I’m all for relaxed conversations about money with kids, but there’s no point in trying to squeeze them into lessons about investing. My children grew up while I hosted the Money Show on Channel 9. Yet they had no interest in money, and as youngsters, to my amusement, they called me “the most boring person on TV”.
But interestingly, as adults they are good with money. Like brushing your teeth, good habits tend to persist, and that includes the effort you make to talk to your kids about money.
What you can do is start a portfolio of stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) for your children or grandchildren, then grow it regularly.
My parents did this early for my sister and me. Mom and Dad mentioned stocks every now and then, and in my late teens I started to get interested. By the time I was in my twenties, the portfolio had grown to the point that my wife Vicki and I were able to use the money as a deposit on our first house. We were on our way, all thanks to the foresight of my parents. How beautiful is it?
The key to investing for children or grandchildren is to invest regularly in quality assets, but in a fund with very low fees. This of course is InvestSMART’s strategy and, better yet, the hard work is done for you, meaning you can spend more time with the kids rather than chasing the stock market.
