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Age 0

In the beginning, there was a baby. And this made you realize…man, they’re expensive.

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You have a baby! Welcome to the greatest, most sleep-deprived club on the planet. So far, you’re doing everything right.

Start Here.

One of the most important things you can do as a parent is help to secure your child’s financial future. And, by opening a Wealthie account, you’ve just done that. 

Your work here is done! Take a nap. Wake up when your kid is 25. 

Oh, we kid, we kid. But for real, you’re accomplishing something rare. You’re giving your child a 30-year headstart on the average investor. Three decades of time and compounding will help to quietly grow a meaningful nest egg, ready for your little person when they need it and, (thanks to 20 years of wise words from Wealthie), when they’re ready for it. 

Yessss.

You’ve started early. Now, your job is to keep going. Work to make consistent, manageable payments a habit. $10 a week in a diversified portfolio (like your Wealthie account) at 6% a year, builds almost $60 000 by age 25. Pair that $60K with two decades of Wealthie’s smart financial education, and voila, the world’s in great hands, all thanks to you.  

So, Welcome to Wealthie. Celebrate yourself.

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Age 1

The financial literacy you need, in the 15 seconds you have.

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Here’s the secret it takes most people a lifetime to learn: when it comes to time and money, having one can make up for not having the other. 

Right now, your baby’s got a potent mix of time and a lot of admirers. Put both of these things to work.

Start Here.

Odds are, your baby’s still the only thing that your family and friends want to talk about. Cash in on this social currency while your kid’s still rolling into fam bbqs like some A-list celeb. In other words, while the people you love are up in your baby’s business, let them actually become your baby’s business.

Yes, some stuffies will stand the test of time, but odds are nothing will come close to the value of an investment made now for the long term. Need a story to illustrate the power of time and compounding? Try this anecdote, with thanks to Morgan Housel, author of The Psychology of Money… 

Whoa.

If Warren Buffett had invested like many people do — started at 30 with $25 000, retired at 60, and still made his 22% annual Berkshire Hathaway returns — today, he’d be holding about $15 million. 

(We’d still take his investment advice.) 

BUT, because he started investing at 10 and kept going, Mr. B’s fortune has rocketed past $100 billion. 

Okay. A few takeaways. One, your offspring is currently 10 years ahead of Warren Buffett. And, while we’re not suggesting your child become a pint-sized tycoon, we are saying that the greatest commodity your baby has right now, (aside from good genes and heavy cuteness), is time. 

Sometimes, TIME = MONEY, but right now, TIME > MONEY. 

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Age 2

Toddle all the way to the bank.

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Your child is a toddler. As of today, they can reach everything, and go everywhere. What they can’t reach, they want, immediately. Anything on a shelf is a battleground. The grocery store is your new Waterloo. 

Start Here.

Life may not be a rehearsal, but life with a two-year-old should be. Grocery shopping with your little person? While you’re on your way, walk through everything you plan to buy, aloud, together. You’ve just turned the grocery store into a scavenger hunt. A small victory. Will this work? Momentarily, perhaps. And while it won’t stifle the occasional yelp for a unicorn cake or dinosaur confetti, it will instil in your child’s subconscious an early understanding of budgeting, financial planning, and patience.  

Get This. 

Studies show that delayed gratification is a lesson that can be learned at two. That lesson pays dividends for life — for you and your child. Have your unicorn cake, and eat it too. 

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Age 3

Money and your Threenager.

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Your threenager is watching you, like some kind of baby Netflix. When it comes to money, they’ve picked up a thing or two. They see that money and credit cards get “stuff”. They have neither. Major bummer. 

Start Here.

Counting and stacking coins to make dollars will give your toddler a felt sense of money and a subtle sense of agency and power. Welcome to Step One on the Path to Plutocracy. Kidding, kidding. 

Money may be virtual, but it’s helpful for your kids to see, touch, count, and understand it, before it disappears for them for life. If it’s already disappeared for you, no problem. You can talk about money in a way your kids will understand. Toys and tradeoffs. 

Use moments of decision making (this toy or that toy? This cereal or that one?) to help your toddler understand the concept of tradeoffs. Your kid may not be able to pronounce “resource allocation” but they get what it means, and what it really means is that that little mind is learning how to budget, and quickly becoming a financial genius. 

Get This. 

Studies show we’re willing to pay up to 100% more for something when we pay with a credit card. Learning to recognize money is an important part of building a relationship with value. Start this process now, to help lock in values around saving and sharing. 

(Think of it as the lesson your “Internet Shopping Habit” is sharing with your younger self, who, in this case, is your three-year-old. Whoa, meta.)

