“Money is not the answer.” What a concept! This was the headline of famous money guru T. Harv Eker’s latest blog post. I must say, the headline did what good headlines do. It caused me to click and read. Harv’s primary teachings wholeheartedly espouse the benefits of being rich, and I was intrigued to find out his latest twist on the whole “money thing.”

I found his article so empowering that today’s post highlights Harv’s money thoughts. His point of view is practical, refreshing, and insightful.

Harv sites, “In business there’s no such thing as a money problem.” Now, those are words to start a revolution, wouldn’t you agree? How many times have you or the people around you said, “If I just had more money, I could do X or if I made more money it would solve Y?“

To this attitude, which makes the solution to your problems primarily money dependent, Harv asserts, “…the problem grew out of somewhere else. You want to fix the root of the problem. If you throw money at a business problem, you’ll have the same business problem for the rest of your life and no money. Creativity and knowledge are the answers, not money.“ Great point!

Creativity is a currency in and of itself. Here is a simple story to illustrate the effectiveness of creativity. I have a friend, Elden, who is a sound healer that loves tea. He likes to drink the purest forms of tea, which are grown in China. One day, Elden happened onto an online tea company that distributed exactly the type of tea he desired. The only “problem,” he stated, was that the tea was expensive and he didn’t have money in his budget to purchase it right now. I could see that Elden really wanted the tea. I challenged him to get creative.

The next day Elden bounded into my house with a huge smile on his face. He had just gotten off the phone with the tea company’s owner. He informed me a shipment of tea was on its way as we spoke.

Guess what Elden came up with in his creative state? The previous night, after we spoke, Elden had an idea to put together his love for sound healing and tea drinking. He imagined creating events called Tea & Toning where his sound healing students would learn how to vocal tone for healing and then join in teatime. He decided to contact the company owner and present his idea. The owner liked it and mentioned that they offered free sample packs to those people interested in promoting their products. He would send Elden some sample packs immediately to use at his parties. Elden’s first Tea & Toning party was a hit. He is now a loyal customer of the tea company, his kitchen shelves are overflowing with his favorite teas from China, and his students are introduced to new delicious teas at each party.

What problem do you feel could be fixed if only you had more money? Here is my challenge to you. Make creativity and knowledge your most important currencies for solving your problem. What skills do you need to learn to solve your problem? Notice what happens when you challenge yourself to create a solution from creativity and knowledge as a primary approach rather than money.

Do you have a story that illustrates the power of creativity and knowledge solving what you thought initially was a money problem?