It’s that time of the year: We’re all looking for the “perfect” gift for those we love. Here’s my advice: Give the children you love the gift of a financially secure future. And I don’t mean by giving them money. I mean by giving them the gift of the financial knowledge they need to reap their own financially secure future.

I’ve said this before – but it bears repeating: Start Young. Shape money attitudes and behavior young. It’s so much easier than changing behavior later. Early financial education will help navigate the ups and downs (think Pandemic) of life. A recent story in the NYTimes served up proof.

Continue reading

This holiday season is likely to be pretty different for many of us.  We will all need to come up with alternative and safe ways to be together.

Jack Bishop, Creative Director at America’s Test Kitchen, has authored a beautifully written and illustrated book for kids about making peace with “change”.   In Peyton Picks the Perfect Pie, Peyton, a picky eater, realizes that she is ready to broaden her food horizons.  Peyton decides to embrace change by tasting all kinds of pie – a food she did not think she liked – until she learned that she could add ice cream! (Nice workaround, Peyton!)

Continue reading

Earlier this year I was interviewed by George Grombacher for the Money Savage podcast, one of Investopedia’s list of the Top 100 Financial Advisors for 2019.  We covered many topics including insights on why so many adults struggle financially, key predictors for success and how to make financial education work.

This interview reinforces all the reasons why early financial education could be the cure to living paycheck to paycheck.  Teaching children young about money concepts is the key to helping them succeed financially as adults.

But how do you introduce such an abstract concept of money to a child?  You will find some tips to help you get started with the children in your own life.

Continue reading

Presidential hopeful Joe Biden shared a story this week on MSNBC about an encourager. His friend told him that his daughter’s kindergarten teacher called all her students and asked them to be at the door at a certain time that day.  She was going to drive by, wave and give them a “shout” to let them know how much she missed each every one of them. It was a three-hour trip for that teacher – all to make her students feel better somehow.  To help them feel a little more normal. Seeing someone that was a part of their daily life that was so abruptly stopped – and to confirm to those children that their teacher was still there, and would see them soon.

Now that teacher is definitely an “encourager”. Someone who inspires others to do something to help. Continue reading