Money Minded Families

14Family Mission Statement

Money should be considered a tool to help you live your life's purpose.

A significant part of what we do as parents is hope, and some of us may pray, that the things we do with our kids, the lessons we share, the values we instill, the constant reminders (perhaps nagging) about right and wrong, stick. We hope they stick. We hope that when we send our children out into the big world, that the foundation we have helped to build is one that supports them throughout the rest of their life. Jacob is now 13 and honestly I thought I had more years to mold and shape and direct him. What I am learning is that at some point we shift from dictating to our kids how to act to pulling back and gently guiding and influencing. I have recently made the shift to guide and it's not easy, but I do understand that it is a necessary part of our children's development. Our kids will make horrible decisions and we must let them, not because we are bad parents but because they are simply still learning.

As we become guides, we must find ways to gently reinforce our values and the lessons we want our children to carry with them. Creating a family mission statement is a great way to instill your values as a family and serve as a constant reminder for whom you aspire to be both as a family and as individuals. I often have the privilege of working with families who have strong sense of family, of who everyone is, how they contribute to the family, and how their ancestors have ...