To instill in a child the makings of success, push education to the background. Emphasize love of work, ability to set goals and financial literacy
We all want our children to be more successful than us. They earned more and worked less, lived better, could afford travel and entertainment. To give the child a "good start", parents often pay for courses and developmental classes with their last bit of strength, assign the child to a prestigious school and hire tutors. No one denies the benefits of education, but this is not the main thing for raising the makings of a future millionaire in a child. Much more important is the ability to set goals, achieve what you want, treat work and money correctly. One of the famous millionaires of our time, businesswoman and best-selling author Denis Johnson talks about raising his five children. There are very few excesses in their life, but a lot of perseverance and determination.
Principle One: Life Must Have a Purpose
According to Denis, a child should learn to set the right goals in life from childhood. Otherwise, there is a risk of carrying uncertainty and infantilism into adulthood. You need to start small: as often as possible, give your child the choice. At the same time, do not insist on the correct, in your opinion, decision, but try to explain what this or that choice of the child will lead to later. This will teach the kid about cause-and-effect relationships, understanding which, it will be easier for him to achieve the desired result. Stop deciding everything for your child and give him the opportunity to make mistakes in his choice. We learn to set goals only at the cost of our own mistakes.
Principle two: a minimum of gadgets
There should be fewer gadgets in a child's life / istockphoto.com
Denis Johnson is adamant that gadgets are in no way do not contribute to the development of the child. There is no TV in their house, and each of her children received their first smartphones on their sixteenth birthday. If at school there was a need to go online or do something on a computer, children were given access to their father's home computer. Denis believes that it was thanks to this that her children learned how to properly plan their time and organize their leisure time, and now do not suffer from computer or telephone addiction. By the way, this is not the only example of how successful parents restrict their children from using gadgets. Bill Gates did not buy smartphones for his children until the age of 14, and in his teens he imposed a strict time limit for using a computer for them.
Principle Three: Love and Respect for Work
Child must have household chores / istockphoto.com
Despite his fortune (Denis Johnson is a multimillionaire), Denis has no cleaning lady, no cook or gardener in his house. She deliberately did not resort to the help of a nanny and refused the maid. The family divides all housework in proportion to the strengths and abilities of each. Mom involved her children in household chores from the age of two. By the age of 10, each of them could complete any everyday task. Denis considers this an essential contribution of children to family life. With this approach, her guys are not afraid of work and do not shirk responsibilities, even if they do not really like them. It strengthens character, fosters willpower and instills an understanding that you always need to work hard for a good rest.
Principle four: talking about money
Denis is convinced that it is useful for children from an early age to know about what is money and where does it come from. Parents should explain why they go to work, how much they earn and what they can afford with this money. At the same time, it is very important not to emphasize that you work only for the sake of money - this may initially incorrectly “program” the child for routine and vegetation within the framework of a meager salary. Also, Denis does not at all welcome wasteful spending to please the desires of every child. According to the businesswoman, parents should provide their children with everything they need, but for some special desires, the child should try to save up or earn money himself.
Principle five: the ability to save money
Teach your child to save money for some purpose / istockphoto.com
From early childhood, Denis gives his children pocket money. At the same time, she in every possible way motivates them to accumulate. In the home of a multimillionaire, there is a rule: save 10 dollars and you will receive 10 more in reward for perseverance. Denis tries not to control what her children spend their savings on. She has only one condition: the money must go to buy something that benefits and promotes development. This can be sports equipment (bike, skate, boxing gloves or roller skates), a book, a musical instrument, a ticket to a concert or an educational trip. Excess items (including toys) in the house of a businesswoman are not welcome. She also always asks children to explain the purchase so that children do not seek to have something just because others have it.
Principle six: the ability to give money
A successful person cannot and should not be stingy, Denis Johnson is sure. Therefore, she teaches her children, first of all, emotional, and then material generosity. According to Christian covenants, the tithe of your income must be given to the Lord, Denis recalls. She herself regularly donates a tenth of her profits to charity and encourages children to do so. According to the businesswoman, 10% of every dollar earned her guys give to the poor, 20% can take for themselves and spend it on entertainment, and the rest goes to the piggy bank for the plans and cherished goals.
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