The Financial Wisdom of Ebenezer Scrooge

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• The Financial Wisdom of Ebenezer Scrooge
• (Why Smart People Do Dumb Things With Their
  Money)
• Ted Klontz Ph.D.
• President Onsite Workshops
• 1-800-341-7434
• www.onsiteworkshops.com
• www.wisdomofscrooge.com
• www.KlontzCoaching.com
• tedklontz_at_yahoo.com
• HCI Las Vegas 3-0647
• Important Legal DisclaimerAny reproduction or
  modification of all or part of this presentation,
  regardless of purpose, is strictly prohibited
  unless written authorization has been obtained
  beforehand by U.S. Journal Training, Inc. and
  Health Communications, Inc.

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The Problem?

• 1 stressor for all Americans
• 70 of Americans say that they are carrying so
  much debt, that it is making their home lives
  unhappy
• 1 News Years resolution is to get out of debt
• 1 area of contention between couples
• 1 cause of male spousal suicide
• 1 cause of divorce within first 7 years of
  marriage
• This year more families will experience the
  trauma of a family bankruptcy than a divorce50

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More Facts

• More people will file for bankruptcy than will
  graduate from college
• 50 of abused spouses report that money is the
  primary reason they stay
• The savings rate for Americans last year was
  -0.5
• More people will declare bankruptcy this year
  than suffer a heart attack or be diagnosed with
  cancer
• Financial concerns are as much of a risk factor
  for longevity as is having/having had a heart
  attack, cancer, lack of exercise, and a high fat
  diet
• 90 of families filing for bankruptcy would
  qualify as middle class53

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Finally!!!

• Compared to a generation ago there has been a
• 255 increase in foreclosures
• 430 increase in bankruptcies
• 570 increase in credit card debt
• 22 decrease in the amount of money spent on food
• 44 decrease in money spent on major appliances
• Employer funded retirement Social Security
  rules have changed dramatically
• A major fear for many is that they will live too
  long
• Money issues are seldom ever mentioned in a
  therapeutic environment56

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Process for Change?Step I

• Identify the problem Go to (www.klontkahler.com
  for a free assessment) Common problems are
  overspending, no budget, no plans, no retirement,
  hoarding, deception (70 spouses do, 40 OK),
  avoidance..
• Sometimes just becoming aware of the problem is
  enough to initiate change59

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Case Study 55 Year-Old Male

• No budget
• Couldnt buy clothes for self
• Wore holy underwear
• Birthday/holiday whiteouts
• Gave to others but couldnt receive
• Believed that if he did enough good works, the
  money issues would take care of themselves

• Below Avg. Savings
• Gave away what was not immediately needed, no
  retirement savings
• Owned company, but acted as a buddy, employee,
  partner with employees
• Couldnt follow through on financial commitments
  as they related to himself02

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Case Study

• Paid employees better than self
• When purchasing food or supplies always bought
  more than he needed
• Spent inordinate amounts of money to fix and
  maintain a 30 year old truck
• Workaholic when under financial stress worked
  more hours
• Engaged professionals that enabled his behavior

• Worked in rather than at his business
• Freely bought cars and equipment for the
  business
• If he got close to financial success or
  comfort, he would do something risky that served
  to snatch defeat from the jaws of financial
  victory
• Avoided looking very closely at his financial
  behaviors/matters05

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Step II Uncover the Money Scripts

• Mother Theresa Bill Gates?
• Heart of Love Room of Gold?
• I Love Money
• Google the problem word (Wealth, Saving,
  Budget, Retirement, Investing..).
• Add words to make a sentence or phrase. (Go to
  www.wisdomofscrooge.com for a free list of the
  top 10 money scripts)
• They begin to reveal Money Scripts
• (Sometimes this is enough.but if not)11

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Case Study Money Scripts

• Bosses are cruel
• Wealthy people got that way by taking advantage
  of poor people
• Retirement means you quit
• If you do what you love, and they are good
  things, for the right reasons, for the right
  people, the money will take care of itself
• Wanters are Whiners
• Self-Denial is a virtue
• Hard work Love and Acceptance
• Financial People are crooks14

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Step III

• Collect a history. First experience with ,
  most painful experience with , most joyful
  experience with ....)
• History collection tools such as Eggs, Dow
  Jones timelines ( - experiences with money )
• Evaluate Based on this history, what would a
  reasonable person conclude about money and how it
  works?
• Unfinished business work done here20

