Hard Work Never Hurt Anybody

MONEY MATTERS WITH DR. ANDREW LEE

When I turned sixteen, I got my first job as a dishwasher at the Holiday Inn restaurant. I earned the minimum wage of $3.35 per hour. Back then (1985) there were no teen labor laws restricting work hours on school nights, so I would often clock in at four p.m. and clock out at midnight even on weeknights. After two weeks, I received my first paycheck and gaped in wonder at the amount which was over two hundred dollars—I was rich! Similarly, the day my sons each turned sixteen, they got jobs and went to work, paying for their own gas, oil changes, car insurance, and spending money. But they knew this day was coming because I’d been telling them since they were very young, so it was no surprise. Every now and then, my sons might gripe that they were the “only teenagers they knew” whose parents “made them” pay for their own gas, car insurance, and so forth (they don’t have car payments since they saved money for many years and paid cash for their cars). In response, I would always smile and say that I cannot apologize for training my teens to be responsible and independent adults instead of hapless and clueless progeny who may be living in their parents’ basement when they were in their 30’s, as is increasingly common these days. Eventually, my sons came to realize that (shockingly), their old Dad was right. My older son Caleb is now twenty, and he just bought his first home with an FHA loan in his own name, while still in college. He’s paying his bills now like a grownup, and he’s moved out on his own (praise God). My middle son Samuel is a high school senior, seventeen years old, and he now admits that he seems to be “the only one with money in

10 // March 2020 Dr. Andrew Lee is professor of English at Lee University. He also serves as a coordinator for Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University. He and his wife Esmerelda have three children.

the bank” among his friends since, apparently, many of his friends don’t work even though they are driving cars and about to begin college. I always reply with a simple, “You’re welcome, son.”

A recent online article was titled, “How to Ruin Your Children’s Financial Future” and the first point was “Don’t Make Your Kid Get a Job.” Remember, not making your kids get a job would ruin their financial future. In fact, many parents who are millionaires and multi-millionaires insist that their teenagers get jobs at the first opportunity— not because they “need” the money (which they don’t), but to teach them about paying bills, learn about taxation, and about being financially responsible. If this is how millionaires raise their children, maybe there’s a lesson here. I’ve had students come into my office to chat about their “problems.” These students were not doing well in my class; in fact, they were failing nearly all their classes. They were aimless souls, binge-watching movies every night or playing video games. As I talked with these students, I noticed a common trend. None of them had a job. They were broke. Maybe there’s a connection here? I’ve noticed that my best students all have jobs; they have money and pay their own bills. They are involved in countless activities outside of their studies which makes them learn time management skills as well as financial management. Frankly, their lives are incredibly busy and productive. Scripture warns us in 1 Timothy 5:13 against idleness and aimlessness. Moreover, Psalms 128:2 promises, “You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands; you shall be blessed, and it shall be well with you.” Let’s train our children accordingly. They’ll thank us later.

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