I attended your wonderful Harry Potter-themed baby shower where the guests were given specific instructions to bring diapers and books in lieu of cards. I brought you three books about kids and finance. The books were a hit and started a brief conversation—this was the plan—about how we need to start teaching you early about money.
Even though you won’t see the outside world for another month, when you arrive, you will hear bedtime stories from your Mom and Dad about savings and stocks and investments, oh my.
I hope words like “generational wealth” will be a part of your lexicon as you get older. Your parents are financially awesome and they want you to be awesome, too. Remember, you can ball out without going into debt. Believe me, I know.
I hope you understand piggy banks are adorable, but the real benefit is emptying them on a regular basis into an interest-bearing account.
Those onesies and other adorable outfits you will wear, soil and change several times a day, getting very little use along the way, can be resold, probably for pennies on the dollar, or donated to another family with a little one on the way. I hope that you will be practical and charitable when you can.
When you are 5 and you develop a bigger, faster, better lemonade stand using the latest technology, remember to always pay yourself first. These days, 10 percent is the minimum you should save from your multiple streams of income. When you receive offers to sell that lemonade conglomerate and develop your first app a few years later as a teen, hold out for the best offer. Most importantly, sell because you are ready to sell, and not for any other reasons like peer pressure or fear.
You are entering a world where people exchange money digitally. Again, keeping money on your app is not always wise. When you are older, and you’re splitting the check for dinner, collect the payments from your friends via Zelle, CashApp, Zip-Zow-Wow or whatever tool you’ll use, and then put that money into your bank account.
This is assuming traditional banks will exist. Or even traditional money, for that matter. We’ve already seen Bitcoin and other forms of cryptocurrency come into play. So, whether it’s cash, magic beans, gold, oil futures, Bitcoin, the Yuan or whatever will serve as currency when you get older, remember the same rules apply: save, invest and be charitable.
Become an influencer. Go to trade school. Join the military. Go to college. Become an entrepreneur. Whatever work looks like when you get older, always remember to go hard. Develop a strong work ethic early and you will always be able to find your way. All work is important, let no job be beneath you.
Find your purpose early and let that drive your path. Discard everything that doesn’t fit.
See you soon. I can’t wait.
Already in love,
Auntie
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