We as parents should probably always be careful being the provider or money.

By that, I mean just handing it over without issue at a young age.

Daughter wants a new random toy – maybe she needs to come up with half the money.

Son wants his own car when he turns 18 – maybe he needs to be responsible for the payments.

See, the value of money, and the ethic of working for it, are both teachable points.

As parents, we do a great disservice to our children by not showing them these ideas softly and kindly (action->consequence) before the world teaches them in its own blunt way.

If your kids are grown though, finished school, have a job, and turned out right – well – I mean, give them all the money you want to.

“Parents make the mistake of wanting to be the provider of money,” Grubman said. “It goes all the way back to childhood and allowances. If a child wants to go off to Guatemala or wherever, they need to have some skin in the game. The mistake many wealthy families make is to subsidize it.”

-Paul Sullivan, The Thin Green Line