I did not grow up learning how to be financially responsible. Instead, I learned I should probably do the opposite of what I saw if I wanted to be somewhat financially stable, and that mindset treated me reasonably well. I tried to live within my means, made sure my bills were paid on time, and always had a little saved. However, I knew very little about investing, which led me not to even start. Thankfully, I finally started investing, but I regret missing out on all those early years.

Now, my dilemma was how to teach my children about money. I learned by doing the opposite, which is not what I want my children to do. My hope is that they will at least follow my example, but my prayer is that they will manage their money even better and put it to work for them. A concept I knew nothing about until I started learning about finances. I began researching all the available information on finances. I wanted to gather as many differing opinions as possible to ensure I had the best information to teach my children. I was surprised to find that there is no one-size-fits-all plan for money. What works for one person may not necessarily work for another. One thing I did find to be true was that people who made a plan for their money often did better than those who did not. So, it’s true what Dave Ramsey says, “If you don’t tell your money where to go, you will wonder where it went.”

I know that speaking about finances was always seen as taboo, especially in the past, and most are reluctant to discuss their finances because it can reveal their weaknesses, but I hope that we can change that mindset. I feel the best thing we can do for our future generations is to teach our children what worked and didn’t work for us. Let them hopefully learn from our mistakes so each generation can be better and better.

A great leader will share about his failures before he boasts about his successes.