This may be a good exercise for life. Consider making it a monthly or yearly exercise - I have had great success with regular reviews.

EXERCISE 3:

Take some quiet time, sit down, and review financial issues in your head - your retirement, your job, your bank account, etc. Observe your mental and physical reactions to thinking of these things - how do you feel mentally and physically, and what does this tell you about yourself? What do you wish to change about yourself regarding your reactions? This may be an opportunity to plan some psychological magic on yourself.

EXERCISE 4:

Write down all the changes you’ve seen in the financial world since you’ve been able to remember - recessions, innovations, crises, fads, and so forth. Review them and ask how they affected you and your life, and how they affected your attitudes. How did they affect the above exercises?

In doing these exercises you may reach points of feeling extreme emotions - shame, greed, confusion, self-loathing, intense happiness, etc. Though they may be unpleasant, make your best effort to stay with them - don’t avoid them, but let yourself experience them fully. Learn what they tell you. Get to know them. Stand right in the center of the unpleasant feelings and live them for that time until they pass on their own.

In exploring your feelings about money, wealth, and finances, you can start cultivating a healthy understanding and relationship with them. When you feel you’re ready to proceed, move on to stage 2.

Step 2: Understanding Finances And Financial Systems