4 tips : How to avoid children business failure traps

4 tips : How to avoid children business failure traps

Working hard to build children’s Business?

In order to teach my child about money I helped her start what seems to be a successful “jewelry Business”. My goal continues to be to teach my 12 year old daughter about money. To teach her how money works, how to manage money, create an income stream and the difference between working for money and having it work for you. So far, it has been a successful lesson but one that is difficult and an on going process.

Blogging honestly about Children, Money, success & failure

It has been several days since my last Post about my efforts to teach my daughter, a 12 yr old child, about money. I really have been busy with the efforts to teach her what I believe she needs to learn in order to have a better chance at having a successful financial future.

Like I said - it has been a successful start, but difficult and repetitive. There have been a few issues I have been making notes on in order to address on this blog when I found the time. I have a lot of notes so I’ll break it up for easy reading.

How to deal with :

1. “Repetition”; to a child repetition can be a negative thing?
Most to all children consider repetition to be a bore, especially annoying when it is a parent constantly reminding them of what they should or can not do. To children, a parents constant reminder can mean “are you saying I’m stupid” or a reason simply to rebel.

2. Overcoming the desire to do it for them
Children are not stupid, I believe they are the smartest humans on the planet. They will ultimately find away for you to do all the things they do not want to. Even if they have real issues that hinder them from a goal, they learn how to manipulate that to carry over into everything they want us to do.

3. Parents need to teach, build and Release
It is almost like second nature - parents want to teach their kids to be independent, the problem is when they become independent - we don’t know how to them go. We begin to create dependant children because we can't stand to see them grow up.

4. Make them responsible, even with Money
Nothing has given my 12 year old daughter a greater sense of freedom, power, ownership and responsibility than when I opened a checking account for her and she received that “new debit card” in the mail. Her words exactly were: “Mom, I feel so grown up now.”

Building on small successful steps in order to grow

Children need approval, appreciation, acknowledgement and patience parents - nothing builds a child’s confidence level than working out a problem into a successful result. The trouble arises when the child faces his/her natural instinct to be a child - you know, easily bored, distracted, the desire to avoid work or failure.

As I try to teach my daughter how money works, give her basic first level understanding about making money work for you, having a business pay for itself and other financial necessary knowledge - I deal with the facts - she is only 12 years old.

It scares me, I see high school students who know very little about the world, about money, unsure of their capabilities and sadly enough - do not even know how to balance a check book. I know an 18 year old girl who is talking about getting married, starting a career and here I am helping her plan her financial future. I asked her if she file her tax returns yet, her response: “I am waiting…” so I asked - “for what?” she replies, “well, to be honest, because I don’t know how to file my taxes….”

I think of my daughter and I can not help but wonder - am I doing enough? I want her to be more, do more, live more, not just be another cog in the machine stuck at a dead end job because she has no options available to her. I want to believe that if my daughter decides to be a plumber, a sanitation worker or work as the CEO of a company - it is because she wants to, not because she has to.

I want her to be a “millionaire next door”, she doesn’t have to be rich if she doesn’t want to - but I do not want her living pay check to pay check because Dad never showed her that their was more to life than just debt, going to work and more debt.

I also remind myself to continue to educate myself, to strive to do more and be a better example. It may be too late for me, but that does not mean I can not improve my situation or be a living example of what I want to teach my children.

On a side note:
My five year old has improved his reading and is trying to read some of the Rich Dad, Poor dad book. I am not sure if he just wants to compete with his sister or just because he sees what we’re doing he is motivated to do the same. I love it when he reads a few sentences of my book in the car on the way to school and says: “Dad, am I smart with my money?”

Overcoming the desire to do it for them

Overcoming the desire to do it for your kids

Children are not stupid, I believe they are the smartest humans on the face of the planet. They will ultimately find a way for you to do all the things they do not want to do themselves. Even if they have real issues that hinder them from a goal, they learn how to manipulate that to carry over into everything they want us or others to do for them.

When I started to teach my child about money one of the first things I did was to sit down with her every night and have her read a book called “Rich Dad Poor Dad”. While the book was not way over her reading comprehension level almost every night the first challenge I met was with my daughter wanting me to read her the book instead of her reading to me. Ofcourse I always found a way to convince her to read - but my goal in having her read was for her to understand, for her to 1- practice reading 2- learn and retain because she was reading [ using her brain and not pretending to listen ] and 3- by her reading I knew she was listening and not just ignoring me as I talked. After all, this was not a bed time story, this was a lesson, time of learning - even if it was also time of togetherness and more.

Fighting the Urge to do it for them

As Parents we have two options when our children do not do what they were asked or told to do - you do it for them or you give up on them. My wife sometimes falls into both categories - the problem is that both of these options does nothing to help the child, except teach them to be lazy or incompetent.

The challenge I face now is fighting against the over whelming Urge to do it for her - her business is doing so well and like children do, they lose interest or have a tendency to taper off and relax when they should be pushing forward. At a point I was ready to take the jewelry material and make some jewelry pieces on my own in order to keep the selling going. But I didn’t. I know if I start I wont stop because she will begin to rely on me to do the work instead of her doing the necessary work to keep her business going.

When I was a teenager my Mother always asked me to “help” my sister with her homework - which I hated to do. Not because I did not want to help, but because I already learned that the help my sister wanted was not help but for me to “give” her all the answers.

So despite my “URGE” to keep the sales coming, the business moving, I have to sit back and bite my nails as I watch and hope that my little girl learns that this is what she has to do if she wants to succeed.

A tip to help with lack of desire is goal and reward

Children are children and they will lose interest, desire and occasionally take extended breaks because - they are children. Children have no worries of paying the bills, providing food or anything else for that matter. If they are hungry they ask Mom for dinner. If they miss school they just make up the work later. The mind set of a child will always be - I have time to do it later - we all did this as children.

The goal of a Parent is to give a child goals, time constraints and purpose or rewards if you like.
I have set up 2 goals and time constraints for my daughter:

1. She set her own goal of raising $1,000 dollars by Oct 31, 2010.
It can be achieved, she made over a $100 dollars in 3 weeks selling her jewelry pieces. If she accomplishes this goal she will learn that even though she thought it was impossible - if she works hard she can accomplish anything she sets her mind to.

2. If she reaches the $1,000 dollar goal I will give her a lap top.
We were getting a new computer and my daughter was franticly asking me when she can get her own - she even asked if she could use the money she is making from her jewelry business to buy the lap top - I used this opportunity to build some interest and a goal for her - I told her that when she reaches $1,000 dollars in October I will buy her a new laptop and she will not have to use her own money. That put a fire in her belly for awhile at least.

Ultimately you know what works for your own child. You know what motivates them, drives and interest them the most. I suggest you use that not to manipulate but to motivate.

Another thing we have to learn as Parents is to allow them our children to work at their own pace. Yes, I know kids forget, lose interest and we already knowing that life is short and time is money want everything done today or better yet - yesterday. But we have to remember that this is a lesson, training, that our goal is to teach them the principals and tools they need in life in order to succeed - not to make them multimillionaires at the age of six.

I was watching a show a while back about extra ordinary kids - children who had their own clothing line, toy business and were already CEO’s of their own companies at age 10, 12 and 16. They were ordinary kids, one particular boy who like to invent fun underwater pool toys that his father licenses to a toy company.
It made me think: Why can’t my kids do that?

We have to remember that no one is happy trying to be some one else - and we have to let our kids be themselves - the goal is to teach them how to think, to understand that there are more ways to doing things than that of just being a follower, an employee. To instill in them the principal that made this country great and why millions of people still come from all over the world to this country, a land of opportunity.

Too many people think that they are trapped in a dead end job - but they are only trapped if they refuse to try and learn about all the opportunities that are out there for them.

“Repetition”; to a child repetition can be a negative thing?

Children making money can be easily motivated into doing more. The problem is that as time goes on as most parents do - we begin to “repeat” ourselves because children tend to need constant reminders of how we want things done. In teaching my child about money and how to run her small business - I have to be careful not to be a nuisance by nagging [ constantly reminding her ] about what she needs to do.

Repetition; being repetitive can be a hindrance to your efforts

As a parent I know children need constant reminders ofwhat needs to be done and how it should be done. We parents repeat ourselves so much we tend to believe we are talking to the wall when it comes to our kids listening to us. It is simply second nature for us to Nag:

Pick up your cloths
Do your homework
I told you clean up your room
I said walk the dog now!

