Money Awareness

One of Websters definitions of integrity is 'completeness'. What this means to me in terms of money is: Are all parts of me on the same page in regards to money? Are my thoughts, feelings, and actions reflecting the same message?
For example; if I am saying that I want to have a nice retirement, is that what my actions show?
I was coaching a client yesterday and she had a chance to track all her expense for a month. I also had her write down the things that are most important in her life in regards to what she does with her money. She wrote down things like: Planning for her kids' future, saving for retirement, paying her bills, spending quality time with her family and friends...you get the picture.
When I looked at what she had been spending her money on for the last month it didnt reflect what she said was important! She wasnt putting away very much (actually none this past month) for retirement and she was spending a lot of money on lattes and impulse items at convenience stores.
Now I am not one to say that a latte is a bad thing, after all if she is meeting a friend for coffee, that was listed as one of the important things to her. What I suggest is for her to cut the spending in half for starters and put the rest toward retirement. She could either cut in half the number of times she went to the coffee shop and bring coffee from home or she could cut in half by spending less every time she bought by buying a coffee instead of a latte. At the spending of $100/month that means she could start putting away an additional $50/month toward retirement, and my bet is that after a couple of weeks she wont even miss it!
No wonder some of us can have such bad feelings toward money issues. Many times we create these situations when we arent living in integrity. When we arent living in integrity we feel bad. So start moving your money habits to a place where they are reflecting what you are saying and you will begin to feel a lot better about your money matters.
To your Prosperity!