SERIES: 5 MONEY MISTAKES YOUR CHILDREN SHOULD NEVER MAKE
Episode 1: Why Money Is Still a Mystery in Your Home And What to Do About It
By Dr. Mayowa Olusoji, The Money Smart Coach
In most homes, money is the ghost at the dinner table. It shapes every decision, what your children eat, where they go to school, how they grow up, yet it is rarely spoken about directly.
We discuss grades. We discuss health. We discuss behaviour. But money? We change the subject, often because we are uncomfortable, or simply because nobody taught us how.
That silence has a price. And our children are the ones who pay for it later.
Over this four-part series, we will unpack the five most financially damaging habits children develop, not from recklessness, but from ignorance. These are not minor slip-ups. They are deep psychological patterns that quietly follow children into adulthood, costing them years of financial stress and thousands in avoidable mistakes.
This week, we begin with the most foundational lesson of all: money is a tool, not magic.
To a child in today’s world, money is invisible and effortless. A tap of a screen and dinner appears. A card swipe and toy materialise. There is no visible cost, no visible exchange. And if they cannot see the trade, they cannot respect the value.
Your job this week is simple but powerful: narrate your financial decisions out loud. Every time you make a purchase, say what is happening. At the supermarket: “I am trading the money I earned at work for this food our family needs.” Online: “Even though we cannot see cash leaving, the numbers in our bank account are going down right now.” These small moments of narration connect the abstract to the real, and the real to the valuable.
This week’s challenge: The Price Detective Game
Under 7: Sort coins by size. Explain that the bigger note buys more than the small coin and takes longer to earn.
Ages 7+: Pick three items from your pantry. Ask your child to guess the price of each, then reveal the real figures together. The shock alone starts the conversation.
Dinner table question this week:
“If money were a tool in a toolbox, which tool would it be and why?”
If they say a magic wand, you have your work cut out. If they say a seed, they already understand more than most adults.
Dr. Mayowa Olusoji
The Money Smart Coach
See you next week Saturday, Kindly turn on your notification for this website, so you don’t miss any episode. Have a lovely weekend.
