Hey There,

Can you feel Spring in the air yet?

Welcome to this week’s edition of Mini Millionaires.

This week we’re discussing: How to teach kids about financial freedom…

Money represents choices, and one of those choices is choosing how to live. But it requires some intentional planning, and living, in order to reap the benefits of the choice that having financial freedom offers us.

We’ve loved hearing from you, so please keep those messages coming.

So, without further ado, let’s get into this week’s Mini Millionaires.

The phrase “Financial Freedom” gets thrown around a lot, but people often mistake it for having piles of money lying around. 

What it really means, though, is getting to choose how you live. And this is a really powerful gift to pass on to our kids. 

The good news is that kids don’t need to wait until adulthood to learn it. From as young as primary school, children can start practising financial freedom in small, practical ways that shape their future relationship with money.

Freedom is about choices, not things.

Kids often see money as a way to buy stuff. But it’s actually a tool for making choices. 

Take R100 as an example. They could use all of it to buy sweets or the latest toy. Or they could use it to buy some art supplies to make birthday cards to sell to friends and family.

They could use R100 to put away toward savings, or even buy ingredients to bake cookies.

So instead of asking “What can I buy?”, teach them to ask “What choices does this money give me?”

Takeaway: When children equate money with choice, they step into the mindset of freedom.

Save before you spend.

When kids learn to set aside money before they spend, they’re already practising freedom. They’re not locked into impulse purchasing. 

People with strong savings habits generally score higher on financial literacy than those who do not. This makes them all the more likely to make sound financial decisions as they get older. 

Even a small weekly saving builds this muscle. Encourage your child to put away a portion of pocket money first (before buying those sweets or that toy). Over time, saving becomes their natural starting point.

Takeaway: A small saving habit is the foundation for financial freedom.

Turn jars into freedoms.

We’ve spoken about the 4S Money Jars before. It’s how your mini millionaire should divide up any pocket money they earn, or birthday money they receive, but to recap, the jars are: Spend, Save, Sow, and Share.

And here’s how each of these jars can mean freedom. 

Spend: short-term choices that teach freedom now.

Save: medium-term choices that teach freedom later.

Sow: long-term growth that teaches freedom for the future.

Share: a choice beyond yourself that teaches freedom from greed.

Takeaway: Each jar represents a freedom your child can hold in their hands.

This week’s free downloadable resource is our Money Jars Toolkit.

All you need are four see-through jars and our printable sticker set. Each jar gets a label: Spend, Save, Sow, Share. Kids can colour in their own stickers or use the ready-made ones, then stick them onto their jars. 

It turns abstract money lessons into something they can see, touch, and use daily. Every coin or note dropped in becomes a little choice they understand: freedom now, freedom later, freedom to grow, and freedom to give.

We recently heard from Cheryl, a mom who has been on the Mini Millionaires journey with her mini millionaire for a while now.

Taking inspiration from an earlier edition of Mini Millionaires: How to teach kids to start a business, Cheryl wants to nurture an entrepreneurial mindset in her daughter, Zoe.

So Cheryl has helped Zoe identify a skill she has (in this case, her art), and helped get her set up with some art supplies and a table at their church to sell art to the people there.

We love it, Zoe. Well done. I guess we’re going to have to commission a piece really soon. Don't forget to save us a unicorn cupcake.

We love hearing from our readers about their Mini Millionaires journey. If you have a story to share about your mini millionaire, hit reply to tell us. We can’t wait to hear from you.

Last week, we asked what kind of financial peer pressure you see kids facing most often, and it looks like there’s no rest in sight, trying to keep up with all the things.

⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 👟 Fashion & sneakers

⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 📱 Phones & gadgets

⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 🎉 Social outings & activities

🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 🛍️ Keeping up with “stuff” in general

⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 💬 Something else? Let us know.

What you said: 

“Seems like it's stuff in general driven by friends and things they see on YouTube kids - thanks a lot, Ryan's toys - hahaha.”

It’s wild to think of the impact kids’ friends have on the things they want or think they need.

What’s the mindset, habit, or tip you want to try this week?

What worked, what didn’t? Or is there something that’s got you and your mini millionaire excited? 

We’d love to get your thoughts, so hit reply to this email and let us know what's on your mind.

PS: Did someone forward you this email? Subscribe here.