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Case Study History

• Extreme poverty
• Hard workers venerated
• Was told I will pay you what I think you are
  worth and was paid nothing
• Martyrs literally sacrifice self, work comes
  before everything including eating, rest, fun..
• Depression era Parents and Grandparents
• Make Do
• Message Avoid, dont worry, dont become one of
  them23

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Step IV

• Re-script the scripts
  (What is the rest of the truth?)26

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Bill Gates Mother Theresa Rescripting

• In some ways Mother Theresa has done more
• In some ways Bill Gates has done more
• Mother Theresa has contributed in her own way, as
  much as Bill Gates
• In his own way, Bill Gates has contributed as
  much as Mother Theresa29

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The Influence of Scripts

• Band of Brotherhood Friends, family and
  colleagues5mst
• Re-frame words budget to spending plan, or
  Map of intentions
• What other information do I need?32

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Case Study ReScripting

• Some wealthy people did get that way by taking
  advantage of poor people
• Some wealthy people got that way by being lucky
• Some wealthy people got that way because they
  were willing to follow a dream, a passion, take a
  risk to follow their heart..35

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Step IV Continued

• What Interior information about myself do I
  need to gather? Who am I, what do I really want,
  Do my values match my checkbook?, What if life
  was limited in terms of time, what is truly
  important to me?
• What external information do I need to gather?
  What factual information regarding this subject
  do I need to know? What is a good plan for a
  budget, for investing, for saving? What is the
  best way to help my kids with their relationship
  with money? (80 of all the books are written
  about this aspect - most people start here and
  fail)41

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Step V

• Fortune Telling
• What happens if I do not change?
• What are the possibilities if I do?46

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Share With Someone56

• Bill Gates-Mother Theresa
• Heart full of love Room full of Gold
• I love money
• First experience with
• Most painful experience with
• Most pleasant experience with
• Conclusion about money based on my
  experiences
• 24 hours to live
• If I could change if I dont56

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Before We Finish

• Questions10

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Case Study 5 Years Later

• Feels great wearing nice clothes
• Acts as a leader in his organization
• Feels comfortable having more than he needs
• Has eliminated almost all of what he felt he
  should do, to only what he wants to do, when he
  wants to do it, with whom he wants to do it.
• Has concentrated working on his business rather
  than in it.
• Savings have gone from below average to the top
  5 of men his age13

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Conclusion

• A persons money behaviors are not crazy, dumb,
  stupid, irresponsible (Though they can certainly
  be destructive)..the behaviors make perfect
  sense if we can understand the thinking (Money
  Scripts) that drive them.
• There is a solution, Scrooge modeled the process
  
• Scrooges world did not change in the course of
  one night, but because was willing to change, he
  changed his world
• One final thing, the case study subject was able
  to answer the 24-hours to live question for
  real, with gratitude15

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Case Study Money ScriptsDF

• You should be lucky to have anything to wear
• Tools are ok to buy, buy the best
• I sacrificed to give you this, so be grateful
  for what you get not disappointed because it is
  not what you wanted
• You are lucky to get anything, so be happy with
  what you got
• Wealthy people got that way by taking advantage
  of poor people
• Waste not want not
• If you are a good person, do the right things
  for the right reasons for the right people, you
  wont have to worry about anything your good
  works will reward you
• Retirement means you quit06

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More Money Scripts

• Generosity buys you grace, what goes around,
  comes around
• If you are concerned about money, your
  priorities are in the wrong place
• Keep a stash, you never know
• Buy it while you can, you may not be able to
  later
• Dont be known as lazy
• When in doubt, go to work
• People who flaunt their successes are braggarts
• Rich people are not really happy
• You best show your family love and honor them by
  working very hard
• If you work hard and are good, someone will
  notice and give you your reward09

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The Wisdom of Scrooge

• Scrooge went through and modeled all the
  stages of change/recovery
• Precontemplation/Denial/Bargaining - Other
  people were the problem
• Contemplation - Marley finally got through to him
• Preparation - Looking, with the help of the three
  spirits of the past, present and future, he began
  to understand how his current behaviors and
  beliefs were based on his early trauma, had an
  opportunity to see more clearly how the world he
  lived in actually worked and was able to
  recognize and accept the consequences of not
  changing
• Action He began acting as a man in full
  recovery might
• Maintenance and Termination - He never
  relapsed07