My daughter is a shy but independent child, I expect much of her because she is extremely smart and I see so much potential in her - but some days, I just want to kill her.

Children are just that children, they do not listen, they ignore you, they easily forget things when it is convenient to them and they act like it is never their fault. We as parents start to do the natural thing - we complain, we repeat everything a million times and they think we are nagging them to death. So in my efforts to teach my daughter about money I have to stop myself from being the nagging parent and figure out ways to convey why I want things to be done in such a fashion, manner or time.

Do you want independent self motivated children or a Slave?

While every parent wishes thier children did everything they were told to do - I want a self motivated independent child not a slave. My goal in teaching my daughter about how money works, business and other financial knowledge is not so that she could be a follower but a leader. In my attempts to teach and train I sometimes forget and simply start barking orders at my daughter expecting her to follow my lead. Which basically defeats the purpose of everything I am doing.

When I first told my daughter that she had enough cash in the bank that she will now start paying for her own materials and supplies: what I really meant to say was: “Now that I helped you build up your cash reserves, the next step is for you to become more independent. To learn how to manage your business and money so that your business can pay for itself.”

But no, I didn’t think and just blurted out that she had to pay for her own materials now - which caused her to complain and argue accusing me of wanting to have her “ waste” her savings. She was illogical, but what can you expect from a 12 year old - I did a poor job of explaining what we were doing and why.

Once I explained what I really meant to say and took her through the motion of having her go to the store, buy new materials, create new jewelry and ultimately sell it for a profit - she began to get a sliver of understanding about what I was trying to teach her. The business should be able to sustain itself - pay for itself - if it is to be successful. It took a few days but she is starting to understand and is happy with the concept.

Slow long process and you need to Push

My daughter is smart but she is shy, which makes the business she is in a bit difficult to accomplish. Besides the fact that I have to remind her that if she does not make product - she can not sell product and make money. The hardest part of this process is to teach her and to motivate her to actually do the selling .

She enjoys making the jewelry, she is a girl and what girl does not like to go shopping even if it is for jewelry supplies - but she is simply too shy to go out their and sell. For the most part I have been their to help and occasionally I had to push her into selling her jewelry. Most of her selling experience has been with family, friends and acquaintances. I push her because as I have explained to her, she needs to grow and build her customer base - she can not rely on the same customers to always buy her products. I also want to continue to teach her how to sell - as I stated in a my post “Teaching children how to sell“, is important. Every child has to learn how to sell because everyone is always selling something - if your not trying to sell yourself for a promotion, a mate, friendship, your selling a product or something else.

Communication is important, yet most people have few skills in selling because they lack communication skills. People fail before they even start because they fear rejection or do not know how to handle rejection. Learning how to sell helps with learning how to deal with rejection.

Finding myself at Odds

As a parent it seems natural just to lead - you tell your kids lets go just follow me - it is just a part of being a parent. It also breaks a parents heart not just to see your child fail but to actually see them ready to fail [ fall ] and not to be able to stop it. In my case, I actually have to stop my natural instinct of wanting to lead, of wanting to protect my child from failure [ falling ] in order to teach her how to succeed.

This puts me at odds with my wife who has taken an active part in my daughters jewelry business and is mistakenly helping her by doing most of the selling [ she calls it helping ].

I also find myself looking forward and not realizing that my daughter is not yet ready for the next step or the next four steps I already planned out for her. My daughter is the typical slick kid - if she can get her mother to do something for her - then why do it herself. But I also have to remind myself that she is only 12 and even though I have to push her at times - I have to move forward at her pace - because then I am simply nagging, being a nuisance and she will hate the business and then my efforts to teach are all in vain.

Children need help to make money

Here I am trying to help my daughter reach her goal of buying a Laptop - my 12 yr old that is.
It's my fault, I gave her the idea - so now I have to help.

She's been working real hard and has already earned $100 dollars through her own efforts [ no money from Dad, except for paying for supplies and materials ]. But she found a new way to make some extra money and she wants, needs, is telling me I have to help. Ofcourse, she is a girl so she is selling jewelry [ a bit out of my expertise...]

Help Kiki buy her laptop

Necklace Sets CC Beads W Large Drop
$7.00 each
S&H $3.00
Can take 2-3 weeks to ship
Duaghters Profit $1.50

* send check with item#3 to address below

She is using a drop ship kind of program and selling other peoples jewelry. She is selling the piece at a very low price in order to get sales [ smart idea ]. Since she is only 12 her goal is not to make millions just enough for that laptop.

I hope she succeeds because that's money I don't have to spend - and what dad doesn't want that.

I know this maybe too much to ask but she is my little girl and I am proud of her for trying to make her own way. I've been trying to teach her in these rough economic times that money does not grow on trees and that she has to learn how to make money, budget her money and think in more terms of being "owner" and not just employee. I have to say, so far she has been doing a good job.

So I am asking you - help a father help his little girl out. If you want to get something nice for valentine, mothers day, a birthday or just because - maybe this nice necklace can help [ it's cheaper than what you will find in the store?

Please mail Check [ $10 includes S&H ] with return address to:

* make check out to Keira Medina

3550 Youth care Lane

Sebring, Fl 33870

Making money and loving it !!

My daughter is making money – I can’t believe it.

I shared with you a while back about my endeavors to help my 12 yr old daughter learn about money. One of my goals was to help her understand that she needed to think in terms of being the boss [ a business owner ]. Well, good news, in the short time that she has started her jewelry business has easily earned more than $100. Her goal to “make” $1,000 dollars by Oct 30, 2010 is not that impossible as she first thought.

The money she has earned has been made in the last 2 weeks, the more she sees that she can sell, can make money and with her own business – the more she wants to do. Ofcourse there are still some challenges.

As with any business she has to learn about inventory, price points, sales and returns and so much more. The biggest obstacle was her shift to saving mode. Most of her supplies and materials have been provided to her thru gifts and her biggest investor - me. I tried teaching her that she needs to budget her money and that she needs to use her income to buy her supplies. Boy did that bring on an ugly scene. Right away she was accusing me, dear old dad who has supplied 80 percent of her materials of wanting her to “waste” all her money.

Learning how to run a business is a process

I don’t expect my daughter to understand everything I am trying to teach her. I expect to have to butt heads with her especially when it comes to “motivation”, she is twelve after all. But if I want her to learn what she needs to learn about money in order to be a success – she better stop crying and start listening.

I did take the “I’m your parent” approach for a second and threatened to stop buying her the supplies she needs – then I calmed down and explained to her that I am trying to teach her more, one day dad won’t be around and I need to know she can do it on her own. That helped a bit, but like life – learning is a process and we have to take steps [ in a twelve yrs olds case, it’s baby steps…. ].

Teaching, learning and working together

One of the things I love most about this process is the time we spend together; I even make jewelry with her. It’s a fun way to make money I have to say and I never thought I’d be working for my daughter [ just a joke ].

It’s nice to sit there with her, watch her be creative, talk and just spend time together. Ofcourse I also get the old juices flowing when I start being creative as well – who knew that jewelry making could do so much.

Can you make a profit?

A friend saw the jewelry my daughter was making and asked me if she was making a profit. Yes- ofcourse! Right now the jewelry pieces are priced at $3 or $4 a piece and my daughter is making a killing, especially since I am paying all the bills in this business. But I can not put a price on the time we spend together or the knowledge she is learning.

It may look simple, childish – a small jewelry business run by one child….. But she is learning how to make money, run a business, dealing with customers, filling orders, marketing and so much more. This may be a small operation, but what she is learning, the confidence she is building, the understanding that she is gaining – it’s priceless to this dad.

Steps to teach your child to build wealth rather than just consume

Parents are always faced with the same problem – their children asking for money, acting like if mom and dad are simply atm’s that dispense money when ever they want it. How do you teach your child to value a dollar? How do you teach them that money doesn’t grow on trees? More importantly, how do you teach them not to be just an employee, but to build wealth?

Have them start their own business.
It will require more time, effort and even money from you the parent, but I think you will like the results.

1. Teach your child about money, even if only the basics.
2. Help your child understand that they can make their own money.
3. Help your child find a business [ you decide if it’s a good and profitable business ]
4. Help your child start that business.
5. work with your child [ understand you are not only Mom / dad and child but co-works ]
6. Be extremely patient with your child.
7. Teach through example, be the lead but not the leader [ motivate ].
8. When successful, multiply that success, help them understand how they were successful and help motivate them to repeat it.
9. Face failure correctly, teach perseverance.
10. Make it fun, enjoyable and a hidden learning tool.
11. Give them a real goal, help them want a goal and to desire to accomplish that goal.

