If you don’t teach your children the lesson of money, society will teach it to them.

After my eldest child turned three, I began to seriously consider the disposal of the New Year\’s money. It is very simple before the age of three. Little creatures are far more interested in red envelopes than the banknotes inside. \”I have a red envelope!\” Literally, she had a red envelope, and she took it out happily every day to see the various patterns and gold powder on it. Take out the money and ask: \”What is this?\” You only need to calmly answer: \”This is money.\” Then she throws the money away and continues to play with the red envelope. But after the age of three, it’s really not that easy to fool. After the Lantern Festival, when the red envelope was confiscated, she would ask strangely: \”Isn\’t this a red envelope for me?\” So I had to lie to her: \”Mom, save it for you and use it for college in the future.\” It is now popular to say, \”You don\’t manage money.\” , money will not care about you.\” Let your children have \”financial intelligence\” from an early age, so that they can better gain a foothold in society in the future – I have heard this saying a lot, and I also decided to give my children some financial education – starting from managing the new year\’s money by myself. . In order for children to have a sense of \”financial responsibility\”, they must first learn to live within their means. So after the Chinese New Year, I left 200 US dollars for my boss – \”This money will be used for you for a year. From now on, all your children will have gifts for their birthdays. If you want to buy toys that your parents don\’t buy for you, just spend this money.\” Money.\” Children also have a rich social life. The children in my class have birthday parties every three days, and the gifts are basically 20 to 30 dollars. I thought about it, and I guess it may not be enough. But I didn’t expect the baby to be very serious. From then on, when another invitation to a child\’s birthday party came, she said – \”Let\’s not go.\” My face immediately cramped, isn\’t that your good friend? Why? My mother gave me the invitation and I accepted it! After she finally analyzed the ways of the world, she went to the supermarket and pointed at a gift worth five yuan, with a serious look on her face: \”Just buy this!\” My heart was broken, but I pretended to be a model mother and asked: \”If you don\’t spend your money, you won\’t be able to spend it.\” What toys are you going to buy for yourself?\” The person smiled coyly and said, \”No, it\’s too expensive. I\’ll ask Santa Claus to buy it for me.\” \”Then do you have 200 yuan left?\” \”I\’ll save it.\” The boss thought for a while. Then he added, \”Didn\’t you say you want to use it in college?\” The boss\’s awareness of financial responsibility was thus established. Later, her teammates showed her the rise of the U.S. stock market in 2017, and then extended her right hand: How about using the New Year\’s money to invest in stocks? Dad will help you trade stocks. The boss looked confused: Wouldn’t you lose money on stocks? His teammates slapped the table: Risks and benefits are the same! You can make money by taking risks! The boss gritted his teeth and went back to the room. After a long while, he tremblingly handed over 20 yuan. You see, she is already responsible for her own money. If she is afraid of losing, she invests less. Her investment style can be said to be very stable. Rather than letting children establish that \”I will make a lot of money in the future, live in a villa and drive a BMW,\” I think it is more important to let children understand that every financial decision they make has consequences, and that they are responsible for the consequences. Whenever I see on the news about naked loans and compound interest on several lending platforms, and end up owing hundreds of thousands, I am very curious: Don’t these kids know the basic truth that “borrowed money always has to be repaid”? In the final analysis, financial education must plant the words future, planning and responsibility in children\’s hearts. The most basic meaning of money isIt should meet our daily needs. But some parents say, \”You just need to do your homework and study hard, and don\’t worry about other things.\” They deliberately isolate their children from life. By the time they are teenagers, they have no idea about their family\’s financial situation. How can such a child have ideas about his future life and financial management? Therefore, the foundation of financial and business education is to understand money. After American children enter elementary school, there is a special theme of using coins to teach mathematics. 1 cent, 1 cent, 2 cents and 5 cents, and 1 yuan. At the beginning, children should be taught the basic monetary units. By the time I reach the second or third grade, I have learned addition and subtraction, and the gameplay has become richer. Go to the supermarket and observe how much lollipops, Oreos, and bread cost. I usually take my children to supermarkets and markets, asking them to read the price tags, calculate the total price and make change for me. Of course, now everyone in China uses Alipay and WeChat, so you can also calculate account balances and learn to compare prices. Every family is making money and spending money, trying to make ends meet. Allowing children to participate in their own family\’s financial management is the most basic financial education. The same principle applies to slowly letting children manage their own pocket money and new year\’s money. If a child is a little princess or an emperor, and parents are as satisfied with any material requirements as Doraemon, he or she will not be able to learn responsibility and will not be able to think about the future. It has become a rule in our family to reserve part of the New Year\’s money for free use, because it takes a whole year for them to learn to plan: keep accounts, make budgets, and learn to choose what they want. If the money is really spent, you can\’t go to your classmates\’ birthday parties or donate during school fundraisers. Of course, the younger the child, the worse the sense of control will be. Teaching your child to be financially responsible can start with a daily, weekly or monthly allowance. At the same time, parents should also set an example for their children. If the family has any important future financial plans, such as changing a car, buying major appliances, or changing a house, they should discuss it in front of the children so that the children can witness how their parents do it. Many people worry that talking about money too early will make children become too realistic and only focus on material incentives. I have also encountered this problem – my children\’s school has a points system. When they do something good, they will get extra points and use the points to exchange for rewards. Later, we learned and used this system at home: for example, for 5 points, you can ask your parents to play with you for 10 minutes, for 10 points, you can watch TV for 20 minutes, and for 30 points, you can buy a small Lego for less than 15 dollars. Then one day, the second child had an allergy. I gave her medicine in bed and called the oldest child to get some water. The boss\’s first reaction was: \”Can I add 1 point?\” I was stunned for a moment: \”If I don\’t give you extra points, you won\’t help, right?\” She hesitated, but went anyway. But I had a serious talk with her afterwards. I told her that family is a community and we are connected by emotions, not by legal principles and economic principles. Family, friendship, and love are all to which legal and economic principles do not apply. Emotions often have stronger constraints and motivations than legal punishments and economic temptations. Mom and Dad love you, do so many things for you, and take the initiative to put so many responsibilities on your shoulders, not so that you can repay us equally or more financially in the future.Not just to fulfill legal obligations. Family is a community and love is our engine. I hope our children can understand that wealth is only a bridge to happiness, not the purpose of our life, let alone happiness itself.