Raise Children to Be Rich

Many of the skills and attitudes needed to become 'rich', if that is a value that you desire for them to have, begin to develop in childhood, along with all other lifetime skills. If you want your child to grow up to become the next Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, or Tiger Woods, or, if you just want to encourage the development of habits and skills that will help your child eventually have the ability to not only earn, but to become more responsible with money, it is never too early to start, and for you to be a good example.

Steps

  1. Examine your own beliefs and feelings about money. Do you believe that earning an income is a privilege and challenge; a good thing that can help you achieve your dreams and goals, or do you see it as a “necessary evil” to getting through life? If your thoughts tend toward the latter, you’ll have a hard time convincing your child that building wealth is a good thing. It's difficult to instill positive financial values that will help your child achieve success if they come into conflict with your own. Carefully think about your attitudes toward money and where they came from. No matter how you feel about money, it's good goal for a parent to assist your child in growing up to be a financially responsible and secure adult.
  2. Evaluate and address your own spending habits. If you spend more than you earn, or if you spend your money frivolously and neglect to save and invest, don't expect your child to develop better habits. If you're currently having trouble providing for your family's basic needs, and money is a constant source of stress in your household, consider looking carefully at how you are modeling spending habits and the work ethic. Identify your problem areas, and work to correct them. Develop a budget and stick to it. Start saving money and invest for retirement and college funding, even if it is in very small amounts. These steps will have benefits right now for the entire family and will set a good example for your child to follow.
  3. Appraise your general work ethic. Hard work over time is the only way to financially succeed for most people. Are you a conscientious worker? Have you tended to change jobs often, unsatisfied with your career? If so, discuss with your child how you are determined to alter the choices you've made regarding work. A large part of thinking positively about making an income is in having a job you enjoy. If you are not happy in your work, take action and make realistic plans to get a different job. This is a valuable lesson for your child to experience. Watching you make these tough changes will have a lasting impression on your child.
  4. Think about the values you want to instill in your child. Most everyone has mixed feelings about money and about work. Examine how you feel about the ways you make and spend your income. Talk to your child about your goals and methods - don't send mixed messages. If you want your child to aspire to build wealth, espouse the virtues of making plans, persistence in following them, and accepting roadblocks along the way. Be careful what you say about the wealthy and what they choose to do with their wealth. It's what you do with yours that counts. Avoid making comments that suggest having wealth is somehow wrong; rather, emphasize the good that can be done by earning an income and then using it to advance your goals, to include helping others. At the same time, discuss how wealth, in and of itself, doesn't necessarily brings happiness. Praise the ingenuity and work ethic of financially successful people while also encouraging your child to be ethical, charitable, and socially responsible with money. Avoid complaining about your job around your children. While this is a common feeling for many of us, if this is what a child observes day in and day out, it may instill in them the feeling that work is negative and something to be avoided.
  5. Look carefully at your work habits. Successful adults are more likely to spring from secure homes, where parents have enough time to spend with their children, teaching and modeling important life skills. If you realize that you feel that you have to work constantly to support your children, reconsider your decisions and find a way to do with less, showing your child that you value them by spending time with them rather than making more money to buy more. While your children may make comments that others have more material items than you do, you'll be able to point out that, by having less things, you have more time for each other, which is much more valuable in the long run.
  6. Invest in your child’s education early on, making this a high priority as early as possible. Planning for education is likely to lead to better results. Look for the best educational experience for your child, whether in a public or private school, from the beginning, in kindergarten or pre-school, one that will challenge your child and prepare him or her for college or other advanced technical training in the area(s) they are interested in.
  7. Encourage your child to do their best in everything they do, especially in school. Early on, encourage your child to get good grades, but stress the importance of doing as well as they can and then being happy and satisfied that they did just that, no matter the grade. This will develop in them the attitude that what's important is the energy they put into it, not necessarily someone else's impression of that effort. For sure, if your child is getting poor grades, you must be involved and ask why they are not doing better. Be ready to help them address any problems they may have with learning, and make sure your home is an environment conducive for studying. Seek advice from teachers and school counselors. Consider getting a tutor if your child is still struggling. Instilling a feeling of satisfaction in achieving good academic performance, you can help your child on the path to self-reliance and self-esteem.
  8. Be careful not to over-emphasize the value of accumulating money to your child, but rather what can be accomplished with it. Most every parent, at some point, says that “money doesn’t grow on trees.” It’s important that children understand that making money requires initiative and hard work. All too often money only enters the discussion when you’re refusing a child something, and this can cause your child to see money as a source of stress, rather than as a means to accomplish their goals.
  9. Teach your child about budgeting early on, by finding ways for them to earn and manage money. If you provide your child with an allowance, help them to develop a budget that includes making short and long-term goals that include a savings plan, no matter how small. Teach them about investments and the miracle of compound interest. Be careful not to bail them out if they spend their money too quickly. Let them experience the consequences of their actions while they live under your roof. If a child wants something that they could reasonably save up and buy with their allowance or earnings, teach them how to set aside a little money each week so that they can eventually buy the item, and have them keep track of their savings.
  10. Be very cautious in insisting that a child must work at a young age. A child's job is to grow and learn, not earn a living. Do not make your teenager get a job. Resist this temptation - there's plenty of time to work for a wage after their education is complete. This is the surest way to cause them to feel that earning a living is not a positive and rewarding experience. Mowing lawns, cleaning their rooms or common areas in the house, helping with dishes - these are all tasks that come with sharing a living a space. Avoid paying them an allowance for these endeavors. Instead, reward them for assisting other family members in getting their personal chores done, or for setting up and running a lemonade stand, or helping a neighbor with a project. Remember - 'working' is not a responsibility of childhood - ensure they have time to be kids. Those who do well in life, financially, do so because they enjoy doing what they are doing. If your teen insists they want to work a summer job rather than pursuing other learning experiences, because they have set a goal that requires funds, that's all right, of course, but help them to develop a good work ethic and appreciate the value of a balanced life of work and play and relaxation.
  11. Encourage your teen to think about the future by sharing your financial plans with them. Discuss the importance of setting goals early, but also in being flexible as changes must be made along the way. Building resilience and flexibility are great life skills to appreciate and learn early on. Encourage your child, even while in elementary or middle school, to think about what they want to do “when they grow up.” Emphasize that they may change their minds a few times, but have them research their choice and write out a plan of how they might accomplish it. By thinking through a plan with timelines and goals at a young age, they will develop the ability to list what's required to reach those goals and how to earn the funds they'll need to fulfill their dreams. Help them be realistic in setting attainable financial goals, but be careful not to set unnecessary limits. With hard work and persistence we can all do amazing things. It's important for our children to understand that building wealth is a lengthy process for most of us, but that they can have or do just about anything they want if they’re willing to set goals for themselves and conscientiously work toward those goals. Patience is a virtue.
  12. Since starting and running a business is one way your child can become wealthy, guide them into starting a very small one, such as raising earthworms or even just selling candy. Encourage spending a little of it, and investing the remainder--either by expanding the existing business or starting a new one.
  13. If your child is good at something at a young age (like football, baseball, or electronics) ask them if they have fun doing that, and ask them how they got so good. Only do this if they can make a lot of money doing it.
    • Do not push them to be perfect at it. All kids get better with time. For example, straight A's would be amazing, but a couple B's are okay. Just tell them they did great and help them do better next time.
    • Also, if they want to stop, ask them if they're sure they want to stop and let them know the bad things about quitting it, and let them know all the things they would be giving up by quitting. If you make them continue, they are most likely going to quit once you can't control them anymore.

