As I discussed yesterday in a pair of articles (this one and this one), I dream of a future where my children and I are completely financially independent from one another. I’m not dependent on them, nor are they dependent on me.
The real question that both articles strive to answer, though, is where should I put my money to ensure the best possible outcome for both me and my children? Retirement savings? College savings? Splitting it up?
In my eyes, the issue really comes down to the job every parent is charged with: raising a functional, critically thinking, independent child. If you are truly able to succeed in this regard throughout their childhood, you’re going to raise a child that doesn’t really need your help at all to succeed in the world.
In other words, if you take the time to really focus on parenting your kids in a way that makes them functionally independent and critically thinking adults, you don’t need to save for their education. They’ll be able to make their own way in the world without your financial support. Thus, you can channel almost all of your long-term savings into retirement savings so that you’re not a burden to them in whatever they wind up doing in life.
How do you do that?
Over the last five years, I’ve read a pile of books on the psychological needs of children and young adults, everything from Mindset and Born to Buy to The …