I have no idea how this is going to play into my “journey to a million dollars in 2 years or less” project, but I think there is some relationship. So, I’m going to hijack my own blog for a week to talk about what I want to do and why, in a much bigger playing field….and this amazing thing that happened today.
Tues was a back-to-back appt day. My headset wasn’t working, so I had to hold a phone up against my ear with my should while I typed. A slightly sore shoulder turned into an absolute nightmare at the end of the day.
I didn’t check my schedule because the only thing I usually have on Wed’s is a radio show and then rarely some appts in the afternoon. I knew I wasn’t doing the radio show because the host had had emergency surgery (he’s doing fine now). So, I got up slowly. I checked my email - no emergencies - and then took a leisurely bath.
About 10 AM the house phone and my cell phone started ringing like crazy. My saying is, “There are no accounting emergencies” so I let it just go for awhile. Finally, with the back to back rings, I figured there might actually be an emergency and so answered my cell at 10:04 AM. It was my asst Carolyn. I’d forgotten about my monthly online eBay workshop. (NOTE TO SELF: Need to think about a better way to convert off of eBay. I’ve gotten as many as 100,000 views of my workshops)
So, at 10:04 I signed on to chaos. Sometimes we have topics that take off and boy, this was one of them. Megan always helps me out (thank you Megan!). She signs on as me too, so people must thing Diane Kennedy is really a speed typist. And thank goodness she was on already, she was fielding questions right and left.
The problem was I still didn’t have a headset that works and my neck now hurt so bad I was practically in tears. So, we couldn’t talk like we usually did - we went to IM and started typing there. I’ll take #50, can you handle #52…. etc.. until we hit an even 100 posts. IN ONE HOUR!
I put some Chinese herbal smelly stuff on my neck and shoulder and it was soon working fine.
We finished up the workshop and I thought about combing my hair (still in a towel) and then I heard from the White House.
I was invited to something (not clear until I got the email follow up) on 6/18 in DC. My first thought was “I”m not even dressed yet. My hair is in a towel. I can’t go.” And then I thought how crazy that was. I am forever grateful that we never got the video phones everyone said we would.
So, I’m going to the White House. I called Richard and just started crying. And that’s been pretty much my day, working with Carolyn to move my calendar, figure out flights, hotels, get a hair appt and try to get over the state of shock.
Then I got the formal invitation from the White House. It is a special first time ever “Compassion in Action” Roundtable. My assignment is to work with the big faith-based and community leaders that will be there to network and create joint ventures to resolve the financial literacy in our country. My invitation actually came from the White House Chief of Faith-Based and Community Involvement. (Didn’t even know we had that) I am humbled and I am moved. Mary100 (from this forum and TaxLoopholes.com) emailed me and asked me what I was going to wear. No kidding. AND which bag do I carry so I can take in a camera, DVDs of my son’s charity, business cards, a notebook and alll the other stuff I need - and still look cool?
June 11th, 2008 at 5:39 pm
This is so great.
Definately part of the 2 year journey.
I wonder what’s going to happen next!!
June 11th, 2008 at 8:47 pm
Ok, the part about “what are you going to wear?” was a joke…people on the Taxloopholes.com Forum know I am a clothesaholic and we even worked on figuring out how I could create a website to tap into that!
So, what ARE you going to wear????
June 12th, 2008 at 5:59 am
Wow! What an unbelieveable honor. Like Beta J mentioned, I wonder what will happen next. It will be fun to watch your journey.
June 12th, 2008 at 7:43 am
>>I have no idea how this is going to play into my “journey to a million dollars in 2 years or less” project, but I think there is some relationship.<<
Maybe this experience will become the cover photo or author photo for your book!
You know, you in the foreground, and the WH in the background. (That would be a highest order example of Cialdini’s social proof..)
June 12th, 2008 at 1:06 pm
I agree with Beta J - a photo with the WH in the background would be very impactful social proof - and make Cialdini proud!