The rest is simply you, your child, learn thru experience. And hopefully, what you will treasure most is the time you spent with your child.

Children need to know about tax breaks and benefits

Children need to know about tax benefits and tax breaks

If you want your child to learn about money, business and be successful – talk to them about the benefits of “Tax write off’s”. That is right, tell your child about the wonderful world of taxes and then tell them the deference between the write off’s a regular person has and that of a business owner has.

Why do I bring this up, because as I spent some time with my daughter last night – making jewelry pieces; she said something that gave me hope. She said “Dad, it’s good to have your own business.” She doesn’t realize how good it really is just yet.

I have spoken to my daughter about the general differences in tax burdens between the rich and the poor [ meaning the working class ]. She understands that the working class pays more taxes than the rich because of the lack of knowledge and no working class tax breaks. But once I am done with this years tax process – I have decided to show her how it works in the real world.

Now, I’m not going to bore you with all the possible tax write off’s a business gets – you should get professional help for that. But in general I will tell you how I plan to explain a difficult tax system to my 12 year old and the benefits I personally see.

Tax benefits for having own business [ * even if only side business ]

1- Tax write off’s : you can write off in whole or in part things like a new car, a new computer, business supplies, and even things like health care. Yes it all has to be for the business but – it belongs to you, you use it and you get tax break.
2- Deferred tax burden: employees have their taxes taken immediately they get paid, companies can have their tax burden deferred to every quarter or even till the end of the year.
3- Pay less taxes: here is a double whammy (a.) business’ like corporations can pay fewer taxes than the average person even though they make much more money. (b.) if you have a side business you can claim all your dependants pay as little taxes as possible on your employee check and still get government money back at end of year.
4- You can itemize: my tax guy told me not to itemize on my personal taxes unless my itemizing gave me more than the government allowed tax break for being married ($6,000) and of course there are little to no tax breaks to itemize on the employee side of the tax table. But, in a business you can itemize several items and as you can see by example #1 it can get very beneficial.
5- You do not have to cheat, lie, steal: it’s all legal and above board. All you have to do is know the laws, follow them and get the benefits [ this is where a good tax person helps ]. Plus your tax person should always prepare you for next year.

Now what does all that mean to a twelve year old ?
It means that even though a business can be fun and can be difficult – when you look at the big picture you can see the larger benefits, gains, monetary value. Most people say they want to be in business because they want to be the boss, in control, have freedom. But the truth behind it is based on money. Not to sound greedy or too capitalist, but think about it, being the boss, freedom – it is simply away of saying I have the money to do what I want.

My daughter tells me that she wants her own business but still wants to grow up to be a doctor. Hey, that’s fine with me. Having a business will give her the freedom she needs to do what ever she wants – be a doctor, lawyer, a school teacher if she wants, as long as she has a profitable business to take advantage of all the American opportunities.

Does your child “Have big Dreams”

Like I said, my daughter wants to be a doctor, for awhile she wanted to be an astronaut – all children have big dreams. Like me and many Americans those dreams are squashed or pushed aside because they do not have the financial freedom to even try to attempt them.

As a parent we all want the best for our kids, but between high cost of living, taxes and living – some of us can barely afford to live week to week. Your child may not become the next Bill Gates or even a millionaire, but you don’t need millions to live comfortably. Then again, your Childs small business may propel him / her to bigger and brighter opportunities. All I am saying is, atleast give them a chance.

Children, Business and who is the Boss ?

Children, Business and who is the Boss ?

One of the problems teaching your child about money and starting or creating a business - is when you run into the issue of : Who is the Boss?

It is hard enough dealing with your child in a parent child relationship and they reach that point that they believe they are independent individuals who do not need to listen to mom and dad. That stage most parents call “rebellion” is only multiplied when your trying to teach your child how to be a business owner and not just an employee [ follower].

You tell your child that they have to think, be independent, don’t let their friends influence them, learn how to deal with rejection - but what does a parent do when their child says: “this is my business and I think I can do it like this”…..

I’ve been thinking about this for the last three weeks. I saw an altercation between my daughter and my wife over how a piece of jewelry needed to be fix. A piece of jewelry my daughter sold to a customer had broken and the customer [ a friend ] asked if it could be fixed. My daughter, the twelve year old was dragging her feet in fixing it. When “Mom” forced her to fix it, she did just that, she fixed it. But Mom wanted more, she thought she should improve the jewelry, that it was too short, not centered and so forth. Ofcourse my daughter argued back that she only needed to fix the clamp and that she put everything back the original way - just like when the customer bought it.

That started a long debate which ended in “Mom” playing the parent card. She scolded her for being an individual and told her that she was “MOM” and that she had to do what she said.

That left me in the middle - First, she had to fix the jewelry piece. Second, she should put more effort in pleasing customers in order to retain repeat loyal customers. But she did put it back just the way the customer first bought it. So here I am trying to ease my wife’s ego - trying to help her understand that even though she was right, she is not the boss, her daughter is the boss of her business. Succeed or fail, we can only advise.

On my daughter’s side, I explained to her that Mom just really wanted to help, that she wants her to succeed and just pushed a bit to far. But that she should learn to be more open to suggestions, just because she is the Boss does not mean that she is always right. The Boss can learn to improve, that she should stop and listen because someone else may have a better way or idea.

So what advice do I have to give:

1. Parents have to understand the dynamics of the relationship with your child. They run their own business [ depending on age] so you advise, help, encourage, help some more and work with them.

2. Understand that they are children - plus individuals, they have their own ways of doing things and yes they will falter, make mistakes and even fail. That is part of the learning process.

3. Remember your not the boss - but you are an investor, chairman of the board and the bank, so you have a say in the business. You want them to succeed, they need you to start and to succeed. So compromise, find a happy medium where both of you can agree to do what needs to be done to make your Childs learning experience and business a success.

4. Be ready to let them fail and to let them succeed. If they fail help them back up with encouragement, if they succeed, help them use that success to move forward.

Please, tell me what you think, and I would appreciate any advice. Leave me a comment below and I will be sure to read it.

Teaching Kids 2 important business & life concepts

Teaching Kids 2 important business & life concepts

I was joking around with my daughter and my wife got very offended at a joke I made. I thought about what we talked about and realized this was a good opportunity to talk about two very important business and life concepts that children today are not taught.

The joke, well it was what I thought to be a witty childish comeback – I told my daughter that she was a garbage picker and my wife mistook it as a put down on the fine institution of Sanitation. Which it wasn’t, but she wanted to point out that people always look down at people who work in certain jobs.

So, while I explained that the joke was not a putdown intended to insult the fine profession on the sanitation department – I quickly informed both my wife and especially my daughter about two important factors in life:

1- It is not how you start but how you finish.

2- It is not about what you do, but if you are the Boss.


I know that society [ especially parents ] view doctors, lawyers and so forth as wonderful prestigious professions that their children should aspire to attain. Few parents tell their children “Son, your life will be great if you grow up to be a janitor”. No, we all want our children to be the next President of the United States or atleast the next CEO of a large corporation.

But the truth is, if you are happy in the sanitation field or picking oranges – that is what you should do. No one should feel ashamed of their profession – But with that said: we need to teach our children that while they should not be embarrassed or ashamed of a profession, they should not settle for less either.

Concept # 1: It is not how you start but how you finish.

Not everyone is born with a silver spoon in their mouth or a parent that sacrifices everything to help their child reach high goals. Most if not 90 percent of all the population in America have to start at the poor or middle class level. That means we all come from or are all working class individuals who have to struggle through life.

Weather you started as a Sanitation workers child or a janitors son – be proud of an honest days work. There is nothing wrong with having a dirty job – some one has to do it, do it with pride. But also plan for the future, to improve your life. A couple of Blog post back I wrote about an elderly woman who I worked with, she was a millionaire and she showed up at work everyday with a smile on her face. Was she happy because she had money – yeah, I am sure of that, but she also enjoyed her work. I have known people who have large business, a lot of money, big houses and are the most miserable people on planet earth.

A job is just a job – you may need this job to reach your goal, you may need this job until you get a better job, then move to the next and so forth. But ultimately your success is based on you reaching your goals and being happy with what you do and how you live.