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Age 4

Today, Paw Patrol. Tomorrow, College.

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Think it’s too early to talk about money? Actually, you’re late. Kidding! You’re doing everything right, but talking about money and value early can help form good money habits for life. (Also, since you’re already up for The Greatest Parent Of The Year Award, honestly, who are we to stand in your way?) 

Start Here.

Obviously your kid doesn’t need to know how much money you earn, or how to pay an electric bill (although… super handy), but it’s worth chatting about how people earn money. What would your four-year-old like to be when they grow up? A robot firefighting ballet dancer? Fabulous! Think of the pension! 

So, you’ve started a conversation about earning with your polymath. It’s a reasonable time to talk about saving and why it’s so important. Patience and persistence are healthy financial habits that improve every area of life long term.  Of course, patience + persistence may seem like impossible goals at four years old. So, we like this tip… 

Get This.

The “Batman Effect” suggests that kids will stay with a task longer when they imagine themselves as someone (or something) they believe is a hard worker, like Batman. We’re more of a Miles Morales type of outfit, but anyway, this is a simple way to connect your child’s favourite heroes with some wise financial habits.  

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Age 5

The one about allowance.

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A wise accountant once told us people spend 40% less when they buy with cash and not credit. Is this true? Maybe. What does it tell us? Your little person needs to see and understand money before they start spending it. The majority of us transact with plastic or phones, so kids don’t see money anywhere. It’s tough to value what you can’t see. Good news, your five-year-old will happily save for their goals or simply for saving’s sake, if you normalize and encourage it. 

Start here. 

One great way to make money visible… allowance. We get a lot of questions about allowance. 

Take this Advice.

It’s allowance, not bribery. Think of allowance as a fixed weekly or bi-weekly “salary” for being a kid. Chores? They’re part of being a good citizen. Don’t pay for them. Set an allowance, and keep it consistent. 

I haven’t carried money since the 90s. No problem. A mom we admire uses cotton balls as her in-home currency. Her kids’ allowance is paid in dollar balls. Cotton fills a jar fast, which may have your five-year-old feeling and acting like a plutocrat (all pretty harmless until they start asking about tax havens…)

Save Spend Share Shares. Sure, your kid can direct their allowance into separate “accounts”. 50% into saving, 25% into spending, 25% into sharing? Maybe. But while giving is important, don’t overlook the importance of giving time. Experiential giving makes kinesthetic memories. And putting that extra 25% into a “shares” jar to invest could mean your child has a meaningful nest egg to dip into for philanthropy once they’re older. 

BONUS. 

Don’t Create a Wage Gap. These are your child’s formative years. Champion equality. Remember that women still earn 82 cents or less on the dollar, and it might be a good time (and a great conversation) to make that up to the young girls, girl-identifying, and nonbinary kids in your home.

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Age 6

The one where we congratulate you.

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A Cambridge study says that by age seven, many of a kid’s “money habits” are set for life. Your kid’s only six! As of today, you are ahead of the game. Take a moment to really drink this in.

And we’re back.

Start Here.

Studies suggest that your child will adopt your money habits. Do not panic. We’re here for you. Take a moment to think, really think, about your money habits. How do you spend? How do you save? How do you think about money? Do you worry about not having enough of it? Do you worry about having too much of it?

Write down your thoughts, and write down your habits. Breathe. Scan what you’ve written. You’ll want to judge those habits. Don’t. Write down your parents’ money habits. Look familiar? 

Ferreal?

We pass money stories down for generations. If yours are serving you, great. If not, try this: write down the habits you’d like your child to have by age 25. How can you model those habits, even hint at them, starting now? 

Keep Going.

Start a conversation with your six-year-old. How do they feel about money? If money were a character or a famous person, who would it be? What can money be used for? Expand the answer beyond “it gets me toys” to a larger conversation about the future, about giving, growing, and, obviously, investing.

Why not into your kid’s Wealthie account and chat about why you and the people in your child’s life are putting money away for them, and actively investing in their future. What does the future look like for your six-year-old? What are they growing their Wealthie account for? Ask them for their thoughts, write down their answers, keep them safe, and repeat this every year.

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Age 7

Making money moves.

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For a kid, money is magic. It comes from a machine, it lives in plastic cards, it buys toys. We ❤️ magic, but not when it comes to money. It’s time to solve some mysteries. 

Start Here.

What IS money and how does it work? 

Your 7-year-old should know that money works as an exchange. Money makes it easier to trade for the things they’d like to do or buy. It can be earned, spent, borrowed, given, saved, and invested. 

