, the flow keeps moving nicely? Perhaps this thought rings true for you. Every time I start to get ahead financially; some unexpected expense comes along like a car repair or a medical bill. I can never get ahead; the good times just don't last. Hmm-interesting beliefs. Remember, if you believe it and put your focus on it, that experience will pop up in your reality. That's the power of the mind and the power of the beliefs you hold in your mind.

Imagine for a moment that there is enough money in the world for everyone to have all of their needs and wants met; that you deserve all the money you want, and that you are capable of attracting 100 thousand dollars a year from unexpected sources of income. Feels good doesn't it? If it doesn't, what negative belief just popped into your head?

Imagine that money loves you and jumps right into your pockets, that money is good and allows you to do good things, that you are able to manage your money effectively and have it grow. Can you feel a shift inside of yourself just reading those words?

Which set of beliefs put a smile on your face? The limiting ones or the ones with potential? Which beliefs allow for the greater possibility of achieving the wealth and financial abundance you desire?

At this point, you've most likely realized that you are holding some negative, limiting beliefs about money in your mind and want to get rid of them! Affirmations aren't working, neither is snapping a rubber band on your wrist in effort to ward off the negative thoughts.

Awareness of your limiting beliefs is the first step, but awareness isn't always enough. Often we hold our beliefs so deeply in our mind that affirmations, self help books and techniques don't create the permanent shift or change we are looking for. That's because these beliefs are so entrenched in our subconscious mind that they manifest in our lives as "normal" automatic behaviors and patterns. These beliefs are so much a part of our everyday existence and routine that we don't even know they are there sabotaging us.

This is when you need something deep and transformative to shift your beliefs, patterns and perspective. A belief therapy like Core Belief Engineering (CBE) helps you get to the root of an issue or problem in your life. CBE guides you to a discovery and examination of limiting, negative and outdated core beliefs held in the conscious and subconscious mind which are holding the issue or status quo in place. CBE therapy also assists you in re-engineering those beliefs to more positive ones; beliefs that will enhance your life and help you get what you want and be who you want to be.

Want more money, greater wealth and abundance in all areas of your life? Take a look at the beliefs you hold. Change those beliefs, change your life.

Esther Bartkiw is a Certified Associate Practitioner of Core Belief Engineering, a transformative, results oriented belief therapy. Visit her website at www.changefromwithin.ca or call her at 905-630-4471. Printed September 2006, Bronte Villager, Oakville, Ontario.