Money, Finance, and Giving

My 16 year old daughter, Tanille, has been so interested in money, finance, and investing lately.  It has been so exciting to see her feel passionate about learning this.  It is also good for her to have a connection with her dad.  My husband likes to dabble in the stock market - some good some bad - and his dream is to someday be able to retire and be a full-time investor.  I'll be honest: that scares me a little.

She first read "The Richest Man in Babylon" by George S. Clason.  This has been one of my favorite books about the importance of investing in yourself and you future for a very long time.  I think I first read it when I had been married about five years and it has affected the way I handle my money since then.  Next was "Whatever Happened to Penny Candy? A Fast, Clear, and Fun Explanation of the Economics You Need For Success in Your Career, Business, and Investments" (An Uncle Eric Book) by Richard J. Maybury.  That really got her excited about this subject.  Incidentally, I would highly recommend any of his books. Overall, this was one of her favorites.

Dave Ramsey

A couple of years ago, I read "The Total Money Makeover" by Dave Ramsey.  I feel, with half of the world, that he is a truly inspired man who teaches true principles.  He made the idea of being debt-free real to me.  So, I bought the "financial peace" curriculum he has created for high schoolers and Tanille, Natalie, and Noelle have been working through it.  All the girls have learned, but Tanille has grasped onto these ideas and is thinking about them all the time.

So, I bought her two more books to read.  "The Five Lessons a Millionaire Taught Me About Life and Wealth" by Richard Paul Evans and "Rich Dad Poor Dad: What the Rich Teach Their Kids About Money That the Poor and Middle Class Do Not!" by Robert T. Kyosaki.  I had read the first book before, but the second had just been highly recommended by a friend.  Tanille started with "Rich Dad Poor Dad".  Something occured which I was not expecting but which made me very happy: she told me when she was about 2/3 of the way through the book that, although she liked the principles and the things she was learning about investment, she did not like the author of the book.  She told me she like Dave Ramsey much better.  Why did she have such strong feelings about the author?  Remember, I have not read "Rich Dad Poor Dad", so these are her interpretations of he message of the book.  She said that this author seems to want money with no regard to other principles.  She stated that, although Dave Ramsey emphasizes the need to give as part of your financial picture, this author was not at all concerned about giving back.  She also said that some of the ways that he earned money seemed less than upright.  She was concerned that he described buying property at a ridiculously low price and selling it ridiculously high when the buyers didn't know better.  And lastly, she wanted to play a board game that he produced but found that it was $150.00.  We laughed and said that his next book should be titled, "How to Get People to Buy Your Overpriced Board Game and Get Rich". 

I don't know if selfishness was the intended message of the author.  I sincerely doubt it.  At 16 she does not know that it is not dishonest to buy low and sell high to make money.  But she felt that the way he had done it was cutthroat.  I am glad that my daughter, who seems to be "money hungry" right now to some of my other children, realizes that she has a responsibility to serve others, to be honest in all her dealings, and to give back to her family, her community, and her country.  She wants to have money and to live comfortably, but she also wants to use those resources to bless others. 

Another thing she said was, "Mom, I realized that if I wait until I am rich to help other people, I will never do it.  I need to start right now finding ways to use my money to help others.  Then, when I have more I will just be able to help more."  What an astute little girl!

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