One of the reasons I accepted Portfolio Penguin's book deal in 2019 was to demonstrate to my kids the importance of work. Not working sets a bad example if you are a FIRE parent.
If I spent two and a half years ideating, writing, editing, and marketing a book they could eventually find in a bookstore, hopefully they'd take their own academics seriously too. Little did I know I was signing up for a passion poverty career.
By writing a book, I could create something tangible my kids could see and hold. A finished product that connected the dots between years of school, discipline, and effort. Something real.
But then I realized something that made me a little sad.
Writing Books Is A Passion Poverty Career (PPC)
Despite writing two national bestsellers in Millionaire Milestones and Buy This Not That, by income standards I would be considered low income if writing books were my only source.
Making a livable wage as a professional writer is extremely difficult. Most writers do it on the side, the same way most actors wait tables while waiting for their break.
Even authors whose books reach the top 0.3% of all books sold in a given year rarely clear $100,000 a year from writing alone, thanks to how advances and royalties are structured. It's a tough business.
But most writers aren't in it for the money. We write because we have something to say, something that might delight a reader or solve a real problem in their life. This is why I'm writing my third book with Portfolio Penguin, Your Children Will Be OK, out in Fall 2027.
I could not support a family of four in San Francisco on book income alone. We would have to downsize to a one or two bedroom apartment, even with both children in public school. No more food delivery. No more weekly date nights. Vacations would consist almost entirely of staycations. At least I would be able to qualify for low-income housing.
If you don't believe me, The New Yorker once profiled a New York Times bestselling author earning only $49,000 a year. That number should humble every aspiring writer.
The median income earned by authors is roughly $10,000 a year. By the time my kids graduate college in 14 to 17 years, the median rent for a two bedroom apartment in San Francisco could easily be $10,000 a month compared to ~$6,200 today. To spend a fortune on college tuition and then try to make it as a writer is likely a negative return on education endeavor.
A Bittersweet Discovery On The Sofa
One morning after dropping the kids off at school, I came home and settled onto the sofa to write. Tucked into the crevice of a sofa cushion was a small stack of papers, so I pulled them out.
There I found a hand-drawn cover that read: “the rabbit Seal and Lamb book!”
My heart melted as a proud father. I immediately showed my wife. She assumed it was our son, who has been on a kick writing chapters of random fantasy fiction.
But looking more closely, she realized it was our six-year-old daughter's handwriting. When we picked the kids up that afternoon, our daughter confirmed it. Every word spelled correctly. An exclamation point at the end, full of enthusiasm.
As a parent, nothing makes me happier than watching my kids discover a love of learning on their own. I firmly believe that if you can learn to speak, write, and read well, your entire world opens up. Doors appear that you didn't even know existed.
But then reality set in.
The Curse And The Gift Of Following In Your Parents' Footsteps
Children have a tendency to follow their parents into similar fields, hobbies, and callings. Sometimes this is a gift. Sometimes it is a quiet curse dressed up as inspiration.
Archie Manning was a gifted NFL quarterback. His sons Peyton and Eli both won Super Bowls. His grandson now has the potential to join the NFL as well. Three generations of football. At some point you have to ask: is this passion or gravity?
Goldie Hawn built one of the most charming careers in Hollywood across four decades, and her daughter Kate Hudson followed her almost step for step.
In music, few inheritances are more complicated than Miley Cyrus and her father Billy Ray Cyrus. But perhaps the more instructive example is Natalie Cole, who followed her legendary father Nat King Cole into jazz and pop.
A number of famous American entrepreneurial families also show how children can follow in their parents’ footsteps. Ralph Lauren built one of America’s most recognizable fashion companies from scratch, and two of his children went on to become entrepreneurs and business leaders themselves. His son David founded a lifestyle magazine while at Duke and later joined Ralph Lauren Corporation, where he became a senior executive, while his daughter Dylan founded Dylan’s Candy Bar, which grew into a well-known retail brand.
Even in finance and business, the pattern holds. The Pritzker family, the Waltons, the Murdochs, the Johnsons (Fidelity), the Koch brothers' children. Wealth and professional identity pass from generation to generation with remarkable consistency, whether through explicit grooming or simple osmosis.
