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Gift 3: Save for retirement, so your kids don’t have to do it for you and can save for their new immediate family
We’re all kids at some point, which means we have a unique perspective on parenting. Kids who become parents themselves have an even broader perspective on parenting, but kids who don’t become parents still deserve a voice with their limited but often enlightening perspective.
I’m a kid who hasn’t become a human parent. However, I learned a lot about parenting by watching my parents and observing what other parents have done through the years with their kids.
The Gift: Financial Stability
You might think your actions not directed at your children don’t affect them all that much, but they do. They always do.
Not all kids have the gift of self-awareness, but many kids are self-aware to a degree and notice many things that impact them for the rest of their lives.
Every time you tell your kids you can’t afford something or something is too expensive, this idea of thinking latches on to your kid’s psyche.
Every time you spend more than you earn, you’re teaching your kid to live above their means.
Every time you de-prioritize your financial well-being to take care of someone else’s financial well-being, you’re teaching your kids to value their financial well-being less than others.
Every time you buy fancy things you can’t afford for appearances, you’re teaching your kids to buy into the empty pursuit of materialism.
Every time you struggle to pay the rent or mortgage, you’re showing your kids that you mismanage your money and don’t live below your means.
Some kids learn to do the opposite of what their parents do with their money. However, many offsprings merely repeat what they saw growing up. I see this happen more often than not.
The Gifts: Financial Stability, Literacy, & Secured Retirement
Gift 1: Live below your means.
Financial stability is not something many parents have. Most parents are often financial illiterate because their parents were financially illiterate. More and more parents are becoming financially savvy, but financial illiteracy is still widespread.
The average U.S. household with debt now owes $155,622, or more than $15 trillion altogether, including debt from credit cards, mortgages, home equity lines of credit, auto loans, student loans, and other household obligations – up 6.2% from a year ago (CNBC).
Most people in America live above their means, so most people in America hold some form of debt. Parents hold unnecessary debt most of their lives and teach their children, grandchildren, and future generations to do the same.
Gift 2: Educate your kids and yourself about money.
If you don’t understand money, educate yourself about the subject. My parents didn’t know much about money – especially considering their parents knew absolutely nothing about money. But this did not stop them from teaching my siblings and me about money.
Though my parents aren’t masters of money, they still made it a point to invest time in exposing us to people with money, lucrative opportunities, and quality financial education so we could make a choice – be prudent or imprudent with money.
Gift 3: Save for retirement, so your kids don’t have to do it for you.
This is a unique gift that not everyone thinks about. Many children are happy to take care of their parents financially, but they shouldn’t have to.
Many parents invest so much of their resources into their children or on things that don’t matter that once they reach retirement age, they’re flat broke. And who do they turn to if they need money? It’s often their family, aka kids.
It’s not uncommon for parents to forget about taking care of themselves because often, they’re enraptured with taking care of their kids. I watched my parents do this for years. Instead, I wish they took better care of themselves because that one thing you can’t get back is time. Time is best friends with investing and saving.
When parents tell their kids: I’m financially secure, it’s a pleasant surprise for kids who hold active relationships with their parents and plan to care for them in the future in some form.
Give your kids flexibility to save for their own families: When parents take care of their retirement, kids can focus on saving for themselves and their immediate family should they have one.
This content is for informational purposes only — not professional advice. Consult a qualified professional before making any major decisions.