If you plan to hold onto your $ for a while, it’s important to put it to work. $10 today is worth more than $10 tomorrow, because of inflation, yes, but *also* because of the MAGIC of compound interest. (Wait, money IS magic?? Mixed messages…) 

Get This.

Time = (actual) Money. Compound interest is as close to a money tree as your child will get without water or soil. 6% interest on their investment, year after year, means that each year, their principal and their interest are both making 6% interest. THEIR INTEREST IS MAKING INTEREST! 🤯 This is an important lesson about the power of patience… when it comes to money, invest wisely, leave it (mostly) alone to grow, and watch your kid’s savings speed up. 

Your Wealthie account is a great place to watch compound interest in action. You can also use Wealthie’s compounding calculator to look ahead to see what your 7-year-old’s account may look like with 25 years of compounding to help it along.

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The Business of Web3

News from the future of the Internet

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The heady days of Crypto are feeling more like a massive migraine in June 2022. Coins, such as Bitcoin and Ether, once thought to be the new oil, have been on a lurching decline in recent weeks. 

The dips keep on dipping.

The Damon/McGregor-fuelled ad campaigns, the arena naming, the requests by mayors to be paid in Bitcoin – are these now just quaint memories from a bygone era? More importantly, does the #Cryptocrash throw cold water on the future of Web3?

We feel you, and no. Crypto may be one part of the dream for a new, better internet, but it’s far from the only part. So, consider this a break from the doom and gloom. Here’s what else is making headlines in the wide world of Web3.

  • The Weeknd’s After Hours tour is finally happening, now brought to you by Binance
  • Web3’s Got Soul: Ethereum’s co-founder introduces the idea of “soulbound tokens”
  • Pride Month celebrations come to the metaverse, proving Web3’s not just for crypto bros

Read on…

***

The Weeknd became the latest chart-topping megastar to hop aboard the Web3 train after tapping Binance as the official sponsor for his After Hours Til Dawn tour. It’s the “first global concert tour to integrate Web 3.0 technology for an enhanced fan experience.” Okay, coolcoolcool, but what does that mean exactly?

A few highlights: The tour will collaborate with Toronto-based “creative incubator”, HXOUSE on an NFT collection, and virtual ticket stubs will grant attendees access to commemorative NFTs and other brag-worthy one-of-a-kind experiences. According to The Weeknd, “There are so many possibilities with crypto and I think this is just the beginning.” 

A little louder for Kanye in the back.

Complex | June 3, 2022

It’s the future of the Future of the Internet, according to Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin: non-transferable NFTs, called “soulbound tokens” (or SBTs for short). You may know a version of these from WoW (World of Warcraft, mom and dad). Buterin believes SBTs could act as a sort of “extended resumé, issued by your university or your employer, or gifted to you at an event. SBTs would make it tougher for scammers and identity thieves to fake credentials. It’s all meant to give people ownership over their digital selves, while moving Web3 away from its current Gold Rush mentality of pump-and-dump crypto schemes and Bored Apes.

Insider | May 25, 2022

For the first time ever, Pride Month is coming to the metaverse, thanks to a limited-edition NFT avatar drop, and a weeklong celebration happening at The Sandbox, a decentralized virtual gaming platform that’s partnered with everyone from Snoop Dogg to The Smurfs. Called #MetaPride, the groundbreaking event was designed to combat the fact that an estimated 81% of Web3 participants are currently white men. “We believe that Web3 can only scale if diversity and inclusion are rooted in the foundation of what is being built,” explained People of Crypto Lab co-founder, Simone Berry.

A new online world that better reflects the diversity of our offline world? That’s definitely worth celebrating.

BusinessWire | May 31, 2022

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My kid wants $100K sneakers for the Metaverse. Is there a Universe where this makes sense? 

A perplexed parent’s guide to NFT footwear.

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Virtual sneakers with six figure price tags. Is this really a thing?

You bet your bottom Bitcoin it is. Not just a thing, but an exploding (and highly volatile) market. Nike recently sold a pair of NFT sneakers for $134,000. Nike’s move into the Metaverse was in collaboration with RTFKT (pronounced “Artifact” — we got you), a digital-only sneaker brand that’s pioneered the recent revolution. Asics, Gucci, and other big names are all dipping an 8-bit toe into this futuristic and, yes, super confusing new market. 

Still don’t get it. What’s the point of shoes that you can’t actually wear?

Maybe ask that question to thousands of sneakerheads who have been buying sneakers as a collectible commodity for more than a decade. Just like a limited edition pair of Yeezys, NFT shoes get their value based on hype and scarcity. Think of NFT technology as a way to certify uniqueness and ownership in the virtual world. So, you’re not buying an easily-duplicated image of a shoe, you’re buying a specific pair. This matters for bragging rights, and also for resale purposes. 

