Despite the two decades in between, I can still vividly recall the financial struggles of early adulthood, including grappling with credit-card debt, scrambling to come up with a house down payment and watching as one of my stocks plunged 80% in a few short months.
Hannah, of course, will have her own financial struggles, and those will teach her far more about money than I ever could. Still, there are nine key financial insights I'm hoping to pass along -- and most have precious little to do with picking stocks and buying mutual funds.
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1 comment:
I am a regular reader of your column, and have to say I was touched by this one. As the father of two daughters, the older still a few years away from college, these lessons are so important. I am not sure how I will feel on that day I send them off to college, but there will be at least a little sadness.
As much as we want to spoil kids now and then, I observe some young kids getting no end of very expensive gadgets and toys, only to break and discard them soon after. Will my kids love my wife and I(or remember us) more or less fondly because of the material things we gave them growing up? I hope we have done a better job as parents than that. My sister, who also has only girls, and I have very different views on this, and holidays are sometimes a bit awkward when we spend them together and her kids open up several $3-500 gifts each, and mine do not.
Both of my daughters have bank accounts and investment accounts which they have partially funded with babysitting and chores, and we and their grandparents have partially funded, and we have followed much of your advice in picking funds and ETFs.
We have tried very hard to also demonstrate the importance of giving time and other resources including money to those less fortunate, or who simply need a helping hand.
Thanks for this column and for your frequent sound advice.
Perhaps the only poem I have ever memorized other than nursery rhymes:
Who never wanted,
maddest joy remains to him unknown,
the banquet of abstemiousness
defaces that of wine
Emily Dickinson
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