What Are We Teaching Our Daughters About Money?

In front of Ben Franklin

Alexandra recently asked me:

“I just don’t know what I need to know about the stock market for my interviews.”

My instinct?

“I can talk to you about the market!”

I was so eager to help—finally a chance to show off decades of experience.

She replies, “I already know what an LBO is and what multiples are…”

And she does.

But that’s not real money education—and she definitely wasn’t asking for a lecture on what drives stock prices.

And then it hit me.

The cobbler’s kids have no shoes.

I spend almost every day dealing with investment news, stock market, investing and helping my clients navigate their financial lives… and I forget to teach my own daughters.

They’re curious—sort of. Mostly, they have no idea what I do all day.

And honestly, they’re busy: school, college, stress, friends…

Who has time to build a budget or track an allowance?

(Yes, this is coming from a financial advisor whose daughter would rather just have a credit card and deal with it later.)

The truth is: no parent has the perfect answer.

Kids enter college and instantly get credit-card offers in the mail.

Meanwhile, I’m giving my daughter a strict little allowance…

She won’t fall for the credit-card trap—she checks her credit score like a hawk—

but still, the gap in real financial education is massive.

👉 Here’s what I’ve learned:

Our kids learn money and investing the way we did—

- by making mistakes, 

- losing money, 

- asking for help, and 

- slowly connecting the dots.

That’s how I learned.

I bought RedHook Brewery after the IPO pop in the late 90s…

The stock dropped 30% immediately afterwards, 

I panicked, sold, and learned a lesson I never forgot:

Smart investors don’t chase shiny objects, we don't speculate.

And when I look at the families who are not struggling financially, 

we all tend to do the same things:

• We focus on our portfolios and financial plans.

• We minimize taxes instead of scrambling to pay bills.

• We play offense while others are stuck on defense.

• We try to share the life lessons we learned the hard way—so our kids don’t repeat them.

The world in 2025 is much more challenging than it was in 1995, when I graduated from Cal Berkeley.

It’s more important than ever that our kids build confidence with money early.

So here’s what I decided:

I’m giving each of my kids $500—with one rule: they must invest it.

They can’t spend it. 

They can lose it but I hope they make some money instead.

But they have to figure out why the stock or ETF went up or down.

Because real financial education isn’t about perfect predictions…

It’s about building judgment, curiosity, experience and confidence.

And sometimes losing a little money early is the greatest teacher of all. 

Grateful for life's little lessons!!

Thank you for reading!

Tiffany Kent

Your Friendly Wealth Engagement Guide

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