So this is about investment, not fashion? 

Actually, it’s about both. Kind of. You may think you can’t “wear” NFT sneakers, but companies like RTFKT are betting big on the fact that next gen consumers (ie, your kid) will care as much about their digital personas as their physical ones — and that they’ll suit them up accordingly. Going to a concert in The Metaverse? You’re not going to show up naked. Gamers already pay good money (estimated at about $40 billion a year, as of 2020) to outfit their in-game avatars. Now, future cross-pollination between fashion brands and video games will mean that your Grand Theft Auto avatar can escape the cops in the latest kicks.

So, back to your child, and their footwear demands. No problem. If your kid starts investing $10 a week now, at an expected annual rate of 6%, those shoes should be theirs in under 48 years!

#fashiongoals

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The Economics of Being Tom Cruise

40 years in Hollywood by the Numbers

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Tom Cruise is one of Hollywood’s biggest stars. But, with Top Gun: Maverick, he’s accomplished something he’s never done before — a $100-million-dollar opening weekend.

We know, we know, that can’t be right, can it? The same guy who’s had a #1 movie at the box office for five consecutive decades? The one who turned “Show me the money!” into his personal mantra?

It’s true.

TC’s been labeled one of Hollywood’s “last true movie stars”, but he hasn’t been all that successful at bringing in opening day crowds. Before his record-setting Memorial Day weekend, cracking that $100-million barrier was mission impossible for Cruise. And, before you ask, nope, none of the Mission Impossible movies came close, despite the franchise raking in a combined $1.15 billion USD at the domestic box office, and over $3.5B worldwide.

What’s taken so long?

For starters, Cruise famously turned down Iron Man. If you want to dominate ticket sales in the 21st century, it pays to be a superhero. Six out of the top 10 best opening weekends feature one or more of Marvel’s greatest heroes. 

It’s also a sign of the times. In the mid-‘90s, Cruise made history as the first actor to tally $100MM+ in five consecutive releases. (He beat that streak with seven straight in the early 2000s.) But that $100-million mark isn’t what it used to be. In the last 10 years, 45 movies have hit $100M on opening weekend alone.

This week, Top Gun: Maverick became the #64 film to do so since 2002.

And Tom’s about to cash in

Cruise was reportedly “only” paid $13 million for the long-awaited Top Gun sequel, but savvy negotiating stands to net him 10x that from ticket sales, thanks to something called “first-dollar gross.” This means Tom is getting a cut of the movie’s total box office revenue, not just the profits—starting on day one. So, out of your $12 ticket, $2.40 of that is going straight to TC. In other words, we’re all in Tom Cruise’s pocket.

Show him the money, indeed.

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Yes, We Mind the Wage Gap

Gen Z wants to shrink the wage gap by… talking.

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It’s 2022 and you can ask a woman her age but you still can’t ask how much she makes. Most of us would prefer to talk about anything other than money. We’ll choose marital trouble, mental health, addiction, sex, race, religion, and politics before we’ll wade into salary talk. 

Why does this matter? Silence around money — encouraged by the wealthy since the Golden Age — feeds a wage gap of between 60 to 89 cents on the dollar

The Wage Gap isn’t news. We’ve lived with it for as long as women have worked. We know, for example, that racialized women bear the brunt of the inequality, earning an average of 59.3% of the average white male salary. But even school girls experience a gendered wage disparity. According to the Girl Guides of Canada, young women 12-18 earn almost $3 less per hour than boys at summer jobs. 

Not only does this make us want to talk about money… it makes us want to scream.

If present trends continue, according to the World Economic Forum, it will take the world about 267.6 years to reach wage parity.

Hannah Williams wants to move that date up a few hundred years. The 25-year-old TikToker recently took to the streets to ask her fellow Washingtonians two simple questions: What do you do? And how much do you make? The series (@salarytransparentstreet) has gone viral. Williams hopes her project will break down the social stigma around money talk, and move us toward addressing pay inequality. 

Will it work? It’s working! Williams’ project is part of a growing movement focused on real change. New data shows that about 40 percent of Millennials and Gen Z talk to coworkers about what they earn. Compare this to 19 percent for Baby Boomers.

This spring, New York passed a law requiring employers to disclose salaries on all advertised jobs. And even companies who aren’t forced into transparency would be smart to consider it. The job posting site Indeed Canada recently revealed that posts that include salaries attract 90 percent more applicants. 

That’s something worth talking about.