Confession time: I am what I like to call a pretend adult. On the outside I seem like a grownup: my credit is good, I own a condo, I keep on top of my bills…for the most part. But on the inside, when it comes to money, I’m a walking disaster. And here’s why:
I HATE money.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s not the making or the spending of money that I hate. It’s worrying about money. Whether it’s keeping tabs on bills to avoid missing payments and incurring late fees or interest charges (I suck at this), monitoring spending and knowing where my money goes every month (I REALLY suck at this), trying to save money wherever possible, and thinking about how to do more with the money I have, I tend to block it all out rather than to act like a real adult. Why? Because I find it confusing, overwhelming and stressful. And I’m not alone.
According to a survey conducted by our friends at Capital One Canada and Credit Canada Debt Solutions, 30% of Canadians worry more about money than they do about their health and well-being. An alarming 44% of Canadians feel that their financial stress has had a negative impact on their mental health. While disturbing, these results aren’t surprising, especially since most Canadians are left to their own devices when it comes to learning financial literacy (seriously, I wish they taught this stuff in school when I was younger). When much of the population just doesn’t know enough about money and everything that goes along with it, it’s no wonder that many of us find ourselves struggling in one way or another.
Personally, my monetary melancholy stems from two things: a lack of knowledge, and a lack of control. My shortage of confidence in my financial literacy, and my uncanny ability to be an absolute scatterbrain when it comes to finances, are at the core of my money stress. Thankfully, the good folks at Capital One and Credit Canada have something coming up to help me and other Canadians learn how to be more mindful when it comes to money.
November 13-16 will mark Credit Education Week, an initiative that generates financial awareness, and creates educational opportunities to help Canadians mitigate their financial stress. This year’s CEW theme is #MoneyMindfulness. Capital One is heavily involved with CEW, as part of their efforts to help Canadians with their financial literacy. According to Patrick Ens, VP of Strategy and Brand, Capital One, “During Credit Education Week, we are aiming to help Canadians begin conversations around money, their relationship with it and how actively prioritizing and managing finances can alleviate stress. With the right resources, people can confidently plan to achieve their financial goals, whatever that may be.”
I got a chance to attend a CEW sneak peek event that put financial education and mindfulness at the forefront through creative and engaging activations.
Through their Money Mindfulness Tutorials, I learned that cutting out a daily coffee purchase (a savings of $5 a day) could keep over a thousand dollars a year.
I was able to practice mediation skills with Capital One’s Braincap experience and find the internal focus to help improve my overall mental state, a challenge on even the best days. Suffice it to say, it’s something I need to keep working on.
I got to experience a mini mindfulness class taught by The Centre for Mindfulness Studies, where I learned to slow down, close my eyes and focus on being truly in the moment, instead of feeling scattered and pulled in every direction.
And finally, I took some time to work on my mind-body connection through an intimate Joga Class lead by none other than Joga founder and reality TV star, Jana Webb. Like the intro to mindfulness, Joga provided an accessible yoga experience for fitness lovers. The class provided a great reminder of what being mindful means, and how important it is to focus on the connections we make, whether they are mind and body, or mind and money.
All in all, I left that experience with some new tools to cope with stress, to increase my financial and spiritual awareness and to help me be more present in every aspect of my life, which of course will help me slow down and figure out what’s up with my finances and expand my financial literacy.
Education, just like mindfulness, is the key to improving overall quality of life, especially when it comes to finance. Capital One Canada and Credit Canada are working to provide the tools and education Canadians need to make their finances work for them, so they can avoid taking drastic measures like never traveling and never spending to get out of debt and save money. And with decades of experience between the financial institution and the not for profit, you can trust their expertise to help you get to a better mental and fiscal place in your life. From expert speakers, workshops on everything from saving for your kids future to credit education, and other exciting events and activations, check out Credit Education Week’s website to see what’s coming up that can help you with your #MoneyMindfulness.
Learn how you can take part in Credit Education week by clicking here or through the link below,and follow our friends at Capital One to keep the learning going.
Facebook: @CapitalOneCanada
Twitter: @CapitalOneCA
Instagram: @capitaloneca
#CEWC2018 and #MoneyMindfulness
*This post is a paid partnership between Addicted Media Inc. and Capital One Canada.
Nadia Elkharadly
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