I received an email a while back with a wonderful story about being content: the short version of the story is that this big business man saw a fisher man in Mexico and asked him why he stopped working so early in the day. The Mexican fisherman said that he caught enough fish to feed his family so he is going home to play with his children, love his wife and spend time with his friends at the bar.

The man said no, you should work hard all day and catch more fish. The fisherman ask him why – the man replied by saying that if the fisherman worked hard he could get extra fish to sell to the cannery, then with the extra money and work he could get more workers, extra boats, eventually have his own cannery and then do so much more. The Mexican fisherman asked him “after I do all this, what do I do then?”

The man said, well after ten or twenty years and your successful, then you can spend your time playing with your kids, loving your wife and hanging out with your friends…


Concept # 2: It is not about what you do, but if you are the Boss.

When I was a child all I wanted to be was a lawyer. That was it for me, be like Perry Mason and all those rich smart TV lawyers, ofcourse my family could not afford that kind of an education so I settled for air force pilot, then I just did like everyone else – took what ever job I could get.

But I have learned one thing, it doesn’t matter what you do – what really matters is, if you’re the Boss.

The last year I have meet some very interesting people, they love what they do, enjoy going to work in the morning and most of all – they are pretty much content. Why, because they are owners, not workers – owners. They all owned one form of business, some were large business, others were small business – what mattered to them is that they loved what they did and they owned the business.

Now, I know everyone can not be a business owner – everyone can not be a chief, we need Indians [ a work force ]. But not everyone has to be a worker for life, living pay check to pay check, struggling to get by.

Remember, it is about your goals and what makes you happy and content.

The reason I say it is best to be the boss is because of the freedom it affords you. A worker has to ask for days off, a boss just takes the day off. A worker needs to work everyday – the boss just needs the business to work. Don’t get me wrong, I know several business owners who love working at and in their business every day. The difference is they go to work because they want to; the employee goes because he/she has to.

Again, you may love your job; you may love your life – that is ok. What I refer to is, how long before you can no longer do your job anymore? I have a friend I’ve mentioned on this blog before. She cleans houses and she’s proud of what she does. Her customers can’t live without her so she doesn’t have too much trouble making a living. But a while back I talked to her about maybe expanding and starting a business where other people would work for her. Her response was: my customers only want me and it’s too much trouble to have people working for me. We talked for some time and I could not change her mind – what concerned me most was “time”.

Time is a factor in everyone’s life. Eventually she will get too old to be cleaning homes, then what? What will she do if she is too old or if she gets ill and can not work? Being the boss, being an owner is not with out its pit falls and trouble. Being the boss, an owner has it’s ups and downs – but if you’re the boss [ owner ] when you get sick, old or lazy – you can stop working and still earn an income. Every time I visit my local grocery store I am reminded of that fact – people who are 65, 75 years old working as cashiers or baggers because what they use to do when they were young and healthy – they can no longer do now.

I think of my situation, how long it took me to get my head on straight – I do not want the same for my children, I want better. Does my daughter have to end up a millionaire? No. But I would like to think that her situation turns out better than mine – time, it’s the only thing in life that can not be restored, replaced or manufactured. Once it is gone, time, it is gone forever.

So remember to teach your children these two essential concepts: 1- do not be ashamed of what you do, it may just be a step on the way to something better – be proud and do it with pride. 2- Plan for more, plan for something better in the future. Do not get stuck or content with doing what is easy, one day you may find that it is no longer easy and you have nothing to fall back on.

In the end, be happy with yourself and what ever you do, do it right, with pride in the work you do.

Teaching children how to sell helps financially and w/ self esteem

Teaching children how to sell helps financially and w/ self esteem

One of the reasons poor people are poor is because they have nothing to sell. The fact is that the minute you have something to sell, you can start making money. The art of selling is a skill that can help children financially and even with low self esteem issues.

I know what you’re thinking; putting a fragile child to sell products does not help with low self esteem issue – it would only hurt a child to have to face rejection. First lets be honest – selling is just part of every day life, so is rejection and how you deal with rejection.

I use to frown upon the girl and Boy Scout organization because they exploited children to sell cookies to raise funds. While I still believe their being exploited, I believe the experience can be a positive plus when it comes to life. Every person on earth is always selling something, selling themselves to potential friends, schools, colleges, jobs and vice versa, every day we are faced with rejection. Rejected in love, work promotion, friendships and more – how we deal with rejection and the skills we have when it comes to selling is what really makes some people stand out more than others.

Shy children need to learn how to sell

While I am not advocating some emotional training here, I am stating the fact that “selling” and I mean learning how to sell and overcoming rejection – can help a child with low esteem and could definably help a child’s financial future.

As I wrote this, these two children walked into my office looking to sell some candy bars to help raise funds for a scholarship. I knew what they wanted because this is the third group that has come by here. The minute I said that a group had already come by here one of the girls said “Well you could give us a donation too” the second girl burst into a loud grunting compliant “Ah man dog, this sucks, this is a lousy Christmas….” Ofcourse It did not seem like they suffered from low self esteem, but their attitude [ as if entitled ] to receive something from me only proves that their lack of “selling skills” is what inhibits them from reaching success – a sale.

My daughter is generally a shy girl, she can be loud, boisterous, a regular pre-teen, but ask her to talk to strangers and she emotionally shuts down. As I have mentioned before in my blog I am trying to help her convert her hobby of making jewelry, into a jewelry business. This Christmas I told her that during Christmas break we [ meaning her and I will just accompany her ] were going to go door to door to try and sell her jewelry. She freaked, she said she could not do it. Apparently unbeknownst to me the last day of school was half a day and she was spending most of the day with her mother at work. My wife, always the "sneaky" individual decided to take the jewelry with her to work and she and my daughter sold all but one set and made $27 dollars in 40 minutes.

I would have preferred for my daughter to have done all the work by herself, but the lesson I was trying to instill in my daughter was successfully made. That while the fear of rejection can hold you back, the sweet smell of success will drive you even farther forward. At first she didn’t want to face rejection, she said “who would buy my jewelry”, but when I arrived home that night, she could not stop talking about how people liked her stuff and how much money she made. While this is just her first step in selling a product, it is a good first step. I have always taught my daughter that she had to be her own person, to believe in herself. This helped bring that lesson home, it was not just dad, but total strangers who approved of her, of her work and paid cash as proof.

Selling is a skill to be learned, honed and practiced


I do not have the space to go over all the techniques about how to sell, how to deal with rejection. But selling, understanding how to deal with people and rejection changed my life. I was a shy kid and even a more shy adult – I called it being a loner, but in reality it was my inability, my fear of dealing with people and having low self esteem [ lack of confidence ]. I was forced to sell when the only job I could find was in the retail business selling shoes. Then over the years retail [ selling ] has seemed to have stuck with me. Selling is partly knowing how to converse with people - many people today lack the simple skills to carry a conversation with others.

The basic’s of selling:

#1 - Know your product, is it good, do you believe in it?

When it comes to self-esteem, do as I did, I taught my child that she was special, not because she was better but just one of a kind. No one, no one at all can be her equal because there is only one of her, being different, unique, one of a kind keeps her special.

Does not matter what you are selling – the question should be, do you believe in it?

#2 – It is a numbers game do not take it personal.

A sales person should know and understand that not every one will love, accept and buy your product. Be that product a cell phone, a car or you yourself. People are different and have different wants needs and likes. A good sales person knows he/she has to offer a product 4, 7, 10 times before getting one sale. You have to keep trying.

#3 - Because they said no today they may say yes tomorrow?

People have needs and those needs change with time, often times it takes people a bit of time to even realize that they need something or that something they rejected is of use or to their benefit. The old saying is try, try and try again - never give up.

#4 - Presentation is key, likeability is a factor.

People never think of how they look, speak, act or even how they present themselves to others until it's too late. The first time most teenagers ever realize that how they present themselves is important is when they are trying to get accepted into a college or applying to a job. Ask any young man who is trying to impress his new girlfriends Dad, presentation, likeability, personality - it is very important.

#5 - Look, listen, understand then SPEAK?

One of the things they first taught me when I started any job or profession that required selling a product or myself was these simple tips: look, listen, understand then you speak.

