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Do they have an allowance? Let them "deposit" it with you in return for interest. Or let them "invest" it, in return for a greater allowance in the future. Ma

by djbebs 5y ago

Do they have an allowance? Let them "deposit" it with you in return for interest. Or let them "invest" it, in return for a greater allowance in the future. Make it clear to them that if they do certain specific chores, you'll pay them for it. Do not force them to do the chores, simply make getting paid for doing it an option. Bring them in to the monthly discussion of the families finances Basically you need to gamify personal finance.

giantg2 5y ago
Generally agree. I would still make them do some smaller unpaid chores to understand that maintaining the household is a team effort and not everything is paid. Bigger infrequent chores are great for earning money (both from parents or neighbors), like mulching or other yard work. Encouraging them to start a "business" can be good too. I used to make and sell bluebird houses a few times per year. It teaches a lot about sales, expenses, pricing, etc that chores don't. "Bring them in to the monthly discussion of the families finances" This might not be a good idea depending on the specifics of that conversation. Also, this requires a partner who participates meaningfully in budget and finance topics.
- jimmyvalmer 5y ago
  > maintaining a household is a team effort and not everything is paid. As much as I'd like to impart "work for its on sake" as a concept, it's really really tough on the kiddos some of whose friends get a weekly allowance for just doing homework.
  - sudobash1 5y ago
    Learning to not compare yourselves to others is another valuable lesson. I think the majority of children (and probably adults too) would be happier if we were able to really internalize this. Additionally, not comparing oneself with others will avoid the "keeping up with the Joneses" mindset, and that is going to be a big help financially.
    - jimmyvalmer 5y ago
      Unless your name is Siddhartha, you will, consciously or not, evaluate with respect to others. Happiness is truly a social construct.
  - lotsofpulp 5y ago
    Good opportunity to teach them life is not fair, and learning to be happy even though it is not is a life long skill. Aka, comparison is the thief of joy.
  - giantg2 5y ago
    Oh yeah, school can be considered more like work than chores. We didn't get paid for homework, but we did get paid a little for As and Bs on report cards (but if you get a C or lower the whole card is zero).
- djbebs 5y ago
  To be honest you don't need to have big indepth discussions on your finances, but you should always regularly check in with your spouse (and kids) as to your monthly budget. Even something as simple as 15 minutes once a month, where you go over the previous months income and expenses and see if there are any differences from the budget, and you make a new budget for the next month is more than enough. It creates a space to ask questions, and keeps everyone up to date on where they stand, so you won't suddenly learn that your spouse has been maxing out their credit cards to buy FUNKO-POP! Figurines over the past 2 years.
  - giantg2 5y ago
    Yeah... my wife won't make a budget. We occasionally (2-3x year) talk super high level finances.
artificialLimbs 5y ago
Love those ideas for introducing interest. I would let them lose money if they’re investing in your investments and you realize loss as well to prevent unrealistic expectations. Our house is set against gamifying chores, and finding ways to instill a sense of pride, appreciation, practicality, and maybe even art in cleaning affairs. Granted we only have a 3yo so time will tell if that’s even possible. I suspect that may be personality related. I think just discussing money is one of the best helps. My family almost never discussed finances and money, and do no investing. I’m seeing the consequences of those decisions for them, and have taught myself about various things money to hopefully help prevent their kind of situation for us. We often discuss prices when we buy anything for our kid, whether it’s a box of candy or some food they want or a toy. We do give a weekly allowance to our kid, and they still get a big kick out of it even at only 3.
derekdahmer 5y ago
One small caveat, my parents always made a point of showing me the interest my savings account made on the monthly statement and it was like $2 which had the opposite effect they intended. You’ll probably have to offer a really high interest rate to make it effective for a kid that thinks of weekly time scales not years.
- dr_orpheus 5y ago
  Yeah, I had a similar feeling about this but it came from the unrealistic interest rates in example problems that we did in math class in school: "Sally puts her money in a savings account that makes 10% interest. If the interest is compounded monthly how much money does she make in 10 years?" Wow! That's amazing! I'm going to go put my money in a savings account. Wait my savings account is 0.1% interest...

