WELCOME to a new month and a new season. What a marvellous time of year - the days are getting shorter, the leaves are turning colour and the air is fresher. The arrival of autumn signals a change in our routines and activities. With shorter days and longer nights we’ll socialise less and hibernate more over the coming months.
As the temperature drops, it’s a great time to curl up indoors with a good book. I did just that recently with a copy of Dr Aric Sigman’s tome, The Spoilt Generation: Why restoring authority will make our children and society happier.
One of the most resonant moments in Dr Sigman’s book comes early in his introductory remarks. He argues we have a duty to bring up socially viable children saying “…child-rearing is not merely a question of personal style. We have an overriding responsibility not just to rear our children to our own satisfaction, but to the satisfaction of others as well”.
I have long believed there is a relationship between how we parent and how our kids turn out and it appears the good doctor does as well. Ask any school teacher (I have!) and they’ll tell you that, with rare exception, kids are a product of their home environment.
The crux of Dr Sigman’s thesis is that we need to return to old fashioned parenting. In the same vein, I’m an advocate for a return to old fashioned habits of thrift (savings). These habits should start at an early age so that children learn the value of money and understand that it doesn’t come from the Tooth Fairy.
You can open a savings account and encourage your children to save a percentage of their pocket money. Or you can get your kids to put money aside in a piggy bank. Either way, you are teaching them the importance of saving for the things they want and to shun impulse buying – the bane of our adult society!
As an incentive, you can offer to pay your kids “interest” on their money when they reach a pre-agreed savings goal. As to the amount of pocket money, there are no hard and fast rules. Some parents give their children pocket money in return for doing household chores while other kids simply receive a weekly allowance.
Of course, the most important lesson we can teach our kids is that money is not everything - it still can’t buy happiness. Perhaps that’s why the world is full of people who are materially rich but spiritually poor.
Regards
Paul J. Thomas
Podcast is available here 