Parents Are Role Models After All
The research backs this up. Studies show that children are significantly more likely to enter the same profession as a parent, not just because of nepotism or access, though those are real factors, but because of early and repeated exposure.
What feels normal to a child becomes aspirational. What a parent speaks about at the dinner table becomes interesting. And what a parent struggles with and perseveres through teaches a child more than any classroom lesson.
Which brought me back to my daughter's rabbit seal and lamb book tucked inside the sofa cushion, and a knot forming in my stomach.
If she follows me into writing, I will be proud and heartbroken at the same time.
In an age where AI is destroying creativity and knowledge work, without my help, my daughter and son will likely enter the permanent underclass if they pursue careers as writers.
The Most Lucrative Careers To Encourage Your Children To Explore
If writing is a passion poverty career at one end of the income spectrum, it helps to know what sits at the other end. Not to crush your child's dreams, but to give them full information. The best gift you can give a young person is an honest map of the territory.
Here are the careers with the strongest compensation, both at entry level and at mid-career, based on Bureau of Labor Statistics data and compensation surveys from sources like Glassdoor, Levels.fyi, and the Association of American Medical Colleges:
| Career | Typical Degree Required | Median Starting Salary | Median Mid-Career Salary |
|---|---|---|---|
| Physician / Surgeon | MD + Residency (11-15 yrs) | $60,000 (residency) | $240,000 – $400,000+ |
| Dentist | DDS/DMD (8 yrs) | $120,000 | $170,000 – $250,000 |
| Pharmacist | PharmD (6-8 yrs) | $115,000 | $130,000 – $160,000 |
| Petroleum Engineer | BS Engineering (4 yrs) | $95,000 | $145,000 – $200,000 |
| Software Engineer (Big Tech) | BS Computer Science (4 yrs) | $130,000 – $180,000 | $200,000 – $400,000+ |
| Investment Banker | BS Finance/Economics (4 yrs) | $110,000 – $150,000 | $250,000 – $500,000+ |
| Management Consultant | BS + MBA preferred (4-6 yrs) | $90,000 – $110,000 | $150,000 – $300,000 |
| Corporate / M&A Lawyer | JD (7 yrs) | $95,000 – $215,000 | $200,000 – $500,000+ |
| Actuary | BS Math/Statistics (4 yrs) | $75,000 | $130,000 – $200,000 |
| Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA) | MSN (6-8 yrs) | $140,000 | $180,000 – $230,000 |
| Pilot (Commercial / Airline) | ATP Certificate (4-6 yrs) | $80,000 | $180,000 – $350,000 |
| Orthodontist | DDS + Specialty (10 yrs) | $130,000 | $250,000 – $400,000 |
| Financial Advisor / Wealth Manager | BS + CFP (4-6 yrs) | $65,000 | $120,000 – $300,000+ |
| Data Scientist (AI/ML) | BS/MS Computer Science (4-6 yrs) | $110,000 – $140,000 | $160,000 – $300,000 |
| Real Estate Developer | BS + Experience (4+ yrs) | $70,000 | $150,000 – $500,000+ |
A few observations worth noting:
First, notice what is not on this list. Journalism. Teaching. Social work. Writing. The arts. These are meaningful careers our society depends on, yet the market pays them as if they're optional. Your children deserve to know this before they commit four years and six figures of tuition to pursuing one.
Second, tech alone is no longer enough. Software engineering and data science are rare fields where a four-year degree can get you a six-figure salary right away. But AI is quickly commoditizing coding. The people who will win the next 20 years are those who understand both technology and money. Learn to build, but also learn to be a competent investor as well.
Third, field selection matters, but firm selection matters just as much. A financial advisor at a small regional firm and a wealth manager at a top private bank are technically in the same profession, but their pay can differ by 5X or more. Maybe working as a Director of Research for a $5 billion RIA is not that lucrative after all. The same goes for a lawyer at a mid-size firm versus a Big Law partner. Teach your children to think not just about what they want to do, but where they want to do it.
