“What Is Money? – Momma's Money Tree

What is money?

Money is a tool. We use money to buy what we need and exchange value.

Without money, we’d have to barter and trade for the things that we need or want. That arrangement would be challenging. Would you want to bring a cow to the store – just to trade it for a laptop computer?

Without a money system, you might have to barter and accept chickens, apples, shoes, or cheese as payment for a job well done…

Are money and currency the same thing?

Not exactly. Money and currency are both related to our spending habits, but they are actually different things.

When people talk about money, they’re usually thinking of the coins, cash paper notes, and digital dollars that we use to buy things every day… But, by strict definition, “money” can be anything that we use to store wealth, exchange value, and track the wealth stored in our belongings and services…

Most of today’s societies use metal coins with paper and digital dollars for their money. The proper name for these coins, cash, and digital dollars is “currency”. These forms of currency are used for purchases and business transactions because people and governments have made them official tools for payment.

Today’s coins, paper cash, and digital dollars aren’t usually made of valuable materials, so they don’t have much intrinsic value. They are called “fiat currency” because they can’t be returned to the government as a trade for gold or silver.

… But not all currencies lack intrinsic value. Some currencies are made from valuable materials or precious metals. With a few exchanges, these kinds of currencies can be used to make purchases and trades all over the world. Gold and silver coins are examples of these kinds of currency. If a currency is made from a valuable material, it can be called a “commodity currency”…

Want To Learn More? Check out The Hidden Secrets Of Money television series hosted by Mike Maloney. Originally released in 2013, the series does an excellent job of teaching how money functions in the world. It also explains how different kinds of currency impact the economy and our ability to preserve wealth over time. It’s free on YouTube…

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*** This excerpt is from “God’s Plan For My Money: A Young Person’s Introduction To Bible-Based Business & Money”. It’s shared by Momma’s Money Tree and D’Loreyn Walker MD, author of “The Proverbs 31 Millionaire”, “God’s Plan For My Money”, and the FREE 5-page PDF “MMT 6-Figure Business Accelerator”. To learn more, visit the Products & Services page of Mommas Money Tree (.com). ***

D’Loreyn Walker, MD is a Bible-based business and finance coach, the author of “The Proverbs 31 Millionaire” and “God’s Plan For My Money”, the founder of Momma’s Money Tree, a retired General and Child-Adolescent Psychiatrist, and a health educator.