As long as there are people, certain individuals will always push the limits of what is considered possible, and they'll set goals for themselves to advance forward in life. While having money will provide one with an abundance of freedom to live a much more comfortable life than they're currently living, there are many reasons why people should not set "money goals."

1. Money Is Not An End
Money's primary function is to be used as a means and not as an end. It's intended to be used to purchase something that will help bring value, meaning, and comfort to one's life. Money sitting in a bank account will have no meaning at all. It's there, but its functionality is pointless until it is actually used.

2. Money Is Just An Idea
You take a look nowadays, and ask anyone, "What Is Money?" They may hold up a dollar bill, a credit card, or a check, but none of those are money. Those are pieces of paper or plastic. You see, money is an idea, and when you create a consciousness that attracts money, then you're in resonance with the idea and will, thus, attract money very easily (which will still not necessarily make you happy).

3. Money Will Not Make You Happy
You could have millions of dollars in the bank but be living a poor lifestyle on the streets. For most people, it's the experiences of life that dictate their emotions, and it's often the case that money must actually be used to facilitate these experiences, to be meaningful, and to subsequently create meaning in their lives. People may see millionaires as living the "ideal lifestyle," but in truth, one would likely be surprised at how many millionaires and financially successful people actually commit suicide because they are not happy with their lives. Having money will not provide them with happiness; using it to provide them with certain experiences will.

4. Money Circulates
When you purchase anything, money is being circulated. It goes from one person to another, and that's that. Businesses generate revenue and then have to cover expenses; you earn an income but use it to purchase things in life. Money circulates, and the idea of prosperity that money brings with it is passed from one individual to the next. Realize that if you set a "money goal," you'll likely end up spending the money on something, and in turn, the money will circulate. Your goal, instead, should be on what you want to use your money to buy, and then simply go after earning more money to fulfill your vision.

5. Money Must Be Used To Be Worth Something
If someone found a $100 bill on the sidewalk, they'd likely be excited, but if they never used it, it would be rendered useless. Money provides comfort, and to fully utilize its true purpose, it must be traded (or spent) to have value. The value of money is not established in a bank account or in the form of a dollar bill; it's established when it's used as a means to purchase something.

Summary: "So What Should My Goal Be?"
The idea of having a certain amount of money in your bank account will likely not motivate you to succeed; on the other hand, if you have a vision of owning a $300,000 Lamborghini, having the car is much more tangible and will provide you with a greater emotional impact and significance in working toward the achievement of your goal. From now on, don't set monetary goals; choose what you want, and then go after it to achieve success!

I had a friend that was twenty years old. He was in the prime of his life and let me tell you what happened to him. He got up out of bed one morning and went to stretch. When he did he heard a few bones cracking and felt great. He got up and went to work. A few hours into being at work he knew something was very wrong. They took him to the hospital and everyone there said he was fine and that they couldn't find anything wrong with him. Two hours later he dropped dead at 20 years old. When he had stretched a rib popped loose and punctured his heart. He bled to death from the inside.

If you think you have control over your life you are quite mistaken. It is a great blessing even when we have trials in our lives because we are literally never promised a single day in our life. Any of us myself included could drop out of the land of the living before you finish reading this article.

With that in mind what should you do to change the way you live. I have come up with three ideas that I want you to keep in your head. These ideas really hit at the core of who do you want to be in your life. If you are fine with the person you are now then click off this article. But if you want to be a better person then internalize these ideas and live them every single day.

The first idea...love others more than you love yourself.

The second idea...be kind to those who are not kind to you.

The third idea...forgive people even when they don't deserve it.

I hope that I will hear from many of you and I hope you will challenge and think about these ideas that I have presented. There is no magical list but I think this is a great start for the people reading this that want to improve the way they are living their lives. I know these things continue to work every single time I try them.

What's your story? You will have one, we all do.

I hear many stories; sometimes I listen while an individual shares their 'story' for the very first time.

And some have been horrendous in content: full encyclopaedias of fear, loneliness, addictions, pain, vulnerabilities, sadness, lack, hopelessness, and worthlessness.