The goal is not to raise a child who chases money above all else. The goal is to raise a child who understands the financial consequences of their choices before they make them, while they still have time to course correct. That is not pressure. That is love with full information.
Pivot To Demonstrating Lucrative Work
If you want to improve your children's chances of becoming financially independent, it helps to demonstrate a diversified professional skill set at home. Not a fake one. A real one.
It's hard to demonstrate being a banker, consultant, lawyer, doctor, or entrepreneur if you're not one. These are the professions that make the most money. But there is one profession any of us can demonstrate authentically at home, and that is the profession of being an investor.
If you are reading this site, you already have some form of investments. A stock portfolio. A rental property. A venture capital allocation. A retirement account. That makes you an investor, regardless of what your day job is.
So the next time your child asks how your day was, instead of defaulting to the vague answer most of us give, you can talk about what the market did and why. What economic news moved a sector. What decision you made and what your reasoning was.
The goal is to make investing feel as normal and natural as talking about school or sports or the weather. So that by the time your kids are 18, terms like PE multiples, bear markets, dollar cost averaging, corrections, and growth versus value stocks are just part of their everyday vocabulary, because they heard them over dinner for years.
My Father's Influence On Me In Investing
The reason I got into the stock market at all was because of one morning at the breakfast table. I was in the 10th grade, earning $4.25 an hour at McDonald's and the same at a temp agency moving furniture and folding envelopes. Even then, I felt like $34 wasn't a lot of money after an 8-hour shift.
When I saw my father reading ticker symbols at the back of the newspaper one morning, I asked him what they meant. He explained the basics, and we followed a handful of stocks together over the next month to see what happened.
That single conversation changed the trajectory of my entire financial life. It led to studying economics at William and Mary, applying to investment banking jobs at a career fair in Washington DC, landing at Goldman Sachs and then Credit Suisse, saving aggressively for 13 years, kickstarting the modern-day FIRE movement in 2009, and eventually leaving in 2012 to be free.
One breakfast table conversation. That's all it took to pique my interest.
Who wouldn't prefer to have money make money for them versus slaving away behind a hot stove at McDonald's for minimum wage?
A Parent's Job Is To Introduce
A parent's job is to introduce children to as many things as possible and hope that one or two of them stick deeply enough that the child takes over from there on their own intrinsic interest. You cannot force that spark. But you can create the conditions for it.
So from now on, when I pick the kids up from school or sit down for dinner, I will talk about economics, stock markets, and rental properties before I talk about the book I'm working on. Investing will become as natural a dinner table topic as homework and friendships.
If your own career isn't in one of the classic high-earning fields, lean into your identity as an investor. Manage your own money rather than outsourcing it entirely. Do your own taxes, or at least understand them deeply enough to ask good questions. The more engaged you are with your own financial life, the more your children will absorb by proximity.
And maybe, just maybe, that will be a better inheritance than any trust fund.
Because when your six-year-old daughter is already writing and stapling her own books at home, you realize the footsteps are already being laid. A passion poverty career may be in her future. The only question is which path you help her see most clearly.
Questions for Readers
Would you encourage your children to follow in your professional footsteps? Why or why not?
If your child showed real talent in a low-paying field, would you nudge them toward something more lucrative or let passion lead? Where is the line between guidance and pressure?
What did your parents do for a living, and did it influence your own career choice more than you'd like to admit?
Track Your Wealth Like A Real Investor
The easiest way to start talking like an investor at dinner is to actually know your numbers. I've used Empower's free financial dashboard since 2012 to track my net worth, cash flow, and investment fees in one place. It's hard to explain asset allocation to a 10-year-old when you don't know your own.
If you link $100,000 or more in investable assets, Empower will also give you a free financial consultation with one of their professionals. Think of it as a second opinion on whether your portfolio is set up to fund the life you want, and the life your kids might want later.
I guess I’m not entirely sold on the idea that the children just choose to follow, versus some observation bias. It’s not a surprise that some children follow successful Hollywood types, but it’s because having that parent dramatically increases the odds of them getting cast from the ocean of waiters looking for a break.
