Money is Emotional: The 4 Money Personalities

According to RBC Wealth Management, everybody has a “money script” - although I prefer to call it a money personality. Our money personalities are informed by our personal experiences and family circumstances, which affect our mindset around money and how we spend it.

For example, if you grew up in a low-income household, you may carry this scarcity mindset into your adult life and live super frugally. Although, on a different side of the coin, once you come into more money (and this could be via salary or credit cards), you may have the urge to splurge and spend money emotionally in a way you didn’t experience as a child.

The 4 Money Personalities

There are 4 different money personalities: the Spurger, the Banker, the Avoider and the Hustler. The Splurger and the Banker fall on different sides of the money behavior spectrum, just like the Avoider and the Hustler are complete opposites.

And similarly to the Love Languages test, most of us will exhibit behaviors from a couple of these personalities at any one time, however there will usually be one that is slightly more prominent than the rest.

You may already have an idea of how you behave around money and what your money personality may be. But just in case, I’ve developed this quiz to help you identify it and help you understand yourself better.

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Healing Your Money Habits

Changing your money personality requires an emotional shift. Don’t sweat it if your personality doesn’t resonate with you, as there are ways you can implement new habits to improve your relationship with money.

1. The Splurger

• You’re overly focused on money status and are more likely to equate self-worth with net worth.
• You may find the thought or idea of gambling enticing.
• You’re constantly thinking about the finds in your bank account.
• You tend to be a little more showy with your wealth, in a ‘Keeping up with the Joneses” kind of way.

HEALING HABIT: To let go of unnecessary spending, incorporate a weekly savings goal to work towards, and set up a small reward system when you hit that target.

2. The Banker 

• You tend to fall on the more extreme side of budgeting.
• You’re more likely to follow the 3-6 months of emergency savings rule.
• You may feel a lot of anxiety towards money, which may manifest by constantly checking your bank account.
• You’re almost too money vigilant and afraid to enjoy life to its fullest.

HEALING HABIT: Make sure to set money aside in your budget that is ‘fun money’, ie. money that is specifically for socializing, shopping, weekend trips… whatever floats your boat! As a bonus, you can setup rewards for not checking your bank balance as often (ie. from once a day to once a week). Rewards don’t have to be based on spending; you can treat yourself to an extra long bubble bath or listening to a podcast as you take a walk around your favorite park.

3. The Avoider 

• You usually try to escape talking about money.
• You have a (conscious or subconscious) belief that money is ‘bad’. This usually stems from seeing your parents or other adult role models fight about money.
• You may also believe that wealthy people are greedy and there is virtue in living with less money.
• If you have kids: you may also sacrifice your own pleasure in order to prioritize your children’s. Many moms can fall into this category.

HEALING HABIT: Incorporate a dance party ritual before opening a scary bill, open the bill, then celebrate with an accountability partner or mentor. Then be sure to make a plan for that money.

4. The Hustler 

• You are generally a money worshipper and equate wealth as the key to your happiness.
• You tend to be a workaholic, overworking yourself in order to make more money.
• You fall into patterns thinking that you'll never have ‘enough’ money

HEALING HABIT: Incorporate a reward for mindfulness and slowing down.

No matter your money personality, you can take steps to heal the negative money habits to create a more healthy and productive relationship with your finances. With women's wealth on the rise, it's more important than ever to feel confident in our emotional relationship with money.