"Reject the basic assumption of civilization, especially the importance of material possessions."
-Lou (Fight Club)
So you think kids are expensive and they're the reason you can't save money? You have debt because of your kids? You can't save for retirement because of your kids? So let me tell you about Amos...
Amos is an Amish farmer. He lives a respectable happy life in Lancaster County, PA with his wife and...14 kids. That's right folks he's got 14 kids! With 14 kids though you'd expect for him to be broke. Once again you'd be wrong! Amos who is happily married with 14 kids, also has managed to save over $400,000 so that he can outright buy his own farm. With 14 kids you're going to need your own farm!
Compare this also with the Duggars who have 20 kids and who also live very comfortably. They're debt free and make more than enough money through their real estate holdings. These 2 examples are families where the children have grown to be freakishly (I mean that in a good way) efficient and respectful. So how did this happen? How can a mother and father raise a class room full of kids who are not a drain on society and still manage to save a mountain of money?
It boils down to basically this, they are removed from the Kardashian consumerism hype of our modern world. Cable...HAHA!! Neither have cable or TVs for that matter. Not that not having a cable bills means that you can now afford 14-20 kids, but rather it stops exposing your children to constant wants. People just do not grasp the amount of damage that advertising does to society, especially children. Advertising needs is a wonderful thing because it enables to you make more informed decisions, but that is what is rarely advertised. Besides the internet completely replaces that service now.
Now there is more to this than just not having a TV in the home. They waste absolutely nothing, they have hand-me-downs galore, I'm sure they don't take vacations to Disney, and they teach their children from a very young age to respect what they have.
I want to tell you a quick story about a friend of mine who taught his daughter just such a lesson. In my friend's house they require their children to do choirs in order to get money for the non-essentials in life. So his daughter saved diligently for something that she wanted. They go to the store and get the item. The problem is that she was $6 short when they rang her up at the register (sales tax is a bitch). Now my friend could have done the easy thing and given or "loaned" his daughter the money so that she could get it. But he correctly did not. Instead he told her that she needed to save $6 and they'd come back to get it. Well a week later she was disciplined and her goal was accomplished.
This entire scenario taught everybody involved a very important life long financial lesson. Keep up the great work!
-CC
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