And same with opening businesses. They have a massive safety net and funding source. Take Hunter Biden and Barron Trump. Just by nature of their last names, they can put out [anything] and find peopel that will pay for it.
Jumping to writing in particular, and your daughter – she’s 6, right. I wanted to be an astronomer at that age, I think. Or just to make use of being able to read. I went to college on the fence of studying physic or poli sci, and then made a 35 year career in tech. She could use that inclination to be a tech writer, which I don’t think will be replaced by Claude any time son, or in marketing, where the same applies. It may help do the drudge work, but it doesn’t even know what words are. It’s a parrot, mimmicking tokens (syllables).
That chart on top professions could use a column for difficulty. Specialized docs definitely make bank, but only after racking up massive student loan debt. And even when htey make it, the hours are terrible. My coworker’s fiance worked 2 36 hour shifts last week. Fireman hours. Getting the flying hours to become a commercial pilot is also no joke. Far easier for the ex military types. You can speak to the challenge for banking – work yourself to death for 15 years and then pull the rip cord. Nurses strike a balance, but the work will always be tough. And then there are the trade crafts- alway touted for way to make 6 figures without college, but again, physically very demanding.
Maybe the dentists have the proper balance on this all.
I guess I’m not entirely sold on the idea that the children just choose to follow, versus some observation bias. It’s not a surprise that some children follow successful Hollywood types, but it’s because having that parent dramatically increases the odds of them getting cast from the ocean of waiters looking for a break.
And same with opening businesses. They have a massive safety net and funding source. Take Hunter Biden and Barron Trump. Just by nature of their last names, they can put out [anything] and find peopel that will pay for it.
Jumping to writing in particular, and your daughter – she’s 6, right. I wanted to be an astronomer at that age, I think. Or just to make use of being able to read. I went to college on the fence of studying physic or poli sci, and then made a 35 year career in tech. She could use that inclination to be a tech writer, which I don’t think will be replaced by Claude any time son, or in marketing, where the same applies. It may help do the drudge work, but it doesn’t even know what words are. It’s a parrot, mimmicking tokens (syllables).
That chart on top professions could use a column for difficulty. Specialized docs definitely make bank, but only after racking up massive student loan debt. And even when htey make it, the hours are terrible. My coworker’s fiance worked 2 36 hour shifts last week. Fireman hours. Getting the flying hours to become a commercial pilot is also no joke. Far easier for the ex military types. You can speak to the challenge for banking – work yourself to death for 15 years and then pull the rip cord. Nurses strike a balance, but the work will always be tough. And then there are the trade crafts- alway touted for way to make 6 figures without college, but again, physically very demanding.
Maybe the dentists have the proper balance on this all.
I brought my college son into my nyc office, top bank, gave him the rules before going in: these are my colleagues/internal clients, they are not your friends, they are your superiors, no off jokes, no politics, no swearing, you’d be lucky to get a job here etc. My colleagues are great people, and professionals. When we left my son said “I don’t get it, they all said whatever you do, don’t come work in this industry.”
Oh wow, fascinating!
The money is good, but they are miserable or see that the industry is getting hollowed out.
I think it’s worth trying for 10 years to see what it’s about and save as much money as possible in finance. That will set him up for options in the future.
Reading through the other comments, and talking with friends, it seems pretty universal that parents don’t recommend their occupations to their kids. I guess we know the downsides too intimately.
I work in film and TV. My wife is a visual artist. Both kids — now in college — seem to be gravitating toward those fields too. We have done well over the years (feast or famine years, for sure), and our kids have definitely enjoyed being on film sets and attending art openings. We of course have thought about how it might be nice to have a lawyer or doctor or VC in the family (as there are in the extended family), but ultimately we want them to find something that is fulfilling and self-sustaining. We are also fortunate to have real estate in NYC and Hawaii, which helps us weather the ups and downs, and can act that way for them too, eventually. Who knows. Hard to pencil out what lucrative careers will be in 3, 5, 10, 20 years, given AI encroachment. Maybe they can pursue artistic lives with some future basic minimum income?
Cool. I think they can pursue artistic lives with help from you, for sure. And I think this is the model more adult children will follow, partially due to AI.
