The amount we give away is a great predictor of our happiness.
If you scored low in “Sharing” category in Financial IQ Test for Parents, please check the activities below!
7 reasons to share
| 1 | Increasing happiness | The amount we give away is a great predictor of our happiness |
| 2 | Increasing gratitude | Understanding that some families have more than others generates gratitude for what we have |
| 3 | Growing communities stronger | Communities grow stronger when we can rely on each other |
| 4 | Broadening our view | Discussions with kids about sharing is the way of showing them another world |
| 5 | Learning to wait | If children do not get everything right away, they learn to wait and they learn to be proud of themselves once they manage to buy something using their own money |
| 6 | Serving other people | When we help people they help us back. Therefore, the more people we can serve, the richer we become |
| 7 | Role-modeling rich people | Acting like a success can help us be a success |
Top 3 things you could do with your kid right now
1. Have a giving away discussion with your children
- Plan an hour this week to discuss about donation with your kids.
- Discuss why giving away is important (you could use the arguments above).
- Ask them what is the most important to them: Animals? Elderly people? Sick people? Homeless people? Children from poor families? Education? Environment?
- Tell your priorities and explain them.
2. Engage your children in a donation activity
- Determine the donation budget. Do your kids have certain amount of money for sharing? If not, how much of your own money you would like to give away this time?
- Discuss the donation rules. Is everybody free to choose the area of donation or would you like to come up to consensus? Would you prefer to just transfer the money or to spend time with those in need?
- Explain the difference between fish and fishing rod. Do your children want to give a fish or a fishing rod? “If you donate food to poor people, you are donating a fish. Once they eat the food, they do not have anything left,” you could explain. “And if you “donate” a psychological help, that’s more like a fishing rod. Once the person gets better, he can do many things and help many other people.”
- Choose the areas you want to donate to and do the donation.
3. Get the “Share” piggy bank for your kid
If your kid does not have a “Share” piggy bank yet, it might be a good idea to get one for him or her. You could encourage your child to set aside part of his or her allowance for sharing purposes. Tell them that 5% to 10% is a usual amount to give away but let your kids decide the amount they want to set aside! If they manage to save money for sharing, next Christmas they might be so happy to spend it on something they really care about!