Parenting Pointers: 7 Lessons Your Kids Must Learn As They Head Into The Real World

As high schools and colleges hold their graduation ceremonies and send our kids into the real world, one of the first things this new generation is going to need to learn about is how money really works. Sadly, these are lessons that aren’t taught in school. What are the best ways to really learn about money?

 

Steve Siebold is author of How Money Works and Secrets Self-Made Millionaires Teach Their Kids, and a self-made multi-millionaire who has interviewed more than 1,300 of the world’s wealthiest people over the past 35 years.

 

His advice:

 

·        Become self-educated: Read books about success, money, business, investing, and anything else that can give you an edge in the real world.  Higher education is indeed a commendable choice, but formal education will only make you a living. Self-education will make you rich.  

·        Do what you love: The fastest way to get rich is by doing something you love to do. When you do something you love and you’re good at, the world will reward you nicely. While most people in the middle class say the rich are always working, the wealthy are actually having so much fun because they love what they do. 

·        Become a failure: Most of today’s millionaires and billionaires lost large sums of money at one time. In fact, many of them lost a lot of money over and over again. Failure is often a prerequisite to massive success. Don’t look at failure as a bad thing. See it as a learning experience to make you more successful.

·        Don’t listen to limiting beliefs: Regardless who it is coming from, whether they are well-intended or not, don’t listen to people who tell you that you can only make so much money doing whatever it is you want to do. By using creative thought and solving problems that people need solutions for, and by creating so much value in the marketplace, you can earn as much as you desire.

·        Live small but dream big: College was the perfect time to value frugality while drawing inspiration from your wildest dreams. As you head off into the real world, you must live below your means for a time, use logic to dictate your thinking and emotion to motivate you into action. 

·        Develop a positive relationship with money: Our kids need to learn to look at money from the standpoint of freedom, opportunity, possibility and abundance. Sadly, most kids learn to see money as a negative and look at it through the eyes of fear and scarcity. Changing your beliefs about money won’t make them rich on its own, but it’s the key to building a solid financial foundation.

·        Know that you are now responsible: Hopefully your parents taught you fiscal responsibility. In the past, you probably knew they were always there to help you out. But now you’re most likely on your own when it comes to money. So remember, it’s up to you to make smart choices about your money, what you spend it on, and how you invest and prepare for the future.