The Romantic Casualty of Focusing on Money
Relationships and money can be tricky. Researchers have found that this is especially true if one partner in a relationship defines personal success with economic achievements. Regardless of income level or money-related stress, couples are more likely to experience disharmony when it comes to their relationship if one of the members of the pair is highly money-focused.
This summary of research from the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships provides a few reasons and few things to consider. The time spent pursuing or thinking about money takes away from focusing on the relationship. Partners who define their self-esteem based on financial success are also likely to get upset by minor “infractions” of their partner regarding financial decisions.
How to improve the situation? If you’re defining your self-worth based on your net worth, you may have an underlying money belief (aka one of the Money Scripts®) that could be holding you back from relationships. Consider reviewing the “why” behind your focus on money. Make sure to focus a portion of the time you might spend on money-related matters to ensuring your relationship is on solid ground.