Teaching your kids how to pursue a Rich Life
An important stage in your kids’ growth and development is learning how to enjoy a Rich Life whilst also being financially responsible, but as a parent, how do you approach these conversations with them?
Firstly, you need to understand what we mean when we refer to a Rich Life. We define a Rich Life as being one in which you do, create, and experience the things that matter most. It’s not necessarily having a lot of money, or being able to buy expensive things, but it’s about getting the most out of everything you do.
Talking to your kids about the big picture can be quite daunting and overwhelming for everyone involved. When discussing this topic, it’s important to ensure that your kids feel engaged and empowered to create their own goals and map out the steps required to achieve them.
We have some tips for how to teach your kids to be money smart, but how can you make sure they are achieving their goals and getting what they want from life?
An easy way to get started is by asking three key questions:
- What is something you enjoy?
Knowing what makes your kids happy is crucial because this is ultimately what drives them. Once you know this, you can start to map out goals and create a plan for achieving them based on what your kids enjoy.
- What is something you wish could do more of?
This can be a great way to identify what your kids can do more of to feel happier or more satisfied. The answer could be anything from spending more time with certain people, to taking up a new hobby, or having more time to go to new places. Once you know this, you can encourage your kids to schedule more time for these things on a regular basis.
- What would you stop doing if you could?
There are certain things in life that we can’t avoid, and neither can our kids. Nevertheless, it’s good to identify these things so we can find ways to reduce (or potentially eliminate them), or at least make them more enjoyable.
Once you have the answers to these questions, you can help your kids with setting some new goals and creating a plan to achieve those goals. This process should be as fun and engaging as possible, so your kids feel invested in and excited by the goals they are setting. You can work with your kids to create a mood board or bucket list to help them visualise their goals and how they might achieve them. There are also plenty of online tools available for goal setting and future planning.
Most importantly, the conversation around creating a Rich Life should be comfortable and free of judgement. It can be a great way to get to know your kids and what is important to them, so leave your opinions at the door and have some fun with the process.