I have a book deadline in 13 days from the day I’m writing this, which is the Monday before it’s showing up in your inbox.

The chapter I just finished is called Bonds.

Every chapter in the book is a money word or phrase that’s also a double entendre. I can’t wait to share the whole thing when it’s ready for you (pencil it in for mid-way through 2027!)

This particular chapter is about relationships and how the quality of our relationships is the greatest factor in our wellbeing.¹ Not our level of education. Not status. Not income.

Nope. Just love.

Yesterday Mike and I went to two different, absolutely heart-expanding celebrations of love.

One was a vow renewal ceremony that melted me with its honesty about what eleven years into marriage really means. And what committing to the next eleven years and beyond truly takes. I love a wedding, but hearing two people make vows to each other when they actually know what they’re getting into is a whole other level of real that I loved witnessing.

Then we went to a 40th birthday party for someone whose generosity knows no bounds. Watching her take in the room, and feeling how fully she was letting herself receive the love reflected back to her provided a soul-level satisfaction that was like eating a wholesome, home cooked meal. It sticks to your bones in the best way.

I woke up a little sore from dancing my tush off at the Silent Disco that the 40th birthday party culminated in, and I was also thinking about this:

No amount of money could have given me, or anyone else at these milestone celebrations, the feeling that we experienced when we looked into the eyes of our fellow party goers gathering in the name of love.

Money makes so much possible. I’m a big fan.

But it can’t replace the feeling of being deeply known, loved, and connected.

Yet, how often do we find ourselves sacrificing time with or attention on the people we love because of making more of it?

We skip the dinner, miss the birthday, or postpone our shared joy because we tell ourselves that we’ll have more time for the relationships that matter once we’ve reached the next financial or career milestone.

I think the prevailing culture often has the whole thing backward.

What if we’re sacrificing the very thing we want more money to make possible? What if some of what we’re working so hard for is already right here?

Less than two weeks from my book deadline I would have had a perfectly acceptable excuse to miss both of the delicious gatherings yesterday.

But the bonds are the fabric of my life. They’re the reason I do what I do, anyway. I write to feel closer to people, so if my work starts pulling me away, it’s time to reorient.

I couldn’t be happier I spent yesterday (and the whole past week including our Relaxed Money Affiliate Mastermind, our Team Retreat, Halloween with local families) showing up for the things that all of this is really for.

Xo,
Kate

Listen to How Your Father Wound Affects Your Money and Relationships with Terri Cole →