Related: Trust Fund Jobs For All
I had teachers throughout high school show us career salary charts. Graphic designer never even made the list, but I dreaded the idea of any of the more lucrative careers. Then one day we had a business owner come in as a guest speaker and he said, “You can have the greatest product in the world, but if you don’t know how to market it, you’ll never make a dime.” So I decided I would pursue graphic design, and I would help businesses market those products.
I now earn $400K+ annually working 5-10 hours per week. I’m obviously an outlier in my field but I strongly believe if you’re passionate enough, and you’re willing to cater that passion to what the world is willing to pay for, you can be successful.
My two sons say they “want to make logos like daddy.” It warms my heart, even though I know AI will reshape the industry. They each will have their own passions in life, and my approach as their father is to simply throw gasoline on their fires. If they’re passionate about clay sculptures, I would never steer them away from it. I would help them find mentors, sign them up for pottery classes, buy them a pottery wheel, etc. I’m a big believer in the idea that you can make money doing absolutely anything in the world. You just have to find the right approach to it.
$400K a year as a graphic designer is incredible! Do you work at a graphic design firm or at a tech company or something and do graphic design work? Perhaps you work at a firm like Figma and got some stock options? I’d love to learn more!
That is the one industry I would think would be completely disrupted by AI given how easy it is to create graphics and images for free nowadays.
thx
I’m not a graphic designer, but I have an architecture background and know enough about design to make flyers for my band. I can tell you that most people I’ve spoken to are disgusted by the AI slop floating around. Take a close look at it. It all looks the same. Bland and soulless. Kudos to the graphic designers who are out there doing the real thing.
My parent is a successful business owner, but didn’t encourage entrepreneurship for us kids. He carried a heavy load as the sole provider through some difficult years in the 80s and 90s, and he thought it’d be much easier to go to law or medical school and have a steady paycheck. None of my siblings ended up particularly entrepreneurial, though we all have a job on your list of careers with the strongest compensation. I doubt my kids will follow in my footsteps either because they hate how my time with them can sometimes be interrupted by a needy client. I try to maintain boundaries, but it’s part of the job that sometimes I have to take calls at dinner or walk out of a soccer game to respond to something. I’m not sure there is a perfect profession, but I hope they find something meaningful and can support themselves.
I hear you. Entrepreneurship is something I want to encourage in my children. To just start and see what sticks, and pivot when things don’t.
Ah,… needy clients. Gotta keep those boundaries for sure.
I would focus on minimum salary rather than the most lucrative routes. What can they do that they love and also take care of themselves? That opens up more possibilities and doesn’t rule out the more lucrative paths either.
That’s a good thought. Sadly, it seems like a lot of professions cannot generate a minimum salary high enough to be self-sufficient, rent or buy a nice place, and raise a family anymore.
Would I encourage my kids to follow in my footsteps? As a recent retiree from the fire service, heck no. But alot of my opinion stems from I just don’t feel it’d be a fit for them. I absolute agree our job is to introduce and as you point out; it is equally important to teach them about investing and overall personal finance no matter how lucrative their career is. I took one of my daughters to a real estate closing a couple weeks ago, showed her all the line items, the closer was very helpful and nice too, thought it was pretty cool I had a 14 year old in a closing. I’ve started giving “bonuses” to each one of my kids for getting A’s on tests (and the overall semester), the trade off is they pay ALL of their own discretionary expenses. They also pay their own phone bills. We are treating school (tough private high school) like a job in which they get paid for high performance, the thought is to simulate a work environment. I’ve talked with them quite a bit about equities but this article is motivating me to share more. I strongly feel it is our job to guide the kids about the financial and day to day realities of career choices and encourage them to choose something that is in demand.
Good stuff Geoff. Fire service, as in fire man?
Yeah, the more we can expose and educate our children about various options, the better.
Yes, firefighter. Decent 6 figure salary, health benefits, pension. Hard job though, see terrible things, wreck your body, alot of sleep disruption. Took a medical retirement in July (age 52). Thank the lord almighty I’ve invested aggressively in rental properties, 457, and after tax brokerage. You’ve been a big influence Sam, I’ve read your articles for years, you strike the best balance of living now and investing for the future out of any financial independence author, I really enjoy your focus on preparing our kids for their future. Even though we are in different tax brackets, all your knowledge translates.
