Cultivating A Loving Relationship With Money

By Taryn Kama

The secret to cultivating a healthy relationship with money is how you feel about it – if money doesn’t bring you joy, you may unconsciously push it away.

That’s according to Japan’s bestselling author Ken Honda. Honda shows people how to create a life of abundance by changing their relationship with money. His book sales have surpassed seven million copies since 2001.

“Most people, whether they realize it or not, are already in a deeply committed, unhappy relationship with their money,” Honda says. “We are in a flow of either Happy Money or Unhappy Money. Depending on which flow you choose, your life and the outcomes in your life will vary …”

He shares his work with English-speaking readers in the United States and beyond. His latest book is called Happy Money: The Japanese Art of Making Peace With Your Money (June 4, 2019, Simon & Schuster).

Now he is kicking off his “Happy Money Hawaiian Tour” from October 29 to November 11, including an evening on Maui on Thursday, November 2 at the Makawao Union Church.

So what does Honda mean by “Happy Money?” Honda asserts that it is possible for anyone, no matter their current financial status, to live more easily in their relationship with money.

According to Honda: “All the money circulated with love, care, and friendship is Happy Money. Happy Money makes people smile and feel loved and cared for deeply.”

“It is in many ways an active form of love.

Money circulated in frustration, anger, sadness, and despair is Unhappy Money. This kind of money makes people stressed, desperate, aggravated, depressed, and sometimes violent. It deprives people of their dignity, self-esteem, and gentleness of heart. Whenever you receive and spend money, and you do so with negative energy, it becomes Unhappy Money,” he says.

“There is another way of living your life, especially around money,” says Honda. “Clear the fog of anxiety around financial issues. Worry is not good for your health, and you can be free from financial worries. When you feel more relaxed about money, you can trust your future more. And if you start trusting your future more, you have a lot more fun.”

According to Honda: “People who live ‘in love’ with money are doing what they love and make enough money. They may not be rich, but they truly have everything they need. They put what they love in the center of their life. They are financially comfortable, so they don’t feel stress around money in everyday life.”

He said Hawaii is interesting because there are a lot of entrepreneurs and people working several jobs to make ends meet. He said this can sometimes cause unhappy money because it makes people jump from one gig to another instead of “finding what you love and appreciating and respecting who you are.”

Honda notes that confusion about what money is and what it means is often closely linked to a feeling.

“We may feel used, discarded, or taken advantage of. We feel like life is unfair. We feel unworthy and diminished. We feel that others have more than we do. A lot of these feelings result from the three functions of money: exchange, saving, and growth,” he says.

Additionally, he offers simple tips, including giving small gifts (to associates and friends), doing what you love, and making sure to “arigato” (thank) your money.

Taryn Kama is a Maui-based writer and president of www.GoGetitMedia.com and www.Mountainstowater.com. For tickets or more information on Ken Honda's events in