Financial illiteracy among students and adults in the country is appalling. I am pleased to see it is being addressed, and through a coordinated effort such as this. Some of the faith-based concerns are doing awesome work in the country, as true faith-based people have always done throughout centuries and continents.
I have been thinking seriously about developing a “Life Skills” course curriculum for secondary schools that runs the gamut of basic skills that simply are not taught, or are made boring or understated - to include:
(1) some simple handyman activities, changing a car tire and diagnosing when your car stopped simply because a wire was loose, painting woodwork…
(2) how to cook a hamburger, make coffee (don’t laugh - I know some men who are terrified of that!), make eggs, creative salads, real basics outside of Home Ec…
(3) how to balance a checkbook, manage credit, understand basic financial pages and investment lingo, research and track investments, use Quicken, etc.
(4) basic First Aid, CPR, real nutritional information (yes, supplements and all), how the body works from a practical standpoint (not your customary biology class)…
(5) truths about risks of pregnancy & the even greater physical dangers of abortion, basic infant care, truths about sexually transmitted diseases and psychological/emotional entanglements, basic books such as Robin Norwood’s “Women Who Love Too Much” and Harriet Braiker’s “The Disease To Please,” etc. Hey, have the girls watch a delivery or change a poop diaper, and early motherhood won’t be so appealing!
(6) basic business concepts, planning, personal development material…
Yeah, it’s about REAL LIFE. And it would take a year, even though fast-paced, challenging, with lots of outside contributors. No, it wouldn’t be that awfully boring “health class” that no one wants to attend.
So thanks for letting me share. I was thinking of coordinating these things pro bono, so this isn’t a pitch - just a genuine concern for the total inadequacy of our school system to prepare students for LIFE!
Now I’m just truly excited… not just for you, but for all of us… that you will be at the White House with this significant involvement, with a chance to make a real difference…
…not to mention a highly visible involvement that will thrust you forward dramatically toward your two-year goal! Can’t wait to hear all about it!
June 12th, 2008 at 11:11 pm
Margaret, I am so in tune with your thinking! I’m cutting and pasting some of my e-mail to Diane. This truly is a wonderful opportunity to be at the forefront of real change!
“one of my other passions - the education of our children, especially in K-5; they are such sponges! At 4 or 5 our daughter, Kate, couldn’t wait to get a plastic card so she could get money from the bank machine…I had a hard time explaining that you had to put money in the bank first! But it points out that even very little kids are aware of what grown-ups do, from getting money from a machine to using a plastic card to pay for groceries.
And don’t get me started on why we don’t start teaching our kids another language in kindergarten. Kate told me that by age 3 kids start losing the ability to learn another language as a “mother-tongue,” meaning they will speak it as well as a native speaker. And kids have the ability to learn as many as 3 languages as “mother-tongues!” And yet we wait until late middle school or high school to attempt to teach them another language!
I think I ranted in the Forum about how we graduate kids who know advanced Calculus but have no idea how to write a check, never mind balance a checkbook! I know there is at least one big bank that has a banking program for the schools; I think that is great but needs to be expanded upon…I think it is “available” but the schools have to make the contact. Our older kids need to be taught the basics about money, savings and using credit…and it needs to be done before they get out of school. But unless it is mandated (which is unlikely) it is up to the community to step in and find ways to provide the education…banks are the most likely, but what about other businesses? Sponsorship of a program by any big business in conjunction with banks (not just one, but a bunch in order to cover small communities, and larger areas) would be a high visibility campaign for them.
What about encouraging banks to hold “banking fairs” where parents and kids could have fun and learn at the same time…it’s harder to reach adults overall, but if they were being exposed to tables and/or literature aimed at them on a more educational level (NOT sales pitches or “sign-up now for a new credit card”), while attending an educational community event with their kids? The kids could be learning in fun activities about money and savings and those plastic things (!) their parents use. At the same time the parents could be exposed to both what their kids are learning (and maybe even learning themselves) and other financial things they don’t understand (just what exactly is APR?).
