CHILD MONEY DOES NOT GROW IN THOSE ATMS
By James Abola
I am left with about ten years to become a parent with a teenage child. Given the speed at which the past three years have flown, I know ten years is not a very long period to learn the art (if it exists) of successful parenting. I have been learning from parents with older children what values they are passing on to their children so that they grow up to become responsible and successful in life.
Most parents would be happy if their teenage children were performing well in school and do not get into trouble with the opposite sex. Parents emphasise the importance of education to their children, the message is if you do not get a good education you will not amount to anything in life. Privately many fathers (mothers are generally more accommodative) would not want their children to go out on a date unattended and place a dusk to dawn curfew during holidays.
I am told that if I add to these a few other details like respect to elders and authorities; no tattoos; no outrageous hairstyles and outfits then I would count myself a successful parent. There is one important issue that the script missed out – that is relating to money. Think of it, children are going to relate to money all their lives and parents are not teaching them about money.
The message (intended or unintended) that most parents give their children is stay away from money or you will become spoilt. A lady who is now a parent told me that when she was still in lower primary she got some money and bought an exercise book. Excited about her acumen, she dashed home to show the purchase to her parents. The parents were instead concerned that she could get spoilt by money and gave her a good spanking.
Some parents and guardians still brave the queue to pay university and college fees for their dependents. I think there is a big problem when a college student cannot be trusted with cash to pay their own fees because they may misuse the money. What will you do when the fellow gets a job and starts earning money, will the parent still accompany him to the pay clerk or what?
There are a couple of things I shall be telling my little fellow about in addition to tattoos and hairstyles.
For starters most things to do with proper or improper use of money boil down to habits. The English say old habits die hard, which is similar to what the old book states “train a child the way they should go when they are young and they will not forget it when they are old.”
You will be surprised at how early in life; children can learn the importance of money in making purchases. You can teach your children good buying habits by taking them along for shopping. The child should be able to observe you using a shopping list as opposed to impulsive buying. The young one can also participate in collecting receipts and invoices that can later be used to record expenditure on household items. Using a shopping list brings in the element of planning into shopping. The best decisions in life are usually made with advance preparation. Children will learn that parents fit purchases to available resources and prioritise when there is scarcity. This territory goes along with understanding of pricing, quality and accountability. Later in life when the child is older s/he can be entrusted with basic shopping and they won’t shock you by bringing poor quality items or claiming that the price of a kilo of sugar has suddenly spiked from Shs 1,500 to Shs 3,000.
As early as possible make children realise the importance of saving. Many families over the decade have utilised the piggy bank until the child can understand the concept of using a bank account to save.
One mother with young children gives them little money to keep over night or for two days and then ask them to give it back to her. The intention is to help the children realise the importance of keeping money which can later be extended to saving. It is useful to take the child along and let them watch you deposit money into the bank account and not only let them watch the withdrawals from the ATM. If you only let your child watch you withdraw money from an ATM without showing the other side of the transaction, they may soon conclude that money grows in ATMs.
It is also important to make children realise the importance of sharing resources with those who are less endowed. This could be in kind and or cash. This will teach them the concept of giving. A key truth about finances is that if give, you receive more. Giving also frees us from being enslaved to money instead of using it as a tool.
The writer provides financial knowledge to individuals and businesses and can be reached on jhabola@yahoo.com
I am left with about ten years to become a parent with a teenage child. Given the speed at which the past three years have flown, I know ten years is not a very long period to learn the art (if it exists) of successful parenting. I have been learning from parents with older children what values they are passing on to their children so that they grow up to become responsible and successful in life.
Most parents would be happy if their teenage children were performing well in school and do not get into trouble with the opposite sex. Parents emphasise the importance of education to their children, the message is if you do not get a good education you will not amount to anything in life. Privately many fathers (mothers are generally more accommodative) would not want their children to go out on a date unattended and place a dusk to dawn curfew during holidays.
I am told that if I add to these a few other details like respect to elders and authorities; no tattoos; no outrageous hairstyles and outfits then I would count myself a successful parent. There is one important issue that the script missed out – that is relating to money. Think of it, children are going to relate to money all their lives and parents are not teaching them about money.
The message (intended or unintended) that most parents give their children is stay away from money or you will become spoilt. A lady who is now a parent told me that when she was still in lower primary she got some money and bought an exercise book. Excited about her acumen, she dashed home to show the purchase to her parents. The parents were instead concerned that she could get spoilt by money and gave her a good spanking.
Some parents and guardians still brave the queue to pay university and college fees for their dependents. I think there is a big problem when a college student cannot be trusted with cash to pay their own fees because they may misuse the money. What will you do when the fellow gets a job and starts earning money, will the parent still accompany him to the pay clerk or what?
There are a couple of things I shall be telling my little fellow about in addition to tattoos and hairstyles.
For starters most things to do with proper or improper use of money boil down to habits. The English say old habits die hard, which is similar to what the old book states “train a child the way they should go when they are young and they will not forget it when they are old.”
You will be surprised at how early in life; children can learn the importance of money in making purchases. You can teach your children good buying habits by taking them along for shopping. The child should be able to observe you using a shopping list as opposed to impulsive buying. The young one can also participate in collecting receipts and invoices that can later be used to record expenditure on household items. Using a shopping list brings in the element of planning into shopping. The best decisions in life are usually made with advance preparation. Children will learn that parents fit purchases to available resources and prioritise when there is scarcity. This territory goes along with understanding of pricing, quality and accountability. Later in life when the child is older s/he can be entrusted with basic shopping and they won’t shock you by bringing poor quality items or claiming that the price of a kilo of sugar has suddenly spiked from Shs 1,500 to Shs 3,000.
As early as possible make children realise the importance of saving. Many families over the decade have utilised the piggy bank until the child can understand the concept of using a bank account to save.
One mother with young children gives them little money to keep over night or for two days and then ask them to give it back to her. The intention is to help the children realise the importance of keeping money which can later be extended to saving. It is useful to take the child along and let them watch you deposit money into the bank account and not only let them watch the withdrawals from the ATM. If you only let your child watch you withdraw money from an ATM without showing the other side of the transaction, they may soon conclude that money grows in ATMs.
It is also important to make children realise the importance of sharing resources with those who are less endowed. This could be in kind and or cash. This will teach them the concept of giving. A key truth about finances is that if give, you receive more. Giving also frees us from being enslaved to money instead of using it as a tool.
The writer provides financial knowledge to individuals and businesses and can be reached on jhabola@yahoo.com
You know James, globalisation and the attendant exposure to different cultural values may also play a role in how parents and children approach the money issue. My own introduction to this is when my 8 year old spent some time with me in the US and went to school there. Her best friend made at least $50 a week from walking people's dogs. My little one is a budding "performance artist" and one day I asked her to put on a show for some friends. The kid charged me!! I gave her $3 and told her it was $300 (she had been in the US only a few weeks so I was able to get away with that). While still smarting from the pay out, I was encouraged when she offered a third of her payment to one of my friends who had participated in the dance perfomance. Business ethics from an 8 year old.....
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