Tips

  • Give your children every opportunity to network with people who are happy in their chosen careers. Give them the opportunity to experience the value of talking with others, and networking with those with similar interests.
  • Remember that money is not the key to happiness.
  • Let your kids fail while under your roof. This is much better than waiting until they are of college age, or older, before they make less desirable choices that have a long-term, or permanent, impact. Avoid letting them constantly fall back on you, however. Let them learn self-reliance. Help them through really tough, unexpected times, but in general let them see failures as learning experiences. Successful people typically leave behind a long string of failures, but they learn from them and bounce back.
  • Encourage your children to follow things that they are passionate about, along with choosing one out of these that is also financially rewarding
  • If your children sincerely admire the accomplishments of successful people, they are more likely to emulate them. If they work hard and efficiently, chances are that they will attain good results in life. They should make their own success, be competitive, original, honest, optimistic and work hard.
  • There are lots of ways to become financially independent. While you may have a set career path that you would like your child to take, don't force him or her into your dream. Give your children advice and model satisfaction with your career, but let them make their own choices. If they can find something they enjoy doing, they will be more likely to put in the necessary work to become successful. Encourage and support continued interested and inclusion of hobbies or arts in future work plans.
  • Feed your children positive reinforcement. Read to them often, and make sure it is something instructive or uplifting. My mother used to leave Norman Vincent Peale's power of Positive Thinking books in the bathroom. Many parents these days lead busy, exhausting lives and don't have the time or energy to read to their children. That's okay. Take them to the library and check out audio books and play them at home or in your car. You could also download free audio, such as Think and Grow Rich at websites like this www.thinkgrowrich.com.

Warnings

  • Even if you do everything right, giving your child every opportunity to be successful financially, they may not grow up to be "rich," but they'll have values and ethics they can be proud of. Above all, they'll be well-balanced and enjoy "working for a living."

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