Somehow, we’re nearing the end of February and ramping into tax season. I know they say time is relative, but I didn’t know that meant it gets sucked into a black hole. If Schrödinger’s cat represented my energy level, it is most certainly dead right now. Why are things like this?! No energy, no time… Asking “why?” in this moment actually makes me remember a more important question: What is my “why?”

At this moment in time, we have spent the last four days potty training with some amount of success (if he’s not going to the bathroom at all, at least he’s not having accidents, right?) and Ken just started a new role at work. Our real estate investment goals seem very far away and almost not a part of our life. I still haven’t emailed the property management company like I’ve been meaning to for the last two weeks about a copy of the lease for our second property. I have been working on our taxes at least. This is the first time we’ve had a business to do taxes for so I’m taking that win. 

Which brings me back to our “why?”… For those of you who have read the “purple Bible,” as it’s known, the author talks about the difference between his two dads. The “poor” dad is always working for his money while the “rich” dad let’s money work for him. One of the lessons he learns is to not let your time be valued in money. 

If I’m not making sense right now, it’s because I barely understand this. I have played Cashflow many times with different levels of success. While playing the game, I recognize that it’s about the opportunities not the money and then I end up winning the game more quickly.

Applying this to my regular life is where I get lost. We have recently started giving our older child (the one who can already use the restroom) an allowance for doing little chores around the house and keeping her room clean. She has a piggy bank. She recently wanted to buy something and I told her she could use her own money to buy it, which she did. She is very proud of the toy and tells everyone about it. 

My “why?” is my children. I want to give them every opportunity in life and set them up for success, however that is defined for them. I worry that by paying her for chores, I’m undermining the values from the purple book. I wonder if there’s a better way to teach her the economic principles we’re trying to lean into with our real estate portfolio. 

I don’t know what the right answer is, but I will keep trying to serve my “why.”