No entrepreneurs on the list ? Even though my father spent over 22 years in the Air Force, he always pushed me to own a business. I was hesitant at first and chased jobs that are on the list. Finally started a company at 47 (19 years ago) and just sold it. I thank him for introducing me to the other opportunities.
I should add it for sure. In fact, it’s one of the best ways to build Wealth, and I just casually wrote one word about it and the entire post.
If a child naturally gravitates and is good for a non-STEM area of study (and it doesn’t fit your chart of higher paid professions), then they be encouraged to do a 2nd major in a social science which blends in both humanities and social sciences, ie. business. Or take elective courses that are interesting but different from major…ie. quantitative/data analysis.
Some of the professions listed in your chart, Sam, are of several different family members for myself. If a child/teen is naturally good in a non-STEM, non-high paying profession, then the child must realize to pursue, s/he should also include a 2nd major or elective courses which include: business, quantitative /data analysis, teaching/facilitation or project management. The latter skills are quite human based since a teacher or project manager must juggle needs of different human beings and styles of work to achieving certain goals.
Am the rare family member who has 2 non-STEM degrees –English literature and library info. science. I so strongly believe that we still need need primary research and writing of journalists to do investigative /original journalism in the age of AI. This continue to be digging out the truth with presentation of written/photographed/tested evidence.
By coincidence my late partner had an engineering degree, then MBA. Both served him well, with the latter on strategic planning, financial mgmt. which he loved. He did move into management roles from engineering in his national oil firm.
BF has formal degrees in visual arts and education/teaching. Both practicing artist-painter and teacher at university and high school levels.
Children must be lightly encouraged to be flexible for the future. To choose 2 loves …of study areas. 2nd area might happen later in life. Also for skin in the game, that they work summer jobs to contribute to their educational costs. Regardless of how wealthy parents may be.
One of my top drivers for achieving FI was creating gen wealth such that my kids wouldn’t have to chase high income professions, unless they wanted to. As it turns out, my 2 adult kids have picked mental health social services and elementary education — 2 industries that are not money-makers but are important to society and meaningful to them. My kids have good money habits so they’re saving and supporting themselves but they’re not going to FIRE at this rate, and that’s OK.
Sam, Are there any other books you would recommend for a teenager to learn the investing basics? We have your books!
Thanks! I was going to say Millionaire Milestones for sure, as I wrote it for teenagers and up. But if they’ve read that already, all the Millionaire Next door series books and Rich Dad Poor Dad are easy reads to get them started and curious.
Our entire family works in the same profession. Kids noticed the combo of work life balance and compensation and made the decision to follow the same path. Couldn’t find anything comparable compensation wise for working 185 days per year while also earning a pension.
Cool. Please share what that profession is. At what age did they decide that’s what they wanted to do?
School Psychologists. Both completed undergrad in three years, so five years of schooling before a year of paid internship and then well into six figures to start (working 185-ish days per year). Also, the ability to side-gig in private practice by taking a licensure exam after two years in the field. For example, Palo Alto Unified starts at 155K and tops out at 251K + 3,510 degree stipend for 196 contracted days. Retire with a pension and the ability to fully fund both a traditional or Roth 403b & 457b. Daughters decided at 13 but interviewed an anesthesiologist before making the final call. Son decided around sophomore year of high school.
Very cool! Working half the year and earning six figures ain’t too shabby at all!
I don’t see any of our kids following directly in their parents professional footsteps. Except perhaps someday starting their own businesses in wherever their passion leads them. My wife and I started three successful companies over a 30 year period. None of which are directly connected, or tied to what our kids are interested in pursuing. Our eldest son is teaching English in Korea,. our two middle sons are still discovering their interests. They’ve both completed commercial dive school, and worked in precision manufacturing. Now they’re both in the health care field. Our eldest daughter has a passion for photography. Our youngest daughter is talented in the culinary arts. She wants to be a pastry chef. She’s 15 years old… lol (and she is an absolute cake boss artist). Our job is to foster their interests and be a resource. Maybe some of them will be entrepreneurs.