If you want to start a conversation with some stranger [ to sell a product or make a new friend ] you have to:

a- look, if in a home at the decor, pictures so forth, if not in the home, at the person how they dress, act, speak present themselves.

b- Listen, be slow to speak and quick to listen. Listen to what they are talking about, get to know who they are, what they like, what interest them.

c- Understand; try to understand what and why they say what they are talking about. Understand their point of view and try [ it's a guessing game ] but try to keep their topic of conversation going if you know and understand it. Never try to pretend to know something you do not - people can tell a fake. Be honest and genuine about learning if you do not understand, most people like to know things and teach others.

d- Speak, people like to talk, and usually they speak too much. Learn how to look, listen, understand then speak. Plus always try to stay on topic, with in the current conversation. One of the flaws of most sales people is that 2 minutes into the conversation and they are throwing out their sales pitch. You have to learn about the people, let them get to know you to get comfortable with you and then you slowly begin to sell them.

Ofcourse there are some sales situations where a quick sales pitch is necessary - shoe store, cell phone, home depot and so forth. But in general with real estate, life insurance and making general friends it is best to follow the steps mentioned: look, listen, understand and then speak.

Why would my child ever need this selling technique?

You are probably wondering why a child would need to learn these "selling techniques"; he/she does not need this to help them make friends or to help them over come shyness.

Think of it as you like, but this would give your child a step up on all his/her friends. Even if your child is at ease and makes friends easily, what about college, job interviews, selling cookies or high school prom queen? One day your child will have to sell him/herself in order to sell a product or get a product or service. Maybe your child will need these techniques to simply win out a colleague at getting a scholarship, promotion or some other prize.

It's up to you; after all it is your child.

When 5 Cents is worth more than 5 Cents

When 5 Cents is worth more than 5 Cents
Helping children learn about money

Parents are always running into a brick wall when it comes to the subject of money and children, I mean teaching children the value of a dollar that is. It’s one of the reasons I started my blog: Money and Kids.

One hot topics is on Allowances.
Parents are tossed between giving a child an allowance, fearful of having a child believe money grows on trees or having the child earn his/her allowance which seems unfair to child and others who believe in the policy that we are a family of citizens and depend on one another to survive, therefore we should not pay our children to do what is already expected of them as part of the family [ chores ].

Whether you want to have your child earn his allowance or give it to them freely does not, in my opinion, really teach a child the value of money.

When is 5 cents worth more than 5 cents?

In order to teach a child [ for that matter most adults ] about money, you have to understand money. Many people quote the bible in saying: "My people suffer for lack of knowledge." But many of those same people who promote study and education - learn little to nothing about money.

How can you expect to teach a child about money by simply making them work? All your doing is training them to be good employees for the rest of their lives. And if you try to teach them how to budget, how to live beneath their means - what does that say about you, all your unfulfilled dreams and wants? So if you give them allowance [ money ] free or if they earned it - what did you really teach them?

Open your mind to More than what you see
Here is a tip to help teach your child to grasp some knowledge and understanding about money.
There are a lot of things we have to teach our children about money. How to make it, what it is really worth, what happens to money, how to manage money and best of all - how to make money work for you.

But lets start with this: When is 5 cent worth more than 5 cents?

Find yourself a nickel with a date of 1964 or later [ sometimes they are hard to come by, and there is a reason why ].

Then sit your child down and ask them which would they prefer: would they prefer to have the nickel or a quarter?
** Chances are all children with the basic knowledge of money will choose the higher "face" value money

Then ask them why they would prefer to have the quarter verses the nickel?
** Normally they will say that the nickel is worth less than the quarter.

Then take the time to explain to them why you would prefer the “Nickel” over the quarter.

Why would you choose the nickel over the quarter?

The reason why you would chose the nickel over the quarter is because in truth the nickel is worth way more than the quarter. This should start the jaw flapping and questions flying.

Answer: In simple terms when coins were originally made they were made from “GOLD” or “SILVER”. Money was not the paper we have today and money was not the coin - money was based on the amount of silver or gold and the weight as it was related to it’s value in gold and silver.

So after 1964 coins were no longer made of precious metals like gold and silver but of copper, nickel-plate and other non-value metals. So if I took this 1964 [ or later date ] nickel to the bank, they would say I have a nickel, only 5 cents. But if I took this 1964 or later dated nickel to be sold as silver, I would be told it is worth 97 cents - almost a dollars [ as quoted in silver prices during December 2009 ].

1942 - 1945 Nickel / silver value 0.97 cents
1946 - 1964 Roosevelt Dime / silver value $1.25
1932 - 1964 Quarter / silver value $3.12
1948 - 1963 half dollar / silver value $6.25

I don’t know about your kids, but when I explained this to my kids, their idea of money changed, the way they treated coin changed. They went for days first looking at the date on coins before they ever put it away in a piggy bank or to buy something at the store. They realized that money is not just money, that there is more to it. I believe that is a good lesson to start with. Plus, we now are storing our 1964 and later dated silver coins in a jar as Silver and not as coin.

* Since the dollar is debase and losing value, silver helps fight inflation and increases in value.

Below I have included my resources and I believe it will help you to better understand what I wrote about above so you can use it to help your children learn the true meaning and value of money.


90% silver cionage

Traditionally, all United States coins have been dated in the year of their production. This policy was interrupted, though, because of the coin shortage and the speculation in rolls and bags of coins that took place in 1964. As a result, Congress passed legislation so that after the calendar year 1964 coinage was produced, the United States Mint could still use the 1964 date. Starting in 1965, therefore, all denominations of United States coins continued to be struck with the 1964 date.

When the Coinage Act of 1965 was passed, it became mandatory that the Mint continue to use the 1964 date on all 90 percent silver coins (half-dollar coins, quarter-dollar coins, and 10-cent coins). Therefore, all of the 90 percent silver coins that the Mint manufactured in 1964, 1965, and 1966 bears the date 1964. The last of the 90 percent silver quarter-dollar coins was struck in January 1966, the last of these 10-cent coins was struck in February 1966, and the last of these half-dollar coins was struck in April 1966. The Coinage Act of 1965 also made it mandatory that the clad coins be dated not earlier than 1965. Therefore, all of the clad coins actually manufactured in 1965 bear the 1965 date. All of the clad coins made through July 31, 1966, bear the 1965 date. The first clad 10-cent coin was struck in December 1965, the first clad quarter-dollar coin was struck in August 1965 and the first clad half-dollar coin was struck in December 1965. In December 1965, the decision was made to change the 1964 date on the five-cent coins and the one-cent coins to 1965, as one step in catching up on normal coin dating. From December 1965 through July 31, 1966, all one-cent coins and five-cent coins were struck with the 1965 date.

http://www.usmint.gov/faqs/circulating_coins/index.cfm?flash=yes


The Mystery of Banking

How debasement profits the State can be seen from a hypothetical case: Say the rur, the currency of the mythical kingdom of Ruritania, is worth 20 grams of gold. A new king now ascends the throne, and, being chronically short of money, decides to take the debasement route to the acquisition of wealth. He announces a mammoth call-in of all the old gold coins of the realm, each now dirty with wear and with the picture of the previous king stamped on its face. In return he will supply brand new coins with his face stamped on them, and will return the same number of rurs paid in. Someone presenting 100 rurs in old coins will receive 100 rurs in the new.

Seemingly a bargain! Except for a slight hitch: During the course of this recoinage, the king changes the definition of the rur from 20 to 16 grams. He then pockets the extra 20 percent of gold, minting the gold for his own use and pouring the coins into circulation for his own expenses. In short, the number of grams of gold in the society remains the same, but since people are now accustomed to use the name rather than the weight in their money accounts and prices, the number of rurs will have increased by 20 percent. The money supply in rurs, therefore, has gone up by 20 percent, and, as we shall see later on, this will drive up prices in the economy in terms of rurs. Debasement, then, is the arbitrary redefining and lightening of the currency so as to add to the coffers
of the State.6

Money: Its Importance and Origins 11
6This enormous charge for recoinage is called “seigniorage,” payment to the seignieur or sovereign, the monopoly minter of coins.

A Game can Change a childs life Financially

A Game can Change a childs life financially

A game can change a life; it can be a window to the future, a portal to a fairytale world or a downward spiraling staircase leading you to destruction. Or atleast that is what people believed when you talked about the dungeons and dragons game.

