Before I begin let me just say that I realize what bad form it may appear to be to use the term “soul” on an unabashedly (Theravadin) Buddhist blog. So, before the villagers get out the torches to storm the castle and commit the beast to the flames please note that it is merely a rhetorical device.
Turning now to the issue at hand, as I was sitting in meditation this morning I watched as the mind kept returning to mundane themes and most frequently to those specifically concerning work. As I reminded myself of my intention (to cultivate tranquillity and concentration by following the steps of anapanasati) a thought arose: cultivating these qualities has the potential to lead to final release whereas allowing my mind to delight in quotidian concerns has no such liberative power. At best, if I allowed myself to turn over and over these thoughts about the business I might make some more money in the short-run (and this is really an outside possibility) but it would all be lost in the end. The insecurity of going for refuge in externals, in business, in money and in other people became glaringly obvious and I realized that giving myself over to these thoughts was like selling my soul to the Devil. Strong simile but I think it really is faithful to the meaning of the phrase.
In meditation and off the cushion, when we give priority to thoughts about the world we are effectively selling our precious opportunity to find freedom a few pieces of gold.
Cattāri Brahmavihārā 
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