How the Ho’oponopono prayer changed my relationship with money

How the Ho’oponopono prayer changed my relationship with money

If I’ve learned anything running a personal finance company, it’s that our relationship with money is never just about numbers. It’s made up of memories, experiences, and emotions we’ve carried for years. Like, our whole life. For me, it was a cocktail of shame, resentment, and blame. I blamed myself for past choices. I blamed people who gave bad advice. I blamed institutions for not teaching me how to manage money in the first place. I blamed my employer for not paying me enough. And under all of that? I was stuck.

That stuck-ness showed up EVERYWHERE. Including my nervous system. My shoulders were always tense. My brain was constantly looping: Why did I spend that? What if I never figure this out? What’s wrong with me? Why didn’t someone TEACH ME THIS SHIT?!

Enter: the Ho’oponopono prayer.

This ancient Hawaiian forgiveness practice changed the way I showed up for myself. It gave me something I didn’t even realize I needed: a nervous system reset and a way to move forward in my relationship with money. 

What Is the Ho’oponopono prayer?

Ho’oponopono is an ancient Hawaiian practice for reconciliation and forgiveness. It’s simple in form but deeply profound in impact. At its core, it’s about taking responsibility—not to blame yourself, but to free yourself.

The core prayer is made up of four sentences:

I’m sorry. 

Please forgive me.

Thank you. 

I love you.

You repeat these words as many times as you want (out loud or writing them in a journal) with the intention to release, to cleanse, to rewire.

I used this prayer when I found myself caught in spirals: replaying conversations, obsessing over numbers in my bank account, or stuck in a story about what should have happened. Ho’oponopono interrupts that loop. 

How It Helped Me Heal My Relationship With Money

I didn’t realize how much I was dragging the past into my present until I started getting my financial shit together.

Every time I checked my bank account and felt like a failure, I was reacting not to the number, but to all the meaning I’d attached to it: that I was bad with money, that I couldn’t be trusted, that I’d never get ahead.

I was holding on to grudges—against my younger self, against family members, against systems that failed to prepare me.

Using the Ho’oponopono prayer gave me a structure for release. I wasn’t pretending everything was okay. I was making space for a new story.

One with compassion.
One with power.
One with actual forward movement.

If you want to be good with money, you can’t act the same way you always have. This practice gave me space and permission to do things differently. To let go, and move forward, and take accountability.  

How to Practice the Ho’oponopono Prayer

Step 1: Let It Out

Write down every single thing you’re feeling. Whatever's frustrating or upsetting you is the good, the bad, the ugly. No one is going to read this. Fill one full page, or until you can’t think of anything else. 

Step 2: Offer the Prayer

Flip the page over and write:
I’m sorry. Please forgive me. Thank you. I love you.
Over and over and over again. 

That’s it. Simple and direct. Let your nervous system absorb the softness, and invite in any reflections or thoughts that come up. 

Step 3: Release It

I like to rip the page up when I’m done. It helps me feel like I’ve physically let go. You can burn it (safely), shred it, or even keep it if that feels right.

Repeat this practice anytime you feel stuck in an old money story. Especially if your brain won’t let go of a mistake or a regret.

Forgiveness isn’t about saying what happened was okay. Some things that happn to us just, aren't ok. This practice is about about deciding certain things don't get to run your life anymore.

You deserve to feel powerful with money.
You deserve to feel peace in your body.
You deserve to move forward.

And sometimes, all it takes is four simple lines to open the door.