Worthy will present content by guest writers as part of our goal to promote thought leadership in the fields of finance, savings, investing, and community impact.
Why Even the Savvy Slip Sometimes
It happens to even the most financially savvy people. You know your cash flow, you’re saving in all the right places, and planning for your future. But one stressful week, a celebration, or a well-timed sales event, and you’re clicking “buy now” or agreeing to an expense you didn’t really want or need.
It’s not a lack of discipline. It’s the quiet pull of emotion, which is the very human side of money that logic alone can’t override.
Even those who manage money for a living make emotional money moves. Not because they’re careless, but because money decisions are never purely financial. They’re emotional, behavioral, and deeply personal.
That’s what makes them powerful, and unfortunately, they can come at a cost.
High achievers like to believe logic runs the show. Yet the more financially capable we become, the easier it is to disguise emotion as reason.
You can rationalize almost anything:
Beneath those explanations usually lives something deeper: fatigue, guilt, comparison, or the quiet need to feel in control.
As author Morgan Housel writes in The Psychology of Money, “Doing well with money has a little to do with how smart you are and a lot to do with how you behave. And behavior is hard to teach, even to really smart people.” That’s the challenge, and the opportunity, behind every emotional money move.
Clients tell me things like, “I don’t need the things I buy; I just like the feeling of pressing the buy-now button.” That’s not about the purchase; it’s about dopamine.
It doesn’t mean you are a financial failure. It’s just a sign that you are connecting money and tangible things to your emotions.
I also hear “I always feel guilty when I buy something for myself, like I’m being irresponsible.” That guilt is an emotional signal that something isn’t aligned with your values. The thing about that is, you should value yourself.
Guilt-spending, or guilt-saving, or guilt-giving, isn’t measured in dollars; it’s measured in distraction.
You make the choice, but instead of being satisfied, you feel a little unsettled. That’s your gut letting you know something is off.
Over time, guilt chips away at confidence. It turns decisiveness into hesitation and strategy into self-doubt.
Financial guilt is the silent tax on clarity. The kind you pay in energy, not money.
That’s why I created the MeMoney™ Method. To help people lean into the way they naturally interact with money and recognize their own money behavior. It’s a simple strategy that sets aside a portion of money just for you and lets you spend on yourself without answering to anyone, not even yourself.
It’s not about restriction; it’s about intention. It removes the guilt and the need to explain your choices.
Before spending, giving, or committing, pause and ask yourself:
These questions transform guilt into data and replace shame with self-knowledge. That’s where true financial growth begins.
When you get that gut feeling or guilt shows up around money, it’s rarely asking, “Can I afford this?” More often, it’s asking, “Is this worthy of my money?”
Answer that honestly, and the numbers usually take care of themselves.
Financial wisdom isn’t the absence of emotion; it’s the integration of it. As behavioral-finance expert Dr. Brad Klontz notes, our “money scripts” shape behavior more than spreadsheets ever will.
You are the product of your life experiences with money since the day you were born. And that is complex. The goal isn’t to be perfect with money, it’s to be present with it and start to understand how you interact with it.
The smartest people don’t make emotionless money moves. They make emotionally intelligent ones.
And when your choices reflect your truth, money finally starts to feel good.
References
Morgan Housel, The Psychology of Money (Harriman House, 2020)
Brad Klontz, “Money Scripts,” Journal of Financial Therapy (2011)
Talking about the emotional side of money doesn’t have to feel overwhelming.
The first step to understanding the way you interact with money is to understand your money personality.
Take Linda’s free quiz: “What’s Your Money Personality?”
For more personal finance insights, Linda Grizely can be found on her website.
Social Media Links
LinkedIn | Instagram | Facebook