They say that let's start them young, and I still remember when I first open my bank account and with that experience; I may say that it's a good thought that need to be shared to others. Saving and investing will teach our youngster some values that will definitely help them along the way
Saving and investing are part of the
financial literacy journey of a person, andteaching these
skills prove to be most effective when started at a young age.
For financial literacy advocate,
columnist and author Rose Fres Fausto, teaching her three sons how to deal with
money came hand-in-hand with teaching them how to read and write. Coinciding
with the launch of her newest book on financial literacy entitled “The
Retelling of The Richest Man in Babylon,” Fausto shares how she and her husband
raised their children with high “FQ” or financial intelligence quotient:
1. Start them early.As soon as their
sons were born, they opened savings accounts where cash gifts they received
were deposited. By the time they were old enough to start asking about money,
they already had some money saved and invested under their names.
2. Start small and show them how to grow
their own money. They used easy-to-understand termsand easy-to-follow steps for
their children:
Step 1: Save at least 20% of allowance
and cash gifts and keep in a “treasure box” together
with a record.
Step 2: Once savings reaches PHP 500,
deposit in an ATM account, which is called a “small
account.”
Step 3: When the amount goes beyond the
minimum balance, transfer cash to a “big account”
or higher-yielding fixed-income
instruments.
The kids also learned that the “small account
“can only give very low interest because they can withdraw it anytime, while
the “big account “yields better returns since they are giving the bank more
time to invest their money. Another option to grow their money aside from “the
big account” is investing in stocks, which they hold for the long term.
3. Time is money. They showed their
children about the “magic” of compounding: how savings from their weekly
allowance can turn them into teen-age millionaires, if they save religiously.
In accumulating wealth, the biggest factor is time –and time is what the youth
have an abundance of.
4. Make it a habit.It only takes 21 days
to form a habit, especially if one has the will. They taught their sons to be
conscious about their regular expenses or little things they buy, and
prescribed a minimum 20 percent for savings. As their children got into the
habit and earned more, they were also able to save up more.
5. Impart the values.Kids these days are
exposed to a lot of peer pressure which is why it is important to raise children
with a healthy self-esteem. They know they do not have to buy expensive things
just to be “cool” or just to belong. When they go to a store, they do not tell
them, “We’re not buying that because we don’t have the money.” This way, they
willknowthat it is not only “having” or “not having” money that determines the
purchase. Instead, it is about being in control of their money and not the
other way around.
Ms. Fausto also shares that when
teaching about money, parents should teach it with the right values. If what
children do with and for money does not agree with their core values, no amount
of money will make them happy as grown-ups. Moreover, it is about setting a
good example as parents. Values are better caught than taught, and everything
they learn in life starts at home.
It is indeed never too early ortoo late
to start saving, as long as your children have the will to do what you have
planned, and the patience and discipline to follow through. And to make savings
even more exciting and rewarding, parents can accompany their kids to the
nearest PSBank branch to open their PSBank Kiddie and Teens Savers Account.
This not only makes their savings goal official, but will also help both
parents and their children keep better track of their progress. The PSBank
Kiddie and Teens Savers Accounts are for children 0-12 years of age and teens
13-18 years of age. It has no initial deposit or maintaining balance and the
child or teen depositor automatically gets free personal accident insurance
from Charter Ping An Insurance Corporation, with insurance coverage equivalent
to five times the value of his average daily balance.
Rose Fres Fausto is a former investment
banker who left her financially fulfilling career to become a full-time
homemaker. Now that her sons Martin, Enrique and Anton are all grown up, she
devotes her time to her advocacies: purposeful parenting and financial
literacy. She is an online newspaper columnist, speaker, and author of the
best-selling book, “Raising Pinoy Boys.” In partnership with PSBank, she
published a special edition of her new book entitled “The Retelling of The
Richest Man in Babylon,” a refreshing take on the 1926 classic by George Clason
where the golden personal finance rule ‘Pay Yourself First’ originated. This
time, the story is told in a language easy to understand, complete with
illustrations and activities for kids from 1 to 92.
About PSBank
PSBank, a member of the Metrobank Group,
is a key player in the consumer banking industry. PSBank has expanded its network coverage to
over 200 branches and over 500 ATMs nationwide, and strives to consistently
make banking simple, fast and convenient for its customers.
No comments :
Post a Comment