Do you remember in Parade Magazine quite a few years ago a list (I think it was by the woman Marie VonSant (?) or something) that wrote a column about mental challenges (as in puzzles, not my memory freeze that is happening right now!) of the 20 or so things every kid needed to know how to do by the age of 18? Things like boil water, balance a checkbook, do their laundry, etc., etc. Maybe I’m off on where I saw it, but it was such a great list. IMHO it should be mandatory that you can’t graduate high school without being able to do every thing on that list! Our high school requires that you be able to swim the length of the pool and stay afloat for x minutes as a graduation requirement, which is great, but how difficult would it be to teach our kids the basic life skills they need? I’m definitely ranting now…maybe it’s time to send this off!
June 12th, 2008 at 11:28 pm
Well I Googled Parade Magazine and the woman’s correct name is Marilyn vos Savant and she writes a column called “Ask Marilyn.” At least I was somewhat close! I’ve sent an e-mail asking if it was her article and if a copy is available.
June 13th, 2008 at 5:49 am
I am a teacher and I agree with you on a lot of these things. It’s frustrating for teachers because we get told what we have to teach. Now we are teaching for tests so our curriculm is based on what these tests. In our school it is mandatory for the kids to take a personal finance class for a semester. It is taught to the juniors. This year they attended an event called real life simulation and it seemed to go over pretty well.
I have a class is a group of seniors that need a math credit to graduate. I brought in the Cash Flow 101 for the last month. I think they learned more in the last month then they had from me all year. It was pretty amazing to watch. Of course I got my hands slapped from my principal for doing it. He didn’t think it was appropriate.
I will do it again next year though.
June 13th, 2008 at 6:57 am
There are two definite niches available– teaching kids positive thinking (N. Hill kind of stuff), and teaching them money skills.
There is a money camp for kids, but the market is probably much larger than what they’re able to serve.
Teens especially will listen to someone else as an authority before they’ll listen to their parents.
June 17th, 2008 at 1:21 pm
Got a reply from Parade Magazine and here is the article:
Ask Marilyn
Issue Date: 3/25/2001
Title: What To Teach Your Kids Before They Leave Home
Author: Marilyn vos Savant
What skills should parents teach their children before they “leave the nest”? Of course, qualities such as morality and honesty are of overarching importance, but my question is directed more at the practical skills that are important in life.
—Greg Banner, Bristol, R.I.
What a wonderful question! We tend to focus on skills children learn at school, but I think practical skills may be as important or even more important.
Greg Banner—a father of six and retired lieutenant colonel in the Army —added in his letter that his West Point graduating class
of 1979 and their spouses had compiled, through interaction online, a list of practical skills parents should teach their children. It included such suggestions as: how to climb a tree; how to ride a motorcycle (before someone else shows the kids!); how to haggle with the toughest car salesman in town; how to handle firearms safely; how to fight fires at home; how to be a gentleman or a lady; how to dress for success; how to use birth control; and much more.
My own suggestions are at right. But I’d like your ideas as well. Let’s take advantage of the vast experience of PARADE’s nearly 80 million readers and compile a comprehensive list.
If you have a question or comment for Marilyn vos Savant, who is listed in the “Guinness Book of World Records” Hall of Fame for “Highest IQ,” send it to: Ask Marilyn, PARADE, 711 Third Ave., New York, N.Y. 10017. Or you can send e-mail to marilyn@parade.com (please include name, city and state). Personal replies are not possible.
It would be great if by 18 every young person could do the following:
Domestic Skills
• Cook (don’t just open and pour!) a traditional breakfast, lunch and dinner.
• Wash and iron clothes without ruining them (plus, removing spots).
• Replace a button, baste a fallen hem and polish your own shoes.
Extra credit: Make a loaf of bread (without a machine) or bake a cake from scratch.
Physical Skills
• Throw and catch balls of all sizes without breaking your fingers.
• Swim half a mile, tread water for half an hour and float for an hour.