I remember the first time I played the board game “The Game of Life”; it gave me the sense, the hope of a better future. Growing up in poverty living in the ghetto, apartments upon apartments filled with hopeless people all dependant on the government and the welfare system. The game of life board game taught me that my future could be different, could be better. Then ofcourse I moved on to Monopoly and then on to video games, but in the end – these games were more than just games to me.

Games as a Teaching Tool

Because of these games like “the Game of Life” and “Monopoly”, I knew that there was more to life than what my eyes could see in the projects I lived in. When I played these games I hated losing because it meant that my hope for a better life could be impossible.

Today my children have a better life compared to what I had as a child, but I still believe that they can learn to do more, be more, by playing games.

I try to have a family game night atleast once a week. It’s the best way I know to insure that the family has fun family quality time, but I also use it as an opportunity to teach my children about finances, about thinking outside of the box. If you have read some of my blog post, you’ve read how I have been reading “Rich dad Poor dad” with my twelve year old. How I’ve been encouraging her to start a business with her home made jewelry hobby.


You have read in my blog how I purchased the “Cash Flow Game” for kids. It’s a big hit at my house, we’ve even had some of my daughters friends play the game and my son who is only five years old simply loves it. Recently I purchased the Monopoly city board game, even though it is a hard game to play and not intended for ages under eight, it’s all my son wants to play. Cash Flow or Monopoly city, that is all this five year old wants to play.

Yes, my son plays video games, with his toy soldiers and runs around the house pretending to shoot enemy soldiers. But if you ask him what does he want to play for family night: the answer is always cash flow or Monopoly city.

Changing the mind with Games

If you want a simple way to reach your children, a way that engages their minds and captures their imaginations – play a game.

I know that with all the technology we have today it is very hard to sit with your kids and play a board game, especially when they would rather play the Nintendo Wii or there Xbox 360. And while there are video games out there that can teach them about business and so much more – nothing compares to a board game, the interaction of playing a game face to face with other people.

My daughter wanted me to buy one of the other monopoly games because it came with a credit card machine so she wouldn’t have to count out the cash and do the math – but I said no. Why, because the point of the game [ from my point of view ] was to involved her brain, cause her to think, to exercise the biggest muscle she needs - brain matter.

I have watched as my five year old who could not stay still for two seconds to read a book, can sit still for two hours to play cash flow for kids. I’ve written in my blog posts how my son has a desire to learn to read because he wants to read the game cards from the game on his own. As we play my twelve year old and my five year old are secretly learning about finances, budgeting, leverage and other business principals, while playing a game.

Making The Game Real

Now I know that just playing a game is not going to change the life of a child. But it’s an opening for a parent, an educator to teach a child more because the game sparks an interest for things a child would customarily find uninteresting.

A few days ago I was talking to my wife about some of our finances and like all children my daughter was listening in, she just jumps into our conversation and says “yeah mom, just like the game …” and started explaining what she believed we should do based on the principals she learned from the game. Mom was not happy she rudely interrupted us, but I was proud that she was thinking, learning from the game.

When I take my children out, when I talk to them or when the opportunity for me to show them that what happens in the game happens in real life – I make it a point to teach.

I remember when we were driving to my son’s flag football practice and we drove by this small community, my daughter asked me “why would someone build homes way out here?” I took the opportunity to explain to her about basic real estate principals, renting, location, and city building planning. How builders see what the future plans are of a city and build accordingly, in order to take advantage of a cities growth today.

I am sure that most of it went way over her head, the name of the game is to teach. Little by little she is learning, as long as we keep them interested and learning - the sky is the limits for our children.

Social Securities: Hidden problem for your kids future

The tricks of congress - those who wish to get their way with no concern of the rights or choice of the people - is to work on dragging the process of "law making" out so "we the People" get tired or bored and leave the issues alone. You take health care reform right now - as much as the Democrats say and push to rush this, they also do everything to drag it out [ who goes on vacation when you believe that there is a life and death emergency happening - congress does...]

But if you think that big government is good, that your children do not need to learn more about money because the government will be there to help - please read the article below about some of the things "congress" our leaders have done for you, me and what they are doing for your kids.

Social Security: the hidden problem
There is much debate today about how solvent Social Security is, but most of the debate is over when the trust fund will run out of money, not about whether or not the trust fund actually holds real assets. The conventional wisdom, prior to the economic downturn, was that the trust fund had enough money to pay full Social Security benefits until about 2041. That date has now been revised to about 2037.

In order to understand the true status of the trust fund we need to go back to 1982, and then examine the events that have taken place since that date. In 1982, the Presidential Commission on Social Security, chaired by Alan Greenspan, warned that Social Security would face serious problems when the baby boomers began to retire about 2010, unless Congress took immediate action to begin building up a reserve in the trust fund that could later be drawn down in order to pay full benefits to the baby-boom generation.

In 1983, Congress enacted the legislation recommended by the Greenspan Commission, which included a hefty hike in payroll taxes. In essence, the legislation required the baby-boom generation to pay enough taxes to fund the benefits of the previous generation, as was customary, plus enough additional taxes to prepay most of the cost of their own benefits, which was not customary.

That payroll tax hike has generated about $2.5 trillion of surplus Social Security revenue to date. If the money had been saved and invested, as it was supposed to be, Social Security would be in good shape today. But the money was neither saved nor invested in anything. Instead, it has been used as a giant slush fund to pay for tax cuts, wars, and other government programs for the past 25 years. The government has "borrowed," or "stolen" every dime of the surplus Social Security revenue. If the government eventually repays the looted money, we can say that the government "borrowed" it, but, unfortunately, no provisions have been made for repaying the money. Furthermore, it may not be politically feasible to raise taxes for the purpose of replacing tax revenue that was misspent in the first place. If the looted money is never repaid, it will have clearly been "stolen" from American workers who paid the extra Social Security taxes.

This is the hidden Social Security problem. The trust fund holds no real assets. This was made clear by David Walker, Comptroller General of the GAO, in a speech given Jan. 21, 2005. Walker said, "There are no stocks or bonds or real estate in the trust fund. It has nothing of real value to draw down." On April 5, 2005, President George W. Bush shocked many Americans, during a speech at West Virginia University at Parkersburg, when he openly admitted, "There is no trust fund, just IOUs that I saw firsthand that future generations will pay -- will pay for either in higher taxes, or reduced benefits, or cuts to other critical government programs."

The government was successful in keeping this dirty secret from the American people for a long time, but, little by little, the secret is slipping out. Even the 2009 Social Security Trustees Report acknowledges the problem with the following words. "Neither the redemption of trust fund bonds, nor interest paid on those bonds, provides any new net income to the Treasury, which must finance redemptions and interest payments through some combination of increased taxation, reductions in other government spending, or additional borrowing from the public." Because of the empty trust fund, in just seven years, when the cost of Social Security benefits begin to exceed payroll tax revenue for the first time in a quarter-century, either benefits will have to be decreased, or taxes will have to be increased.


Dr. Allen W. Smith, is professor of Economics, Emeritus, Eastern Illinois University. The author of seven books, Smith has been researching and writing about Social Security financing for the past 10 years. Visit his Web site at www.thebiglie.net.


Friday, November 20, 2009 - www.newssun.com/col-1120-social-security

Cultivating a business - 4 necesary steps for kids

Cultivating a business with your eyes wide open ?

People are always telling how me impossible it is to make money. I mention to them how they should teach their kids about money, how they should change their own way of thinking about money - and I get all these stories how impossible it is. Well, here is a story in the newspaper how a gentleman found a new way to make money simply by opening his eyes and his mind.

The gentlemen I am speaking about is Mr. Bill Kurek, apparently he has driven the same road and route for over forty years and one day he simply opened his eyes, saw something [ in this case signs that have been there since the town was founded ] and his mind finally woke up and said “maybe I can do something with this “. It’s a short synapses of his success but you get the point.

Quote : LAKE PLACID - Bill Kurek had been coming here from Broward County for 40 years, and he kept passing the sign that boasted Lake Placid was the caladium capital of the world.
And even though he retired in July 2002, Kurek said to himself, "I ought to be able to do something with caladiums."
He wasn't a salesman; he was a project manager for a company which installed fire alarms. "I managed crews that installed systems in high rises and hospitals," he explained.
But he went to the Internet and typed "caladiums."
"I almost fell out of my chair when I realized how much people were paying for caladiums," he said. "I've got to be able to sell bulbs cheaper than this."
“Cultivating a business” By GARY PINNELL / Highlands Today

Open your eyes [ mind ] or be open to opportunities

Sometimes it sounds like a whole bunch of hogwash - the rich guru person telling you that you have to envision wealth first because you have to believe it first before you can become a success. Yes it sounds ridiculous but in part it is truth…

Many people go thru life never noticing the obvious, that which is right in front of them. They lose opportunities for love, joy, happiness and even prosperity because their simply oblivious to what is right there before their very eyes. Others simply can’t seem to believe that the opportunity of love, joy, happiness or prosperity in front of them is possible because they some how refuse to believe they can achieve that love, joy, happiness or prosperity. Then again, some simply wont take the step, work or risk to reach out and grab for that opportunity.

