Mother’s Day is a special day dedicated to recognizing all the strong, independent, hardworking, and selfless women in our lives. Our mothers have helped shape us into the people we are today and taught us many valuable life lessons along the way. We often don’t realize how much our mothers have impacted our daily lives, and in my case, influenced my current spending and financial habits.
Most of you will remember me as Tracey’s first-born child; often carried around to appointments in my car seat. Now, 23 years later, I am working full-time in the office side by side with my mom. I get to see firsthand how hardworking and dedicated she is to her business and clients. I am inspired by her and the enthusiasm she puts into her business every day.
I feel extremely lucky to have had a parent that has worked in the finance industry my entire life. My mother has taught me almost everything I know about finance, my lessons started at a very young age. As I grew up, I learned valuable skills that have stuck with me to this day. Even if her teachings were unintentional, I am grateful for the knowledge. Here are a few money lessons that have impacted me the most:
Spending Plan
Ever since I can remember, my parents have made weekly grocery lists. This simple habit has taught me the importance of being selective on the things I spend my money on. The purpose of our grocery list is to only buy what we need, eliminating unnecessary items that would only go to waste. This practice of making lists has now been instilled in me. I make lists for the stores I need to go to, and the things I need to buy, this habit has helped me prevent overspending on my weekly budget.
Saving
For Christmas one year, I was given a piggy bank. As a kid, it was fun to watch my piggy bank slowly fill up with coins and dollar bills. I knew eventually I would break it open to spend the money on something I really wanted. A piggy bank is a great way to teach young children how to save for ‘something’ in the future. For me, by the time I had enough money for the thing I was originally saving for, I didn’t want it anymore. That experience taught me to avoid spontaneous purchases; by taking the time to save and plan my purchases, I only spend my money on things I truly want.
Ask yourself first!
When I started my first part-time job, I began to gain more independence and control on what I could spend my money on. I remember going shopping with my mom and her asking me, “Do you really need it?” When she first asked me this question, I didn’t give it much thought and bought the item anyway. Now that I am older, I find myself asking that question to myself when deciding whether I should buy a specific item or not. Pausing before you purchase an item can end up saving you a lot of money by eliminating the unnecessary things you don’t need. Ask yourself, do you need it, or do you want it?
The Value of Investing
Upon graduating high school, my attitude toward working and saving money became more serious. From what I knew of my mom’s business, she helped people save and grow their money for the future. This was exactly what I wanted to do with my own money. I am lucky enough to have someone so close to me who knew exactly what I needed to do. My mom suggested I invest some money every month into a TFSA. Over time I was able to watch my money slowly grow into a nice little nest egg. Putting away as little as $25 a month taught me how dollar cost averaging works and why it’s important to save regularly. Instead of buying Starbucks every day, I put that money towards my future.
Thank you, mom, for always being my support system, my role model, and my best friend.
Happy Mother’s Day!
Have a great weekend,
Paige
Reviewed and approved with love by Tracey Marshall.
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