What is Financial Wellness?

By Michael Kramer, Natural Investment Services

It is natural to see money as an extension of the self. Everything we spend it on reflects what we value. We have complete freedom to choose how to express ourselves with each dollar in our possession. This means we can spend it on alcohol or juice, real or plastic plants, cars or bikes, second homes or charities. We can choose to live simply so that others may simply live, or not. How we reinvest our surplus says a lot about who we are.

Traditional wisdom viewed financial health as a pure economic bottom line: maximize return by minimizing risk. This meant that people could profit by any means necessary; contributing to the common good was done through charity. But this type of profiteering has proven to adversely affect the long-term health and sustainability of our society and planet; for there is no true profit earned if our greed interferes with responsible resource use. The true cost of poisoning the environment or exploitive labor practices is rarely reflected in the price of goods.

We can choose, however, to leave a positive legacy for our grandchildren and to cultivate true financial wellness in the spirit of caring for people and the Earth. We call this natural investing because it is natural to align one’s values with one’s actions, including how we earn, spend, save and invest our money. So it makes perfect sense to integrate social and ecological concerns into personal financial decisions.

Today, we can foster social justice, sustainability, and corporate responsibility by owning specific companies which reflect our values. Limiting our choices doesn’t affect return, but when we own natural foods and renewable energy companies, as well as those which promote women and minorities into management and are governed responsibly, we put our dollars to use to create the change we wish to see in the world. When we steer clear of alcohol, tobacco, nuclear power, polluters, sweatshops, military contractors, oil, and companies that test products on animals, we sleep well at night, and we send a strong statement that these behaviors and industries are not worthy of support. When we engage corporations in dialogue or file resolutions to influence the way they operate, we exercise our democratic rights as shareholders to reduce the liabilities that may affect return and bring ethics into the marketplace.

Natural investing is about integrating a personal sense of social responsibility with the flow of money in our lives - where it comes from, how we save it, and how we spend and invest it. Through natural investing spiritually aware and socially conscious people can now help the marginalized get access to capital while making capitalism more compassionate.

Money can be a force for positive change if we focus our hearts on it and let go our cynicism about capitalism. Currently, $2.3 trillion of managed investments is ethically screened – that’s 10% of the stock market, and growing. So where does your money go? Do you want to maximize return and make a difference with your life savings?

-Michael Kramer is a Registered Investment Advisor Representative with Natural Investment Services, Hawaii ’s only socially responsible investment advisory firm. He can be reached at 331-0910 or michael@naturalinvesting.com. Visit www.NaturalInvesting.com for additional information.