Too much money?

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Originally Posted By: Pop_Rivit
In my opinion, it's rare to gain a true respect for money without early training and understanding the real value of money. That goes hand in hand with earning money and working hard at a young age.

Originally Posted By: Mr Nice
At 15 years old I was unloading grocery trucks at 7 AM on Saturdays and Sundays.


Growing up on a farm we called that "vacation".



I grew up on a small family farm. The work/chores were not paid in money, it was the food on the table. I was able to grow extra corn to sell. I sold manure from the cattle stalls to buy my high school class ring.
I had a great business in middle school selling bubble gum for a nickel a piece, it cost me 1/2 cent at the wholesale store, I was making a bout $20 a week which in the late 70's was decent money, until one of my customers ratted me out and i was in the principals office.

I do think the value of money cannot be learned without hard work and ingenuity.
 
When I was in college in the late '70s early '80s I really want to have a 25 cents bag of potato chip, it took me 3 or 4 days before I spent that much.
 
It's pretty pathetic how many people don't work a single job until after they graduate college.

I couldn't wait to work at 16. I hated the child labor laws because at 14 I already wanted to push carts at the grocery store to earn myself money. Making $7.15/hr was a lot to me when I was in high school.
 
Originally Posted By: GMFan
It's pretty pathetic how many people don't work a single job until after they graduate college.

I couldn't wait to work at 16. I hated the child labor laws because at 14 I already wanted to push carts at the grocery store to earn myself money. Making $7.15/hr was a lot to me when I was in high school.




It's pretty pathetic that some people never work period....
 
Originally Posted By: Nate1979
I think it depends more on how they are raised than if they had money or not as a kid. There are good and bad kids of all income levels. Even poor kids will go blow the money on a pair of sneakers and never appreciate the value of money but just want something flashy to impress their friends.


Nailed it.

How someone was raised means everything. I do notice that my generation seems more likely to spend money on something flashy than save it. Example: People who buy a brand new car they can barely afford, yet have no money for gas. I have a hard time giving a friend a ride when he has a brand new truck yet says gas is too expensive. Living within your means is something that doesn't seem to be important anymore.

My GF is a nanny for a family that has trouble paying her on time. They will sometimes say "we will pay you next week" because they don't have the money at the time. Both of the parents make $100k+ a year.
 
Originally Posted By: pbm
Originally Posted By: GMFan
It's pretty pathetic how many people don't work a single job until after they graduate college.

I couldn't wait to work at 16. I hated the child labor laws because at 14 I already wanted to push carts at the grocery store to earn myself money. Making $7.15/hr was a lot to me when I was in high school.




It's pretty pathetic that some people never work period....


I agree. I started mowing lawns when I was 10. I started mowing my grandma's lawn then eventually did a lot of the neighbor's lawns as well. My dad would drop me off on a Saturday and I would get as many done as I could. I bought my first vehicle when I was 16 with the money I had saved. I also worked all through college in order to graduate with no debt. I was extremely busy, but it also kept me out of trouble since I never had the time (or money) to party.
 
Originally Posted By: expat
My parents, like many others at the time, married soon after WWII in England.

My father worked shiftwork, my mother raised a family of 3 (a 4th child died before his 2nd birthday) we had enough, Food, a roof over our head (rented), an old car that would take us on vacation once a year. Life was good, but only good enought to get by.

I knew from an early age that when I left school, 'I' would have to support MYSELF!

I did not do well at school. I have a learning disability (dyslexia, which was not understood at the time) so the problem of 'how could I make money' was ever present as I was growng up.

By luck, and allowing luck to play a roll, and by hard work, I have been quite successful.
But along the way there have been hard times, to the point where I could not always aford to eat what I wanted to eat, or heat the house to a comfortable level.
In return, I have learned the value of money.

My wife also knew some hardship growing up, and as a result had her only child late in life, when she had some financial stability. Our daughter had the opportunity of a good education and support during university, but learned 'money does not grow on trees'

As a result she pursued her career and did not have her child until she was almost 40 (now or never!)

Our daughters partner (of 15 years) comes from a family pretty much just like ours ie. Parents worked hard, and had 1 child late in life.

We all love our grandson. BUT we realize he will grow up in circumstances VERY differant to ours or our children. In that, if things play out as they should, He has got one heck of a lot of money coming his way before he gets old!

Will he REALLY learn the value of money if he does not have to?

Having not had money (I won't use the word poor) has given me insight, and empathy for those people that work hard but still struggle financially. It has also taught me to be resourceful.

It is my hope our grandson will learn these values from his parents, but fear he may already be too far removed from that reality understand.

Just my random thoughts.



I admit, what motivated me in my younger years was Fear!

I was afraid of growing up without options!

My father had a steady job, it met his needs, fed his family. He hated his work, but he had little choice. I guess today you would say he was a Wage slave.
I did not marry in my 'younger years' because of the fear of the sound of 'doors of opportunity' slaming shut.

I wanted to work, not because of some ingrained work ethic. But because doing so opened doors to a better life. a life where I need not work so hard!

Had I known 'money was comming' I honestly have to say, I may not have made the effort.
and if that had been so, looking back, how would I feel about myself now?

Age. if it does not give you wisdom, at least it gives you insight!
 
Grew up on a farm and one grandpa was carpenter. I've worked since before I can remember. At 35 I'm tired of working and in another 14 years with the youngest graduates going to part time only on the road.