Thanks for sharing! I think being an entrepreneur is great. But boss people don’t know where to start. So maybe you can help them?
I wonder if there is also a correlation with how often and how happy they see their parents with the job they are doing? For example, if they see their parents a lot and they talk about their work with positive words, maybe the children will be more inclined to follow suit?
What a brilliant article Sam!! One thing AI cannot do, ever, and never will be able to, is understand emotion or the human heart. Your writing is filled with it. Incidentally AI makes continual mistakes all the time, every time I’ve unfortunately had to interct with it. My life is as AI free as possible.
I applaud your daughter’s writing passion! I’d love to read the story of The Rabbit Seal and Lamb book! Bravo to her.
I believe following your passion will open more doors than not, because passion comes from the heart. I’ve studied quantum nechanics, applied it consciously on very specific subjects and it’s opened doors that no-one else has keys for. That’s because the heart becomes magnetic when it focuses with love on something you are oassionate about. And that magnetism, draws to you, thru Universal forces the very thing you are passionately focusing on. Things that other people will call ‘miracles’ or ‘coincidences’.But in our quantum mechanics reality this is just the way that things happen on an atomic energy level.
Also, 10/10 for talking about money, inversting etc at the dinner table with your little ones. They are incredibky lucky to have you as their dad. I wish I’d had that growing up. Unfortunately not, but thankfully I discovered you a few years ago and am making up for my lack of knowledge and action.
I’m a writer,artist, creative person too, but try as I might I cannot squelch the internal constant fire to create. I’ve written over 500 stories about rabbits!!
You say you hate AI but then write an AI word salad about quantum mechanics that clearly shows you know as much about quantum mechanics as Deepak Chopra, which is to say none. QM isn’t a metaphor for magic and people need to stop pretending it is. I can’t imagine what your investment philosophy is, but I wouldn’t trust it.
Signed,
Someone who actually uses QM for real things in the objectively real universe
Huh?
I need some advice on how to get my kids interested in investing. I Think I might have turned them off on real estate. They have watched and sometimes helped me grind out renovations after work, putting in 6 hours after my day job, giving up weekends or cutting vacations short because a water heater went out or a dishwasher flooded. My son maintains the grounds at the 4plex and duplex. He sees it as a massive burden.
My youngest daughter thinks we are poor because we live in an old house and drive 20 year old cars. She sees her friends families taking expensive vacations living in beautiful homes and driving new cars. I explain that we have created generational wealth, but that we have massive equity with little cash flow.
My oldest daughter is terrible with money, much to my dismay. I have always been a big saver and go without, she can’t seem to do that. She is graduating college this year with no money to her name. She spends everything on clothes, food and experiences. How do you all teach your teens how to be more responsible with money? Disclaimer, my wife has made college life so easy for her by giving her a credit card and sending her money. This has caused a lot of tension, because I feel like college is supposed to be a grind that hardens you for the real world. My kids grew up thinking we were poor but really, living extremely well.
It certainly is fascinating to see all of those examples laid out. Success certainly rubs off onto kids. And I have to imagine that dna matters a lot too for careers that require physical talents or certain ways of thinking. Personality likely matters a lot as well.
Neither of my parents were successful in their line of careers so that pushed me in a different direction because I didn’t want to suffer in the same ways. I bet if they were making a lot of money instead I would have totally leaned into their career paths.
Great topic and adorable book btw!
Professions might change. My kid does not show interests in what I do (R&D chemist). His desire changes from construction worker, to youtuber, to car engineer, to pro soccer player etc. I just want to show him no matter what you do, to earn income is not easy these days. You need to learn well, put in consistant efforrs, have consistant deliverables, pleasant to work with, but at the same time not at the cost of your physical and mental health. Things change rapidly. High income jobs these days are quite frequently high stress. Low income jobs are also often high stress. So one needs to adapt and learn and be true to oneself. Professions are ways to suppport one survive and thrive in society, and help one live a sustainable life.