Mother’s Day may only be once a year, but our mom’s wisdom is forever. Here’s some money tips from our moms and the moms here at Clarifi:
Money tip from Mom #1: “If it’s free, then it’s for me!”
“My mom was so excited because she got 10 cans of FREE cat food for being one of the first people in line on Black Friday. She was so proud when she came home with all of her free and discounted items. She had scored big. Her zeal wasn’t even deterred when I reminder her that we didn’t have a cat. Her rebuttal, “it was FREE”!”
Money tip from Mom #2: “The Chore Fund”
“When I was a child, my mom would have me do chores around the house for money. Instead of giving me cash, she would have me write my earnings down in a check book register and let me watch the balance grow. It didn’t ever give me instant gratification, but it laid the groundwork for my savings habits now. It was cheap labor ($5 for an hour of cleaning!!) so it never added up to much. But the lessons I learned stick with me until this day.”
Money tip from Mom #3: “Teach Children the Importance of Saving Money”
“To help children learn how to save, have them put half of the money the earn or receive into savings. Another Tip for parents to help teach children the value of money is to give them the weekly allowance and let children decide if they would like to use it for school lunch, for weekend entertainment or save for a bigger item they would like to purchase.”
None of us would be where we are without our moms, their strength, and their valuable life lessons. Take the month of May to appreciate all that your mom has done for you, and think about the impact that she may have had on your financial literacy and practices.