So in part - all those “gurus” selling the principal of “think and believe it” first speeches are in part - correct.

Teaching kids about money means more

My post are mostly about teaching kids about money, that as parents we have the responsibility to teach our kids about money. Teach them how to make money, how to manage money, how to think about money and all the different things that go along with it like investing, starting a business and so forth.

One of the most important things I try to teach my kids about money is that it all starts in their mind first.

Not that I am trying to teach them some fancy guru’s belief of “see it and you can achieve it “ nonsense. I want them to understand that just like Mr. Bill Kurek , an opportunity could be passing them by simply because their not open to it. I try to teach them 4 basic principals that they can use in everyday life:

1- never say you can’t - no, always say; how can I do or achieve this
Too many people say they can’t without even trying first. If you train yourself to think that everything can be done, that you simply need to find the solution to “how” then your less likely to give up without trying. Everyone knows the story of Tomas Jefferson - how many tries did it take for him to invent the light buld - 2, 3, what 1,000. But what we really should consider is - what if he would have thought: "light bulb, that is impossible. Why even try. "

2- it’s too late, it’s already been done - no; say, how can I improve this or benefit from this
Mr. Bill Kurek could have easily thought, hey this is an old idea, to many people are already doing this and kept on driving, but he thought to himself, how can I sell this cheaper [ meaning - how can I improve on this ]

The Bible is more than two thousand years old and it says “there is nothing new under the sun” - trust me nothing is new. I heard someone describe the Iphone as just a touch ipod that makes calls. Which came first the iphone or the ipod ?????? … the ipod.

3- I give up, no; say - I need help or I’ll come back to this
Many people get excited about this or that and when they run into trouble they soon give up - it doesn’t matter how close you come to success, if you don’t accomplish success - failure is still failure.

How many stories have we heard about millionaires who become rich because they took someone else’s efforts and made millions while the creator of that product or idea is still poor. Microsoft - it’s said that Bill Gates didn’t create the program he bought it from someone [ do you know that mans name ??? No… ]
McDonalds - Ray crock bought the rights to franchise the McDonalds concept [ with fast hamburgers ] McDonalds is worth billions - and what happened to the McDonald brothers ????

My life, your life, everyone has a story about an opportunity they let slip by because we gave up, because we couldn’t capitalize on an opportunity. We will always say - I almost, I tried, but we fail to say - I never went the extra mile, I didn’t seek out help. We failed because we gave up. We failed because we thought it just couldn’t be done.

4- I don’t understand, no; say - I’ll take time to learn
My children come to me and always say the same thing -”dad, help me with this. I don’t understand it”. Like most children, what they really mean is - dad can you do this for me.

I always try to teach my kids through hands on approach [ meaning they have to do it in order to learn ]. It does not matter if it is homework or life’s lessons - they have to process it, learn by thinking and doing - they will not learn from me giving them the answers.

The reason people lose money in the stock market is because we just don’t take the time to learn. Why do people fall for email scams about some unknown face saying they will give you 10 million dollars if you send them $400 dollars to transfer money from Africa to America…. We do not stop to think, investigate, learn - we just react.

Most people have car insurance - they don’t know why they have it, some even hate it, but they have it. Did you know that even though the stock market is risky, you can buy insurance on your risky investment [ I bet your mutual fund advisor doesn’t tell you that ].

The next time you see your child struggling with homework, or you have an opportunity to teach that child about money - help them open their eyes and their minds. Because believing is not enough, but if you keep an open mind, look to find answers, never give up, ask for help and learn what you need to learn to be a success - your chances of success are a lot greater than you think.

Down market is best time to teach children about investing

Down market is best time to teach children about investing

The market is down; stocks are lower than they have ever been before - that means it is the best time to teach children about investing. That is right; the best time to teach children about investing is now – with hands on trading!


The market is low and some stocks have been beaten down to almost incredibly cheap prices – that means you can open an account with little money and use this as an opportunity to teach the kids how to invest. Why… You ask?

Why teach children about investing now

Because it is cheap!
The reason why “Now” is the best time is because stocks are so low. You can open a free account online [ I did it with sharebuilder from NIG ], you deposit a $100 dollars that your not afraid the kids will lose and go at it. My daughter bought 300 shares of CITGQ for $65 dollars [ not my best choice but hey, she’s learning and she wanted a high risk with high return – probably thinks the govrn’t will bail them out ]

The next best reason is because they are young – they have time on their side. Even if you just teach them how to play it sensible, safe and just take advantage of good companies who are making money but their stock suffers only because of the current market claimant. Take for instance AIG, it dropped down to $6 dollars and then 1 year later it was up to $47 dollars. They [ children ] have time to ride out the nonsense.

Why you should consider “penny stocks”

Another reason why this is the time to teach your children about investing in stocks is because they can generate greater returns with “penny stocks”. Penny stocks basically means stocks that are trading below the five dollar mark. Some may be $4, $2 or even .56 cents – but they are all classified as penny stocks.

You can leverage more with your money, low stock price and your child’s luxury of time with penny stocks.

Here is the reason why I let my daughter make her crazy stock pick of CITGQ:

If she bought 3 shares of stock that totaled $100 – the odds of her making money is small. Even if each stock rose a $100 dollars at most she makes $300 dollars profit.

But if her 300 shares that she bought at 0.23 cents each rose by:

Each share up $1 x 300 = $300
Each share up $2 x 300 = $600
Each share up $3 x 300 = $900

Do you get the picture? The stock 52 week high was $6 and 52 week low was 0.17 cents. If her risk pays off and the stock only goes back up to $6 she can sell and make $1,800. Now that’s a big risk [ bet ] but a really hefty return; plus she has the youth [ time ] to wait for it to bounce back [ that is if it doesn’t crash and burn ].

The ultimate reason to teach children how to invest now

The ultimate reason to teach your child to invest now, with hands on teaching is – because it’s the best way to teach. Reading and talking about investing can only take you so far. When your child has real money, real world experience and an opportunity to get a real return on that investment - they are motivated, more interested in learning.

My daughter plays online games about business but in her mind she knows that it is not real, she takes big risk becuase it is a game. But with real stocks, market conditions and real money at stake – she has to put her emotions in check and has to actually think about what she is doing and why.

Learn about money, kids learning math

Learn about money, kids learning math ?

While some may say that teaching my kids about money, building a business, investing for the future is a way of teaching my kids to be greedy - that I should be teaching them better qualities like giving, sharing and etc… to them I say [ *&%$#@! ] no just joking…

I would like to let them know that while I have been teaching my kids about money I have noticed that their learning about math. Yes math. Not just learning about math, but an appreciation of math and how “ boring math “ can be applied to every day life. My son calls it “Fun Math”.

" Fun Math " being fun causes desire to learn

My 5 yr old son has a bit of trouble staying still. When it comes to learning - lets say he has a low attention span. But since we started playing "cash flow for kids" where we have him count the dice so he knows how many spaces to move. Or when he counts out his moves or counts his money - it has given him a desire to learn more about math. He sits around the house, takes a book with him in the car and he practices math. Currently he only does adding, but he is only in kindergarten and I already showed him how to solve adding equations of up to three numbers.

Imagine that, a five year old who is solving how much is 300 plus 300 or 250 plus 200.… and he thinks that math’s fun! I love it, it just tickles me pink. Today he asked me if I had the day off, when I said yes he shouted "great, we can play the money game today…. Right?" What parent doesn’t want to see their child interested and excited about learning.

Math can be used in everyday life

When math gets complicated [ like algebra ] people usually lose interest because after all - when will we ever use it in average everyday life? Really - how do you convince a child that one day walking down the street he/she will need to take time to find out what "X" equals???

