Rewarding children with money for good behavior teaches them the wrong lessons about money and about priorities in general, Rabbi Shmuley says. He talks about why parents should not pay their children for good deeds.
Rewarding children with money undermines good character, Rabbi Shmuley says. "Character is about doing the right [thing] because it's right, not because there's a reward at the end," he says. He urges parents not to pay their children for chores and good grades because it's a loss of control—you're trying to control your children with money.
Money also stifles intellectual curiosity, Rabbi Shmuley says. Children should get good grades because they love to learn, and they should study because it enriches their lives, he says. "If you pay your kids for grades, everything to them will be centered around 'Well, what do I get for it?'" Rabbi Shmuley says. Talk to your children about school not as a means to an end, but as a reward in and of itself.
Today's Shmuleyism:
"Teaching our kids a healthy money ethic is a mainstay of education. Show your kids that the purpose of money is to acquire more free time for special moments, not for money and property. Show them that money is a means to an end, not an end itself."
