When I started Rich Social Worker, it was out of a that social workers needed to talk about and I was all about the money.

Yes, I knew there were other kinds of wealth—friendships, health, time, beautiful experiences. But it really bothered me that whenever social workers talked about money it was always from a place of not having enough or, if they wanted more, whispered about like a guilty secret.

So I decided to talk about it.

Loudly.

But here’s what I’ve been learning:

It was never really about the money.

Money is a side effect.

Money is a consequence.

Money is a representation of value we put into the world.

The problem is: most of us (me included) have been taught to confuse tangible value — the things someone can put a price tag on — with our intrinsic value— the things that are priceless.

Our empathy.

Our experience.

Our wisdom.

Our capacity to sit in hard rooms and still care.

No salary scale, no fee structure, no grant budget can actually “pay” you what those things are worth.

So we end up doing this funny thing:

because we don’t fully understand our own worth, we go searching outside of ourselves to validate it.

We look to employers, titles, paychecks, job offers, clients, likes, followers… to tell us if we’re valuable.

And that’s extra hard when you’re not earning what you need, or what you know you deserve. It can feel almost impossible to think about “intrinsic worth” when your bank account is screaming for relief.

So let me say this clearly:

No one can actually pay you what you deserve.

You are, by definition, priceless.

The number on your pay stub is not a reflection of your worth. It’s just the amount you’ve agreed to live with for now.

When we start to really get that—deep in our bones—something shifts.

Before the money ever shows up in your bank account, it shows up in your consciousness.

In your stance.

In your boundaries.

In what you will and will not tolerate.

In how you introduce yourself.

In the way you walk into a room or an interview or a negotiation.

That, for me, is the inner work of wealth.

It’s the work I’ve been doing quietly behind the scenes, and it’s the direction I feel called to lead us next with Rich Social Worker.

I’ll still talk about money—rates, income, opportunities.

Those matter.

But it’s going to be more deeply rooted in this truth: you were valuable long before anyone offered to pay you.

An invitation

Over the next little while, I’m going to share more of my own journey with this —what’s been beautiful, what’s been messy, and how it’s shifting the way I earn, ask, and show up.

I’ve also just published a video going deeper into this “inner work of wealth” and what it means for us as social workers.

I'm excited because I've wanted to get back on YouTube for some time, and I want to share with you this inner work that's been occupying my time these days.

Click Here to Watch

If this resonates—if something in you exhaled reading this—I’d love to hear from you:

• Hit reply and tell me: What belief(s) about your worth or your earnings are you questioning right now?
• Or just write, “I’m in”, so I know you want to be part of this next chapter.

Either way, thank you for being here.

You are, truly, priceless.

With so much love,

Eva

aka/Rich Social Worker