Wealth is a Feeling, Not a Reality

Last updated on 23 May 2025

I was drinking my matcha a few weeks ago, doing my morning free-write pages in my journal when I had an epiphany — which, funnily enough, is usually when all my epiphanies happen, and when every single one of my blog post ideas is born. The idea was simple but paradigm-shifting:

Wealth is a feeling, not a reality.

For most of my (short) life, I’ve carried this intense desire: I want to be wealthy. I want to have a lot of money. I want yachts, I want to fly first class, stay in the best hotels, wear designer clothes, and have a look and a style that screams wealth.

Looking back, I think this started in childhood.

The Pursuit of Money, Not Happiness

We weren’t poor — not even close. But money was always a stressor in our household. I remember being about ten years old, maybe in my early teens, and someone asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up.

After watching The Pursuit of Happyness with Will Smith, I had my answer: “I want to be a stockbroker.”

Why? Because that movie showed a man who lived on the streets with his son, worked incredibly hard, got one opportunity, and became a multimillionaire. That movie lit something inside me. My “pursuit of happiness” from that moment forward became the pursuit of financial and material wealth.

Fitting in With the Wealthy

Later on, I received a full scholarship to one of the top, most expensive private schools in Toronto — only one full scholarship per class. That meant that every girl around me had parents who were multimillionaires, maybe even billionaires. (I could name a few of them, and you might not even believe me.)

I constantly felt inadequate — especially on free-dress days, when we got to wear our own clothes instead of the uniform with the grey skirt and sailor-collared blouse. It brought up so much anxiety because I didn’t have the brand-name wardrobe, even though my parents tried so hard. I was a pretty demanding little girl, and they did everything they could. I got my fair share of Lululemon and other brand names to help me fit in — and I’m still incredibly grateful to them for that.

This same theme followed me into university. Again, I had full athletic scholarships, and again, I found myself surrounded by students who came from immense generational wealth. I went to school on the central coast of California, at a stunning campus, where that financial gap was still evident.

All of that led to one thing: I wanted to make money.

That became my driving force — to earn, to be seen, to gain status. To have people say, “Wow, Tia is a millionaire. She’s so successful. She’s so worthy.”

Chasing Status Through Success

That drive informed almost every decision in my life:

What I studied in school
The classes I chose
How hard I studied
The amount I stressed
The jobs I took after graduation

It brought me all the way to where I am today — in the middle of a huge career shift. From a boss-girl corporate job… to training as a psychotherapist.

At some point, I realized that this relentless pursuit of financial success wasn’t actually about money. It was about acceptance. About being seen. About feeling loved. It wasn’t coming from an inner desire to sit behind spreadsheets and work corporate jobs for the next 40 years.

This realization was liberating. The past year has been a beautiful, terrifying, soulful, loving experience of rediscovering myself — and figuring out what I actually want to do and how I will find true inner-wealth.

The Fog of Future Fortune

Still, even with all this personal growth, something lingered. A dark little cloud, whispering: “You’re not successful until you’re wealthy.”

Even in this newfound path — one that feels aligned, purposeful, joyful — I couldn’t shake the idea that I needed to be rich. That my definition of success was still tied to a dollar amount.

Just a few months ago, I remember setting an intention: “I will help millions with their mental health, and I will make millions doing it.”

That was my goal. My North Star.

And just to be clear — I’m not saying we shouldn’t aim to make money. Money is important. It gives us freedom, safety, and access. It allows us to care for ourselves and our loved ones. It matters.

But the point I’m making here is that: When material wealth becomes your primary driver, it clouds your path. It disconnects you from your purpose. It injects anxiety, pressure, and tension into every step you take. It fogs over your North Star.

The Epiphany: What If You’re Already Wealthy?

Here’s the epiphany from this morning — the sentence I wrote in my journal that changed everything for me:

Material wealth isn’t what we’re really after. It’s the feeling we think material wealth will give us.

And here’s the big realization: That feeling doesn’t exist in the material world.

That feeling exists in our minds.

And guess what? We have control over our thoughts.

So what if we just… thought and felt like we’re wealthy right now?

The Practice: Feel Wealthy Today

This is the simple (but not easy) practice I’m starting today. It’ll take you two to five minutes. Here’s how it goes:

Write out all the things that make you wealthy today.

Not necessarily material or financial — although those count too. But also all the other forms of wealth we overlook every day. Try to zoom out from your current situation.

You might write things like:

A roof over my head
Food on my plate
Parents who cook for me
Time to work on my dreams
A body that can move and breathe
Friends who love me
My creativity, my ideas, my spirit
The ability to reinvent myself
The courage to walk a new path

Once you do this, you’ll feel your wealth. You’ll realize it’s already here.

My Reality (and My Riches)

Right now, I’m in debt. I haven’t had a stable, long-term job in a year and a half. I live with my parents. I’m not exactly sure how I’ll pay for school. I worry about my financial future more than I’d like to admit.

But the other day, I asked myself:

Why can’t I be happy now? Why not feel wealthy today?

Here’s what came up:

I don’t have a full-time job… but I’m free.
I have a roof over my head.
I eat delicious meals, cooked with love.
I have space in my day to create, build my business, learn, and grow.
I have time to deepen friendships and explore who I am.
I get to work on an Airbnb rental I’ve launched this Spring.
I get to walk my most aligned path — right now.

When I saw all of that, the weight lifted. I felt truly wealthy. And I asked myself — if I have all of this now, why stress?

What I Know Now

If we live our aligned path, follow joy, give, serve, and stay present — The financial abundance will come.

But why wait until then to feel good? Why not live like you already have it? Because maybe, just maybe —

Wealth isn’t about what you have. It’s about how you feel.

And that, my friend, is something you can choose — today.

📝 Final Thoughts

Let me know what came up for you. Try writing out your own wealth list. Reach out to me if you feel like sharing.

And if you’re on your own path of career shifts, inner change, or redefining success — I’m right there with you. One journal page at a time.

Lastly, if you're reading this, I love you :)

-Tia