But while I was online with my daughter playing this game about running your own business, I ran across something that helped me show my daughter that yes, you can use complicated math in everyday life situations. There we were trying to solve how we can figure out how to make a profit from selling ice cream. All of a sudden they were asking us for percentage, how to solve the problem of profit ( X = sale minus cost ). Can you imagine that - the math most kids hate and say they will never use in ordinary average everyday life being used to solve an everyday situation.

Yes, I took the opportunity to point out to my daughter that math is important - learning how to solve for X, learning percentages and all the other boring math kids hate. It can help you in your business, in making you money, making you rich.

Why teach your kids about money

Why teach your kids about money, how it works, how to make it, manage it and invest it - well because you want a better future for them. And if that is not a good enough reason for you and you need a more noble just cuase… then because it’s an interesting fun way to teach your kids math. An excellent method to build interest in math and how learning math can help them in everyday life.

Even if they start learning because they want to be rich - atleast that interest in being rich will fuel a desire to learn more.

Simple way to teach your kids how & why to Invest

You can make money with stocks in the long run - your children have the time.
I was speaking with an older gentlemen the other day and he was explaining to me how he was retired from AT&T before it was broken up by the government. He explained to me how he now owns stock in AT&T, Verizon, Sprint and many other “phone” companies because he was smart enough to put his retirement fund at his job to buy stocks.
After the years went buy and the government broke up Ma Bell [AT&T] he just keep getting stocks every time a new company was split off. Now he is 65 years old and receives high devidens from all these companies. He laughed as he said that several times he received checks for $2000 dollars on several occasions in the year because the companies were merging and splitting and merging again... He advised me that I should buy good stocks and hold on to them.

How do you teach your children the importance of investing?
In a simple fashion they can understand?

The goal is not to invest for them, but teach them how to manage money, make money and how to invest thier money. So when thier grown they can do it - and take care of you when your old :)

Here is how I started:

How Does Money Grow?


Investing is a way to make money with your money. First, you have to earn money. As a kid, you get money from allowance, gifts, services, or from selling goods such as lemonade or small business. Try to save some, if not all of this money. The next step is to make your money grow through investing. The chart illustrates this process.

Why Should I Invest?

There are two main reasons why you should invest:
* To stay ahead of inflation
* To achieve financial goals
Inflation causes the increase of prices. When a Big Mac goes up from $1.20 to $1.50 or when gas goes up from $1.30 to $1.70 a gallon, we say that is inflation. You need to make more money just to keep up with the rising cost of living.

Financial goals can be separated into two types:

* Short-term goals - Things that you need or want now or within the year, such as a bike, a computer, or a video game. Generally, it takes less money to reach these short-term goals.

*Long-term goals - Things that you need or want in a few years or more, for example, going to college, buying a house, and even starting a business. Generally, these goals are expensive and require some planning.

When Should I Invest?

The earlier you start investing, the sooner you can reach your financial goals. Investing is like "planting" money. A small amount of money invested will often grow to a larger sum over time. You’ve heard the phrase, "Time is money." With investing, time also makes money.

What are the Risks?

Although investing can make money with money, the downside of investing is that there is a risk of losing your money.

The key to investing is to minimize the risk and to maximize the financial reward. For this reason, it is important to understand the many ways to invest money.


There are hundreds of ways to reduce risk - which have to be learned. That is why it is very important to always be learning and to work with smarter people than you are. People that are in the field you need to learn and understand, like stock brokers, day traders - all complicated terms for people who know and make money with stocks, bonds and all sorts of investing.

But the technical stuff comes later - first lets start small because learning also comes from doing. Also - only invest what you can afford to lose. Don’t bet the grocery money or the mortgage payment.

To start investing first save.. Save your income [ allowance, gift, earned income thru chores and etc.] and split it into three saving banks [ pools ].
1- saving long term [ can be split in 2 - short and long ]
2- saving charity, giving
3- saving money to invest [ money that can be lost with out you going hungry ]

While your investing money [ #3 ] grows, learn about the companies you like, are interested in, how to invest, become friends with brokers and day traders and etc.. When you reach that specified number [amount] open an account and start investing.[ you may lose money - but that is part of the learning process ].

The importance of money, business & investing Early

The Importance of Money, Business & Investing being taught to children early

I was sitting with a few friends at a group picnic that my local church was having. The sun was shinning, the weather was mildly cool for Florida and people were having fun. Then a friend of mine started complaining "I have to leave early, I have to go clean my house - I haven't had time to do anything at home." Another friend sitting by us asked her why - so she went on to explain that she runs a cleaning service and she's been real busy cleaning other people’s homes and hasn't had anytime to do any of her own things.

I couldn't help it, I just had to chime in and ask why didn't she expand, grow her business, have people work for her? She went on to explain "it's too much work. I tried it before and I can't find the right people that can do it as good as I want or like me. Besides my clients trust me and only want me - I would have to do commercial business to do that." At first I tried to explain to her that hard work [ working by herself ] and hard work managing people [ having people working for her ] is still hard work, except that she would have more free time and she would be able to enjoy days like this picnic rather than wasting it doing more work at home. It didn't work.

She politely said she appreciated the advice and that I was right, but - "it's just too much work" for her, she went on to give me a long list of excuses. That's when I realized that no matter what I said to her - she was not going to budge or change her way of thinking. Even though she was tired, over worked and complaining that she had no time for herself and family - she didn't want to put in the extra effort to improve her situation.

Why teach your children about money, business, investing at an early age

Children have something that most adults don't have - it's called options. Once your set in your ways it's hard to change. Once your an adult with bills, children, a dead end job - it becomes very difficult to make changes to your life or to take [ what adults consider ] risks.

But children have options because their young, they have time and freedom on their side [ mom & Dad pay the bills ]. While most parents are busy asking their kids "what will you do when you grow?" we forget to teach them that they have a world of opportunities. Opportunities they can take advantage of if they simply learn how to manage money, invest money and time in a business. No one says there is a set rule on how to do anything in life. If your child wants to be a doctor - fine, great, learn and prepare to be a doctor. But does that mean a doctor can't also have a business?

What of instead of a doctor only working for a hospital, the doctor opens his own office? Then that same doctor opens other offices and has new doctors needed experience to work in those offices? Then that same doctor buys a coffee shop, a gas station and then after 15 years with several businesses, the doctor retires. Then that same doctor just spends his days managing the business from a golf course he enjoys to play at?

It's not wishful thinking; the above mention hypothesis is real. It's a short synopsis of a doctor I know in my home town in Florida.

Teach your kids about their opportunities not get rich dreams

My daughter is currently twelve years old and I've been talking and teaching her about her options. That she could do more, be more, achieve more than her old man [ me ]. That is if she wants, she doesn't have to be just an employee, she can be the boss - that being an owner gives you more freedom, liberties, opportunities.

When she came home last summer from New York, she came back with a jewelry making hobby - we've tried to convert that hobby into a business [ opportunity to teach ]. This weekend she had her first sale, she was excited. It was her first tangible lesson about business. Her work had paid off; her struggle to push her shyness aside, to show her jewelry and actually make a sale cemented in her that what she was doing was not just wishful thinking. She could make money with her business, it was no longer just a hobby - it's an opportunity.

I am not trying to teach my child that being rich is better. I do not want her to look for the next "get rich scheme" only to be scammed. What I want is for her to understand that she has options, opportunities that are hers. That because she is young she has time to learn not just a profession but the knowledge necessary to be more than just another employee in a see of millions - but a business owner, an investor. That because she is young she can learn to make money, manage her money, build or buy a business, invest wisely and take calculated risk that will give her more opportunities and more options in life.

Do you want to work hard or work hard ?

As I said, I was trying to explain to my friend that there is no difference between working hard and working hard. What I mean is - that if she works hard to get by and complains that she is tired, overworked and has no time - it's no different than her working hard to build a business, manage people to work for her and dealing with all the hardships of being an owner.

The only difference between "hard work" as an employee [ or slave to a job ] and "hard work" managing a business that has others working for you, is that you have options.

If you’re trapped in a job your boss tells you when you work, how much you work and how much you will get paid. If you work hard to build a business that grows to where people work for you - you decide when you work, how much you make and if you even want to work...... to quote the bible: Jesus said "The poor you will always have with you" .

Now you may have a good job, lots of bills and feel like your doing ok. If that's what you want, good - as long as your happy. But if you want more and feel trapped and can't seem to get anywhere... like if you don't have any options. Why not teach your child that they do have options, opportunities and start today?