by djbebs 5y ago

giantg2 5y ago

Generally agree. I would still make them do some smaller unpaid chores to understand that maintaining the household is a team effort and not everything is paid. Bigger infrequent chores are great for earning money (both from parents or neighbors), like mulching or other yard work. Encouraging them to start a "business" can be good too. I used to make and sell bluebird houses a few times per year. It teaches a lot about sales, expenses, pricing, etc that chores don't. "Bring them in to the monthly discussion of the families finances" This might not be a good idea depending on the specifics of that conversation. Also, this requires a partner who participates meaningfully in budget and finance topics.

jimmyvalmer 5y ago
> maintaining a household is a team effort and not everything is paid. As much as I'd like to impart "work for its on sake" as a concept, it's really really tough on the kiddos some of whose friends get a weekly allowance for just doing homework.
- sudobash1 5y ago
  Learning to not compare yourselves to others is another valuable lesson. I think the majority of children (and probably adults too) would be happier if we were able to really internalize this. Additionally, not comparing oneself with others will avoid the "keeping up with the Joneses" mindset, and that is going to be a big help financially.
  - jimmyvalmer 5y ago
    Unless your name is Siddhartha, you will, consciously or not, evaluate with respect to others. Happiness is truly a social construct.
- lotsofpulp 5y ago
  Good opportunity to teach them life is not fair, and learning to be happy even though it is not is a life long skill. Aka, comparison is the thief of joy.
- giantg2 5y ago
  Oh yeah, school can be considered more like work than chores. We didn't get paid for homework, but we did get paid a little for As and Bs on report cards (but if you get a C or lower the whole card is zero).
djbebs 5y ago
To be honest you don't need to have big indepth discussions on your finances, but you should always regularly check in with your spouse (and kids) as to your monthly budget. Even something as simple as 15 minutes once a month, where you go over the previous months income and expenses and see if there are any differences from the budget, and you make a new budget for the next month is more than enough. It creates a space to ask questions, and keeps everyone up to date on where they stand, so you won't suddenly learn that your spouse has been maxing out their credit cards to buy FUNKO-POP! Figurines over the past 2 years.
- giantg2 5y ago
  Yeah... my wife won't make a budget. We occasionally (2-3x year) talk super high level finances.

artificialLimbs 5y ago

Love those ideas for introducing interest. I would let them lose money if they’re investing in your investments and you realize loss as well to prevent unrealistic expectations. Our house is set against gamifying chores, and finding ways to instill a sense of pride, appreciation, practicality, and maybe even art in cleaning affairs. Granted we only have a 3yo so time will tell if that’s even possible. I suspect that may be personality related. I think just discussing money is one of the best helps. My family almost never discussed finances and money, and do no investing. I’m seeing the consequences of those decisions for them, and have taught myself about various things money to hopefully help prevent their kind of situation for us. We often discuss prices when we buy anything for our kid, whether it’s a box of candy or some food they want or a toy. We do give a weekly allowance to our kid, and they still get a big kick out of it even at only 3.

derekdahmer 5y ago

One small caveat, my parents always made a point of showing me the interest my savings account made on the monthly statement and it was like $2 which had the opposite effect they intended. You’ll probably have to offer a really high interest rate to make it effective for a kid that thinks of weekly time scales not years.

dr_orpheus 5y ago
Yeah, I had a similar feeling about this but it came from the unrealistic interest rates in example problems that we did in math class in school: "Sally puts her money in a savings account that makes 10% interest. If the interest is compounded monthly how much money does she make in 10 years?" Wow! That's amazing! I'm going to go put my money in a savings account. Wait my savings account is 0.1% interest...