"So if I play all day on Xbox that means I have to learn half day about money"?
A lot depends on you as a parent. This money wise transition will require you to spend some extra time and work but trust me on long run, it is so worth it, you have to be one step ahead in this game. Education starts with you. Best investment is in your selves. This blog will provide guidance which you can follow and topics which you should cover to become an expert with money. You will have plenty of time to learn but the main thing is to start as soon as possible.
I approached my son when he had break from playing his favorite game 'Fortnite' and I asked him what he wants in his life? He responded " Money dad, I want to have loads of money". This is the answer which you were waiting for as it is the sign that your child is thinking about money and their future. It is probably in his small world yet but for your child it is important and big enough world. Your job now is to open his or her eyes wider on the topic.
The first lesson starts here!!!
Have a chat with your kid by asking some questions like:
'How much money do you want to have?'
'How much money is a lot for you?'
'Do you think we have loads of money?'
(allow them to judge you) This should make you closer to them and level playing ground.
'What would you like to do if you had loads of money?'
(we all love to dream) Just imagine you won the lottery :) It will be the same for them.
Now when they warmed up and had a nice conversation just ask if he/she would like to learn about money? (how to make, save and invest)
Never mention it will be like school as this is negative word. School is assigned as a place where they have to go 5 days a week to listen to other adults telling them what to do, how to do it on different topics, which might be more or less interesting for them. They don't need to have another person telling them what to do. It will close the door for this topic for a long time. From parents they look more for support and friendship. If you can establish friendly relationship with your kid this will make you and your child come closer together. Mention that it will be a fun way to learn about money. That you will work together, that you will talk more about money and it will involve watching some videos on youtube too. This will allow them to understand your approach.
Obviously they want loads of money in their future so they should agree. The first stage is completed.
When you achieve this stage go further - now it is crucial stage. Make some agreements.
This is what I did:
I proposed a deal. I asked if my son can give 50% of his 'fun time' back into learning about the money. Let me explain. If he plays on the Xbox for 2 hours he will learn 1 hour about money. Sounds simple right? He agreed to it. I told him 'fun time' is when he uses internet for playing on the Xbox or watching videos on youtube.
I decided to make it simple to keep a record so I designed a time record spreadsheet. I asked him to write start and finish for his 'fun time' and count the difference between them. We will add it up on Saturday, total it for the past week and he will have all next week to give me 50% of that time back.
We will make a video about this and we will upload it on our youtube channel so you will be able to see how it works. You can download PDF file with the time record spreadsheet from the resources tab.
I want you to understand this is only a guidance for how to begin. It depend all on how old your child is and what relation you have with your kid. I would love to hear how you managed to start your journey to financial education, how did it work out. Let me know via email or comment. It might be our case study :)
In the next post I will keep you updated about how we are doing and what is the outcome.
Now you think, what is the lesson here and what is your kid learning from this?
It all starts with time management, being consistant and working on targets.
Just watch your child thinking about what this deal actually means for him or her.
My son straight away asked question:
"So if I play all day that means I have to learn half day about money"?
I responded "yes".
I could see him thinking and processing information how to manage his time as he doesn't yet know how hard the learning will be and if he will like it. I can see he watches closely to how much time he spend on his gaming. I absolutely love it. It made such a difference already and it is just the beginning :) I will keep checking if he notes the times correctly and if he cheats ;)
Good luck to you and see you in the next chapter.
Chris G.
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