It is not the first time I am seeing a scene similar
to this. But this particular one catches my attention that brings about this
article.
After some hours on my computer system, I decided to
stroll down to restaurant to have my lunch. In front of a store nearby was a
woman with her less than two years old girl dragging a purse. What I noticed
was that, the girl just finished a sausage roll, seeing another vendor around,
she want to have another one. The surprise thing there is that, as little as
she was, she’s aware there is need for cash to have another one.
This scenario seems to be universal; spending money
has being cultured to be natural, even more than learning. It has become a
habit that everyone who is entitling to something from you claims right to it.
I imagine youth at their 20s and 30s still claiming
right to receive 100% financial upkeep from parents or guardian, and in most
cases never bother to sit down to think about how they make the money he/she is
claiming to receive and never think of given something back for it, but aware
that taking anything in a store for his/her use without given money is a crime.
While this problem commence from the parents, the
educational system is not helping issue either. Initially, I thought Robert T.
Kiyosaki is being radical talking about not teaching financial education in our
schools but I now see the problem this devilish decision is creating in the
world generally. He has said it all, it’s all about conspiracy, it’s never a
mistake.
To make the issue worst, many financial institutions
claiming to take financial education to schools are gradually recruiting future
customer programming them into rat race for the rest of their life. Financial
education is all about making money by creating money making activities and
assets. But now that you cannot differentiate between assets and liabilities;
confusion created by the so called financial expert in other to recruit more
customer, how do you go about it.
Many have argued this with me in different occasion;
in reality I realize they are unfortunately products of the same situation.
There mentality when it comes to making money; the best way they know is
through employment while any other means are alternative. And as claimed, to
make more money, you need higher and more certificate. That is the usual
programming we are talking about.
I, just like few others out there have different
orientation as a result of family upbringing. In my own case, I was born and
raised in a farm where you take part in the process of producing whatever brings
in income just like family business. Moreover, I started taking care of myself
in terms of daily needs like clothing and many more since primary school. Although,
I am not fortunate to have good orientation and support on how to make money or
achieve my dream from them; but I learnt from them earlier how to be
independent and most especially how not to make money via employment.
Nobody ever became wealthy as employee. If financial freedom
is part of your dream, then start complimenting your paid employment with
investment in money generating activities and assets or start a part time
business. This is even more important in other to hand over to your kids a good
legacy right from their childhood.
While it might not be early learnt like spending
money, teaching your children how to make money should be part of the habit you
need to inculcate into their life early in life just like eating, drinking,
talking, walking and many more. This way, they will have a better orientation
about money. And if you are trying to do that, let them know there are better
ways of making money that give you freedom, that employment is an alternative.
It starts with savings. I told my boy, if you cannot
show me your savings from the allowance I am given you, I will reduce it instead
of increasing it, and if you still cannot save out of it after reducing it, I will
withdraw it totally. After all, I don’t have such benefit as a kid, except for eating
and drinking plus once a year clothe. I think that is what gets me creative on
finding alternative way of making money to meet up with my peers in term of clothing
and basic needs. Funny enough I have more than those who rely on their parents
for such.
You can’t stop at just savings, even if it is in bank
account, since interest on savings in most cases are below inflation which turns
savers to losers. You have to teach and mentor them on how to put his little
savings to use in other to make more money maybe just by buying goods at
wholesale and resell it to neighbours and mates at profit and many other
creative way of making money such as investment in paper assets, rendering
services to friends and neighbours, which will happen to become the beginning
of his entrepreneurship.
I realized that many parents and would be parents
reading this might not have the require knowledge and skills to educate their
children on how to make money after teaching them the principle of savings. If that
is the case, you can enroll them for such class or find a mentor for them. But the
best alternative is to start a family business and get them involve. The knowledge
and business skills they will learn from that cannot be compare to any other
alternative even if they will be going into other businesses or career path.