When coaching, it's my role to listen first, and then help a person to unravel the structure, the content and the plot so that, should they want to, they could close the pages on that particular story and begin another, safely knowing that those chapters are purely there for reference only.

At other times, I can hear the same story repeated over and over again, just in case I didn't get the 'plot' the first time. You see, some people are extremely attached to their personal stories, they have the telling of it so well crafted, they hold onto so tightly because to give it up, they may be frightened they may have nothing else to write.

• It's because of this chapter I am who I am today.
• It's because of these characters I can no longer (fill in the blank).
• It's because of this 'baddie' or that 'ogre' that I'm unable to move forward.
• It's because of this 'speech' someone once gave me, I lack confidence.
• It's because of this plot, I couldn't possible attempt what I need to do.

Stories are extremely powerful, including personal stories: when shared they can inspire, influence, persuade, make meaning where there was once confusion, and inform. They can create order out of chaos; can challenge your way of thinking, your beliefs and your assumptions of your world and how you 'see' it.

Our brains can't remember every detail of our life, so it makes sense that we can chunk our lives up into various chapters, doesn't it? Sadly for some, they come to rely on their stories so much, they can't move their 'work of creative genius' (their life) forward - their story has become a 'Dictionary of Excuses'.

There is nothing wrong with having a great (life) story, the more hurdles overcome and barriers broken down the better! Do you have the need to repeat, share and divulge your story in the hope that someone will understand you a little better?

"Please hear my story, when you hear it, you'll understand why I am the way that I am? I have deep secrets, that in order to really know me, I have to tell you them. I know you won't accept me, unless you can hear where I've been, know what I've seen, and I've shared what I've felt."

Do you consistently refer to your past story?

Some of the repeated stories I hear often are: the 'Blame Story', 'Failures of the Past Story' or the 'Fear of Action Story' is popular, quite eye opening is the 'All Men are Bastards Story' or the sequel 'My Girlfriend is Two Timing Cheat Story', 'No Education Story', 'No Good Enough Story' or 'Bad Relationships Story', I could go on forever.

They were all fabulous stories. But that is all they are, just stories. They matter, of course they do. The great stories are the 'fear', 'victim' and 'sabotaging' stories: our brains love a great survival story, but their impact doesn't last. Eventually these stories, after being heard once have no relevance or impact.

As a trainer and teller of stories, the most remembered stories are those that offer hope, solutions, alternatives, a hero's ending or the opportunity for personal growth.

Have you heard a story that has touched you? You can still recall it's telling, the meaning, the moral and how it made you feel? Perhaps at difficult times in your life you can instantly remember it, and it offers you calm and clarity? Maybe you share it with others? It can be a story someone tells you, a quote, a film, a poem.

Okay, what about you? Is there a story or chapter in your life that needs to move to the out of print section? Is there a story that you are keeping alive, that no longer needs to be told? Are you using past stories as excuses today?

Tough questions.

Are you holding onto a plot that is obsolete? That no one reads any more apart from you? Do you want to let go of a story that no longer needs to be part of your identity? Do you need to rework your story now?

Have you ever written your story down?

Isn't funny when the 's**t is hitting the fan' many of us say 'oh, one day I'll write a book about this'.

So write it, even if it is just a chapter in length. I can hear you, 'I'm not a writer!' This isn't an exercise in penning the next Booker Prize winner or writing your 800 page memoir, it's just a little exercise in reframing.

To coach and empower yourself, are you able to write it this way:

Are you able to write it from a 'hero's' perspective?

Are you able to take all the characters, the plot and turn it into a story of hope? Smaller stories, that if you shared them, yours would be the story that another remembers, for years after you shared it?

To get started here's the writing secret:

Start

Continue

End

Here's your opening line 'Once upon a time...' (Why start with that? Because it starts to reframe the time, your story becomes past tense)

"Those who do not have power over the story that dominates their lives, the power to retell it, rethink it, deconstruct it, joke about it, and change it as times change, truly are powerless, because they cannot think new thoughts." Salman Rushdie