I looked down at the document in my hand. Stocks and shares, worth… well, a lot of money. A lot. And I was terrified. Completely and utterly terrified. They say money changes you. The amount of money I was now worth could change me several times over, and I’d still have enough money left over to change a couple of friends and a perfect stranger.

And so I dealt with these documents in the exact same way I dealt with bank statements that were in the red: I hid them. I ignore them. It’s ironic, isn’t it? When I didn’t have any money I didn’t want to know. Now I have money, or something worth a fair bit of money at the least, and I’m reacting the same way. Hiding it. Ignoring it. Almost hoping that it goes away.

I can feel the question brewing in your mind already. “Why?” Because I was afraid that acknowledging and accepting that value would change me. I was a little worried I would lose my marbles.

And so I sit in my cubicle, doing my 9 to 5 job, scraping by on $18 an hour. Maybe I’m already mad.