About 25 years ago, I was attending a Think Tank conference in Los Angeles. A petite women name Joline Godfrey came up and introduced herself to me. She was an inventor who was passionate about using games to educate the next generation on appreciating money and acquiring wealth. She had been following our company and was a consumer of our products in her local Boston supermarket. So, she wanted to put a face with a name, so to speak.
Well, over the years Joline and I became friends, and we eventually started our own investment club for about a dozen L.A.-based women. It was my first foray into a group that was not based in the produce world.
Joline’s career continued to evolve and she is now based in Santa Barbara. Her firm is called Independent Means, Inc. (IMI) and its vision is “To help raise a new generation with skills that ensure financial self-reliance and well being, and values that support lives of purpose and passion.”
Last summer, a group from IMI’s CAMP $TART UP — girls and boys ages 15 to 18 — came to visit our office. After the tour, we spent an hour answering their questions about what it’s like to run a business. We emphasized how important it is to have a business plan and to “know your numbers.”
Since then, I have been receiving Joline’s bi-monthly newsletter, MONEY WI$E.
Last month’s newsletter really struck a cord with me. “10 Basic Money Skills” and a “MONEY MAP” caught my eye. Because I have two young adult daughters, teaching them the value of money is always top of mind for me (especially during the summer months, when they have to balance the concepts of “summer vacation” with “summer job.”)
Do any of you have similar struggles with your children? Teaching them how to create a workable budget and follow it is not just about spending all the money you have. They should be taught both how to save, and how to be philanthropic.
I encourage you to read the May/June edition of MONEY WI$E, and I hope that you will learn, like I did, that your own personal struggle with money and teaching your children about it is a universal challenge. According to Joline, you should start teaching your kids about money and budgeting as early as 5 years of age!
Responsibly yours,
Karen