Start teaching your kids about money with this one foundational principle, even If they are just five years old. We are always making sure that our children are excelling academically, but what about financially? If you haven’t taught your children a thing about money, you can start today with this simple principle.
When you give a kid a dollar, most adults may ask, “So how will you spend it?”
The kid may dash to the store to get a bag of chips and some juice without even thinking twice about it.
Some kids may even stash the dollar away in a jar with the hopes of collecting enough money to buy a new bike, game, or fancy shoes — this is only spend ALL of their money, at one time, on that one thing they’ve been wishing for.
So many times we give money to our children and we let them spend every single dime.
We might not realize it, but that’s what we have been doing, as well.
But why is that? We live in a culture where we spend, spend, and spend. We encourage spending before we dare to invest or save. We may want the wealth that investing and saving can bring, but we can lack the discipline over our spending to obtain it.
We go to school to learn to read, to write, and to do arithmetic. Many of the numbers and figures that we see on a daily basis are money-related. Consequently, many adults get the most use of arithmetic skills when managing and dealing with their money on a daily basis.
But, it’s ironic that we don’t even learn about the one thing that so much of our world is revolved around, and it’s one of the things that is essential for survival…money.
We didn’t learn how money works in school…and chances are your children won’t either.
So it’s up to us to teach our children money principles early on that will stay with them long after they leave the nest.
I taught my two children this foundational principle starting when they were just five years old. It’s a principle that I have seen the fruits of today. My son has developed an interest in money, and while my daughter wasn’t so interested at first, she has been applying this principle while she’s away at college.
Start Teaching Your Kids About Money With This One Foundational Principle … Even If They are Just Five Years Old.
There are three things that you can do with money:
Spend – It’s natural to spend money. Folks have been spending money even before Jesus walked the earth. Money affords us the things that we need and the things that we want. The trick to spending money is to have discipline and to use good judgment. You can teach your child that it is okay to purchase a new bike, but it is not okay to do it in haste. Planning purchases gives a greater sense of appreciation for what we have and it teaches our children the value of a dollar. We must teach our children to take control of our money and not let our desires control our spending. Teaching this discipline early on will produce an awareness of money that can keep your children from gaining unnecessary debt in their adult years.
Save – Paying yourself, or saving and investing. is a habit that if developed early can stay with your child for life. I suggest that children save 50% of their money. Why? Because they ain’t got a job, and they live at home for free. However, if you have a child that’s older and has an expense that they are responsible for, then they should save 15% of their money. You can also teach your child to invest. They can invest in companies that they support and products that already they like to buy. For example, if your child likes to chomp down on Cheetos all the time, then consider investing into FritoLay. This will keep your child excited about their money.
Share – Giving to charities, tithing to give back to the Lord, and giving to others in need is such an important principle to teach our children. It helps them to become well-rounded, and it gives our children a greater purpose for growing wealth. Your child may become ignited by someone’s need and become passionate about a cause. In turn, they may realize that the more money they make, the more they can give. When they are older they will continue to give and will help organizations for great purposes. Teaching children to share a portion of their money encourages humility and combats greed.
To implement this principle give your child three piggy banks or masons jars, and label each one Savings, Spending, and Sharing. Set up chores and even have your children read success books to earn money. You can pay your child in all of the same coins or bills to help them easily divide the money. By doing, you will teach your child how to work their money.
This foundational principle will help your child to build wealth well into their adult years. But for now, they can be masters in working their birthday money and allowances.
