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- My uncle didn’t buy me gifts as a kid. He instead saved some money for me.
- He gave me $6,000 that he had saved when I was 22 and encouraged me to continue building it as a down payment.
- It was my experience that consistent savings can lead to greater accumulations over the long-term.
For the majority of my childhood, money was associated with purchasing items for the immediate future. I would spend the month leading up to Christmas sat in silence, looking through a Toys “R” Us catalogue and circling my options with a pencil. Dollars were saved for the ice-cream truck at the town swimming pool and the drugstore to purchase sparkly nail varnish. When I was given money, my first thought was how to spend it.
I didn’t know where my “gifts” were.
My uncle taught me financial planning and saved my life. As a child, he did not gift me with gifts for holidays or birthdays. My uncle would instead put money aside for these occasions. Savings account. He told me that he would allow me to access the money there when I was older.
This concept was abstract and difficult to grasp as a child. My reasoning was that if I don’t see the present, there is no present. My uncle claimed he had forgotten my birthday but I believed him.
This conversation would continue throughout my childhood. My uncle would often tell me at every family gathering that he didn’t have any presents with him, because he had deposited it in my name. Savings accountIt was difficult to grasp the concept of an “invisible gift”, but it felt important to speak about “adult topics” such as money and savings. Over the years, these exchanges took on warmth and familiarity.
When I was 22, he gave me the whole sum.
At 22 years old, I expected to see my uncle after college graduation. Instead, he handed me the bankbook he’d kept during his birthdays and holidays.
My uncle has collected more than $6,000. Since my birth, My uncle decided to give me financial independence and support me instead of buying gifts that I would only enjoy for the moment.
He suggested that I put the money in a bank account, which I would be responsible for, to allow it to continue growing. He advised me that I continue to add to the amount, so that I could use the money for something else. Paymen at lower levelst on a living area in the future.
It was amazing to see how little money adds up. My uncle would put in a small amount of money for each holiday and birthday. It was somewhere between $25 to $100. It was a tangible example of how patience and consistency can lead to positive outcomes.
Since then I have applied his savings lesson to my own life.
Since my uncle gifted me the birthday gifts, I have followed his advice and increased the money rather that spending it. I have a small portion of my paycheck saved in my savings account. A retirement account is also available to me. I have been successful in growing my savings by putting a small portion of each paycheck into a bank over the past ten years.
These deposits may be $25 or $25 depending on what expenses are involved. It is easy to convince myself that I don’t need such a small amount of money in savings. Is it really worth it to save $25 when it can buy a week’s supply of pushcart coffee per week? Then I remember that even small amounts helped me build my “birthday present” savings. Delaying gratification can lead to greater returns.
Although I don’t yet own the house of my dreams, I have come to realize that furniture and appliances are essential parts of a home. I need to continue saving for them. Now that I know how little savings can lead to big returns over time, I can plan thoughtfully to increase that down payment.
