Entitlement? Not our Daughter!

One of the running debates among all the kids and money crowd is whether or not to link allowance and chores.  I fall squarely on the "No" side of the argument, particularly when the kids are young.  As they age, however, it is something that needs to be dealt with.  It is even more of an issue for us that it is for some, as Kellie does not work and I work from home, often in shorts and a t-shirt.  Our kids really struggle with the idea of having both parents work, etc, as it is not their reality.

Why go in to all of this today?  Well, we are shipping Miranda off to some of the cousins who have young kids for a visit this summer as "mother's little helper".  She is super excited, and absolutely loves the kids, but this is also to get some practice under her belt for future babysitting and the like.  As a result of all of this, Kellie has enrolled her in the a one day babysitting class.

Here's where we start to take on entitlement.  If you are one of the few who have read the rough draft of the book, you know I want the allowance to flow regardless of chores because chores are a part of contributing to the household, and the purpose of allowance in our house is to teach them how to manage money.

Given that this babysitting thing is going to be a for profit venture, this class is an investment, and if I'm not getting a cut, the cost should be Miranda's, not mine.  Of course, we just sprang this on her, so there will be some cost sharing rather than her taking the entire thing, but the conversation that goes along with this is just like that above - if you want to start making money, you have to invest something - time, money, etc - in order for it to work.

I think everyone wins in this scenario - chores get done, allowance is paid, I have a financially savvy kid, and she realizes she has to have skin in the game.