That being said I don't want my kids to have to same experience. Was it bad for me nope but I want them to enjoy their childhoods at least a smidgen.. I did not! But will they get everything handed them.. nope! At 7 and 4 they're starting to learn that. They'll both have accounts they can access with 10-12k once they turn 18. Frankly I not worried what they do with it or what they do have graduation. Not do this.. do that as I was exposed to. If they ask I will suggest eventually getting a degree. At 35 finally getting my bachelors.

Guess you speak of fear and that's part of my motivation and why I've never been without a job. Always have to have that incoming check just to buy [censored] I don't really need. Too bad I didn't I have the gumption to buy a van live by the river and work just enough to get by.. lol somedays that sounds so relaxing.

Just another way to look at it...
 
I came from a well off family. Not really wealthy but Dad made great money for the times.

I was never given much of anything. Dad always said "what would you do to earn that?" At age 10 I was 'given' a great deal on a used lawn mower and started mowing all the yards in the neighborhood. Then at 16 I was 'given' a great deal on a worn out family car.

I am grateful my Father never let me down by giving me too much without teaching me that it is proper and fulfilling to earn it!
 
My family is pretty comfortably well off, growing up me and my brother had to earn anything we wanted and none of the non-essentials were given to us. We both started working as soon as we could (12 for small stuff, 14 in our warehouse) and made our own money to buy the stuff we wanted. I knew I didn't have to worry about going hungry and I still could rely on my parents if it came to that but I HATE asking anyone for anything, if I can't afford it I don't need it.

My youngest brother is just the opposite, he's 16 now and refuses to work, has everything handed to him. He's not a troublemaker but he doesn't see the point in doing his school work and has no ambitions other than playing video games. Between the lack of ambition and his poor attitude toward doing anything I have a feeling he's going to end up the 40 year old neckbeard that lives in moms basement.

In the end it's not about how much money you have, it's that you learn to respect the work it took to make it regardless of who's generation did the work.
 
Lots of money to young adult will most likely be squandered within a few years.

I know someone who inherited a quarter million dollars and within 6 years it was all gone and wife divorced him. Sometimes a large cash gift will cause a person to have anxiety and have the urge to spend and spend.
 
It usually comes down to the though process that "I have lots of money, this purchase won't matter" This repeats over and over till one day they wake up and realize that they're out of money and the next purchase will matter.
 
What's so noble about "work", though?

I've been working since 14 or so. Poured concrete a few years (so I know real, hard, work), have a B. S. degree, and try my hardest to enjoy my time away from work. My job is no longer 'hard', but having to show up every day can be!

F$*& work. We don't live forever, I'd rather enjoy my time. Unfortunately, money is needed. So I play the game.

I do agree that young people need to understand that not everything is free and given/expected. Once they're on their own, they can figure it out. Some people like to work hard and feel accomplishment from that. Others would prefer not to. I know people who would work hard for 6 months, then take 6 months off to travel/surf/climb, stretching every dollar.

We could happily retire and never miss work, in our mid 30's. Just happen to be ~$1.5M short right now.


If kids are raised right, the amount of money they have or do not have should not be an issue.
 
While money management can be learned. It truly is a complex subject and needs to be taught in college level courses.

It's nice to see successful people who have learned how to manage money. However, it does not come naturally to most people.
 
Originally Posted By: Mr Nice
As an adult, having a job is very important....

Is $1.5M considered a lot of money ?



It would be enough to draw 60k from every year and have over a 90% change of it lasting indefinitely. So its enough for us to achieve financial independence. Whether never to work again, or simply take a few years off, then do "fun" or volunteer jobs if we get bored, etc.
Money gives you options. That's our goal. Some people like to just accumulate more of it, despite having enough already. I don't think they realize that you cannot buy more time, though.

If I had enough money, why would a job be important? My self-worth is not tied to my "career".
 
Originally Posted By: surfstar
Originally Posted By: Mr Nice
As an adult, having a job is very important....

Is $1.5M considered a lot of money ?



It would be enough to draw 60k from every year and have over a 90% change of it lasting indefinitely. So its enough for us to achieve financial independence. Whether never to work again, or simply take a few years off, then do "fun" or volunteer jobs if we get bored, etc.
Money gives you options. That's our goal. Some people like to just accumulate more of it, despite having enough already. I don't think they realize that you cannot buy more time, though.

If I had enough money, why would a job be important? My self-worth is not tied to my "career".

+1 I'll be 28 next month, and I can't wait to retire. If I could afford to retire tomorrow, I would do it. Unfortunately, I still have a long way to go before that happens.
 
How can a married couple from Santa Barbara considers $60K per year to be lot of money? The 1/3 will go to taxes, 1/3 will go to medical premiums, 1/3 will go to housing, 1/3 will go to food, 1/3 will go to transportation such as car payments, insurance, gas, maintenance. Santa Barbara means at least heating/cooling costs should be less.

By the way, I am not sure if the assertion that 4% withdrawal rate gives you 90% chance of indefinite income stream. I think FireCalc says something like 90% chance of not running out of money in 30 years or something like that. If you are going to retire in your thirties, you will need more chunk to start with.
 
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I assumed that 4% withdrawal rate was based upon a 25 year lifespan after retirement--once retired, the portfolio would be set to super-conservative and thus grow very little.

When I was a teenager I had no intention of retiring. Work until dead or disabled. After a couple of decades... I'd like to change my mind! It's not that I want to sit around doing nothing, but I do find work gets in the way of life.
 
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