The Will To Be a Change-Maker. Financial Firm Makes a Move to Impact the NEXT Generation

“We’re not being honest with ourselves if we think children’s financial literacy is not a retirement industry problem.”?—?Lisa Buffington

Update June 13, 2024: Since the publishing of this column, an additional round of books was purchased by Will Hackler totaling 250 books for the elementary school.

Our prospective clients are currently sitting in elementary school and before you dismiss this as irrelevant to you, notice that this means that in as little as three years, they will enter the workforce and begin earning eligibility into the company 401k. THREE. In four to five years they will be busying themselves with college applications and the arduous work of essay writing. We finance professionals act so surprised when the average employee asks the same financial questions as the employees before them, yet we are not really taking a look at the cycle of life here.?

Financial literacy could be taught in schools, but the schools are not well-enough equipped at this point. A study from Cambridge University confirmed that most of our money habits are already formed early in childhood because of what we absorb from home life. Wouldn’t it make sense then that we, finance pros, try to supercharge the home with resources? Well, parents are too busy. I can speak from experience as I am a single mom of four kids doing drop off at two schools, after-school activities, sports and managing the usual rundown of house, food, inventory blah blah blah. No one wants to make time for your workbook. However, as a parent, I want to make sure my kids are set up for success. I want my kids to live full lives free of preventable financial worries. Now how do we meet in the middle?

I was desperate for a solution and as a finance professional, I felt doubly obligated to ensure my kids understood money. My kids were so young and with an age spread of four kids across only four years it made attention span and vocabulary a particularly interesting set of variables. One day, while trying to manage the day an idea came to me. I explored this idea and tested conversations with my kids. Everything seemed to click so fast. What was happening? Somehow I had tapped into their intrinsic motivation. The help around the house and the learning of new skills (like my 5-year-old running the washer and dryer) continued for weeks on end. It wasn't perfection, but it was something magically upgraded. I scheduled a call with a child psychologist, a children’s therapist, a neurologist, and an educator to get their perspective. They each affirmed my findings and some even had labels for it. “Faith, it is the handshake between self-worth and understanding a system of value.” Without the labels, only a mother’s dream, I had found a way to convey resources (time, money, relationships, nutrition) completely laced with a reinforcement that my children (and their dreams) were worthy. I am amazed that as we nurture kids' ability to hold on to their dreams, the discipline and the structure follows closely on its heals. After seeing how the mindset of conversations was working with my four elementary-aged children, I took pen to paper and then found myself at a conference table with the CEO of a publishing house pitching to her my idea to come alongside other families. If it worked for my family, perhaps it would help others. Especially families like ours.

A trauma-informed child therapist reviewed my manuscript and applauded the interaction between mother and children characters in the story. I then also sent my manuscript to be reviewed by certified financial planners, investment managers, fellow financial literacy authors, a leadership trainer, educators and even a few real-life families. The feedback had my jaw on the floor. My story was received with excitement and my message for parents/guardians and children was clear! So I marched on with confidence that my goal to help families was in motion.

A few of the advanced copies during the pre-order period were given to potential partners and fellow advocates. So many of my friends and supporters who believe in my work fled to my author site, Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Target to place their preorders. Then my whole worldview changed when I saw a 200 book order come in. After hearing from my publisher, I immediately called this individual to personally thank him for placing the large order and wondering about his intentions for TWO HUNDRED COPIES. He shared with me that he already spoke with the superintendent at their local elementary school and they plan to give a book to every student in a particular grade. My heart nearly burst. The dream to have my story’s message in the hands of so many budding entrepreneurs so they will be told that their dreams matter and they are capable was coming true.

Thank you, Will Hackler of Integrated Pension Services, Inc. , for believing in the power of giving to our community and personally taking action as a financial firm. Thank you for allowing The Monster Job to be part of your generosity. Our mission carries on together and I will forever remember this moment that I am not alone with this mission in my heart. Others bear it with me. May you inspire other organizations to take action the way you have so that more kids, in their formative years, can develop a craving for money skills to pursue their dreams. This is how we effect change. We start at the root: the home.

When it comes to wealth, the real gift we can give our kids is not the money, but the positive reinforcement to be clever with it.

In my children’s storybook The Monster Job I use everyday life, the kid’s own aha-moments for autonomy, and guiding moments to teach money skills in a self-worth-enriched environment. The reward-based system helps wire the positive feelings with the goal-oriented effort.

Grab a copy of The Monster Job for the budding entrepreneur in your life. I would love to hear what inspired conversations you can create at home with your kids.

The Monster Job by Faith Teope, Illustrated by Peili Huang

themonsterjob.com or faithteope.com/shop

For bulk orders please contact: Brown Books Publishing Group | 972.381.0009 [email protected]