A son asks his dad to teach him about money; the dad puts the son to work only paying him 10 cents an hour for working in his store, 3 hours per week.After three weeks of missing baseball games and spending his Saturday’s working, the son is furious and goes to confront the father…
Son:You’re not keeping your end of the bargain, you said that you’d teach me, I’m working, I’m working hard and you’re not keeping your end of the bargain.I haven’t learned anything!!
Dad:Not bad, after a month you sound like most of my employees.
Son:You’re not teaching me!
Dad:I am teaching you.
Son:I’ve worked for 3 weeks and you haven’t talked to my about anything, I haven’t learned a thing!
Dad:How do you know I haven’t taught you anything?Does teaching mean talking or lecturing?
Dad: That is how school teaches you but not how life teaches you and life teaches you some of the most important lessons of all.Most of the time life doesn’t talk to you, it just pushes you around.Each push is life saying, wake up; I have something I want you to learn.Life pushes everyone around, some give up and quit, some fight, and some learn the lesson and move on.
Dad:If you learn this lesson you will grow into a wise and wealthy man, if not, you will spend your life blaming a job, low pay or a boss for your financial problems.You’ll live life hoping for that big break, that lottery ticket that will solve all your money problems.
Dad:Or if you have no courage, you’ll give up and spend your life playing it safe, doing all the right things and saving yourself for some event that never happens.You’ll throw away your dreams and desires and die a boring old man.You’ll have lots of friends who’ll really like you because you were such a nice hard working guy.You lived your life playing it safe but really you let life push you into submission because deep down you were terrified of taking the risks to get what you really wanted.You wanted to win, you wanted a follow your dreams but the fear of failure was bigger than the excitement of winning.Deep inside, you and only you will know that you didn’t go for it.You chose to play it safe.
Son:(Starting to understand a little) you’ve been pushing me around to see if I’d quit?Right dad?
Dad:I’m giving you a taste of life.Most people get an education and get a job and then spend the best years of their lives, away from the ones they love working for money.Yet, they never took the time to learn about money and why they are working so hard.
Son: So what’s the lesson dad, you’re cheap and pay me nothing?
Dad:You’re blaming me, if I’m the problem you have to change me.How can you change yourself?
Son: But you only pay me 10 cents?
Dad: So what are you learning?
Son: Well if you don’t pay me more, I’ll quit!
Dad:And that’s what most people do, they quit and go looking for a better job, a better opportunity with higher pay thinking that more money will solve their problems. But in most cases it won’t because they never learned this first lesson.
Son:So what do I do?Accept this 10 cents and be happy?
Dad:That’s what other people do; they accept a paycheck and then struggle financially in debt, thinking more money will solve the problem.Most just accept it or get a second job to earn more money.But the more money they make, the more debt they incur and their money problems continue.
Son:
So what will solve the problem?
Dad:This (pointing to the sons head) your mind, your knowledge, your point of view on the subject of money.This is the secret of wealth son; you can either work hard all your life for money or gain the knowledge to learn how to make your money work for you.It’s the choice between struggling financially or taking control financially.You won’t learn this knowledge in school so you have to seek it out on your own.The decision is yours.