• Ride a bike with confidence.
Extra credit: Be able to get a kite up in the air, keep it there and bring it back down in one piece.
Handyman Skills
• Hang a picture straight without making extra holes in the wall.
• Paint neatly, including cleaning up the mess.
• Know which tools perform what functions and how to use them around the house.
Extra credit: Sharpen a knife without cutting yourself.
Outdoor Skills
• Hike with friends all day without getting lost, bitten or covered with a rash.
• Bait a hook, catch a fish, reel it in, remove the hook, then clean and cook the fish.
• Plan and manage a weekend camping trip with friends.
Extra credit: Know enough about the wildlife in your area to recognize and feel like a friend to the animals.
Practical Skills
• Type well with both hands in the normal manner.
• Set up your own computer system without help from anyone.
• Drive a car, including one with a manual transmission, and maintain it properly.
Extra credit: Change a flat tire.
Organizational Skills
• Create a budget. Note: It takes longer to earn money than to spend it.
• Balance a checkbook manually, even if you bank online.
• Maintain an address book and a personal appointment calendar.
Extra credit: Set up a filing system to keep all of the paperwork in your life in one place.
Social Skills
• Carry on a conversation for 15 minutes with a person you don’t know.
• Speak before a small group of friends for a few minutes.
• Tell a joke well enough so that everybody gets it and maybe even laughs.
Extra credit: Learn enough ballroom dancing so you can have fun at parties. (Trust me on this one!)
Artistic Skills
• Draw an illustration at least well enough to get your point across.
• Have enough confidence to sing aloud, even when everyone else can hear you.
• Know how to play a musical instrument well enough to enjoy playing in a group.
Extra credit: Learn how to take a decent photograph, so you won’t be disappointed later, when it’s developed. For example, you can’t shoot fireworks with a flash!
Human Skills
• Care for a dog, cat or other animal, including when it’s sick.
• Baby-sit for children ranging in age from 6 months to 6 years.
• Aid elderly or handicapped people without looking superior.
Extra credit: Help a person in need without exposing either one of you to danger.
Orientation Skills
• Get around town on a bus, even if you usually walk or drive.
• Read a map, including road maps.
• Know what to do if you find yourself in a bad neighborhood.
Extra credit: Know which direction is north, south, east and west (without a compass) whenever you’re outside.
Recreation Skills
• Play a team sport instead of just watching.
• Maintain a fitness regimen.
• Learn a game (like bridge or chess) you can play with friends for life.
Extra credit: Know how to ride a horse, handle a boat or enjoy a snow sport.
Survival Skills
• Know basic first aid and maintain a complete first-aid kit.
• Know what to do if you get sick, especially if you’re alone.
• Know when to defend yourself; then know how to be effective.
Extra credit: Know CPR. The life you save may be your father’s or mother’s.
Readers, Can You Help?
What do you think are the most important practical skills kids should know before venturing out in the world? Let’s put our heads together on this project. Please send your suggestions for our list to marilyn@parade.com or to the address at the bottom of the previous page. (If you send e-mail, type KIDS as the subject.) We’ll publish the best in a future column.
February 3rd, 2009 at 11:58 pm
Kids (young adults) need to know, (1.) that life is not likely going to be a moon shot straight to the top. There will be bumps along the way, expect them, embrace them, learn from them and try not to repeat them. But most importantly keep shooting for the moon. Failure while on a trip to reaching your goals, is part of the trip. It’s ok to fail. It simply means your working at it. So when you hit a bump, and it will happen, get up, regroup and put one foot in front of the other and start moving again on your journey, till you get where you what to be. Don’t be surprised when you get there, if you happen to look back and figure out that it was about the journey. (2.) There is no successful person that did not first have a dream. So dare to dream. Big. (3.) There is no substitute for persistence. (4.) Thank the people along the way that held out a hand, offered you a prayer, shared what they had to give and where there for you when you hit one of those bumps in the road.
Regards, Randy