The Truth About Money - 1

When I was a kid we were so poor that we went out to eat at McDonalds and my mother put the french fries on lay-away.

Well, actually that's not true...

The truth is that these are tough times for a lot of people. I happen to be one of those people who is receiving a salaried income at the moment and I'm doing OK but my family has seen tough times. Since our Pastor is on the theme, I decided to tell a little bit of my story.

Part One - Growing Up

My dad was a common laborer with an uncommon work habit. He worked for a company which has since become part of ATT. He learned the trade in the Army. In 30 years with the same company I don't think my dad missed a week worth of work due to illness and I don't think he ever turned down overtime (which for him meant their were days when he went to work feeling like garbage and nights when he went out in crazy weather to repair lines which had fallen). He did miss work (and paychecks) due to strikes. The point is that I learned to work hard and be dependable from my dad. Since then I have learned that those simple lessons actually have a value in money. People who are dependable and work hard build good references which help you get hired at the next job.

Looking back I would say that our family was at the lower end of average income. We never had a new car. Our house was probably 20 years old and under 1000 sq ft when my parents bought it. As the family grew dad just added on. We never had a lot but we always had enough. The one real lesson I learned about money growing up was that if you didn't have it you couldn't spend it. I didn't even think about borrowing money. That has proved to be very useful over the last 30 years - especially when Credit Card offers were coming at a rate of 3-10 every week a few years ago.

I also learned to learn. I'm only a guy of average intelligence but I learned to actually like learning pretty early. For me any project was not just about the project but about learning. Mowing the lawn was a study in efficiency - always looking for a faster way. Being curious and therefor a learner, I've found, keeps you alive. Learning also expands your ability to help others in a variety of situations and therefore your value to an employer.

The other thing my parents were is steady in church. We went to church every weekend. I can't count the number of "potlucks" I went to. Church picnics, Church services, and Church projects were just part of our life. Like most churches we had lots of different Pastors and other leaders. They came and went. We stayed. I went through stages of liking church, hating church, and finally loving church. My parents appreciated church. Sometimes they complained about what was going on but they saw church as a place to build and learn to practice their faith and gather with people who love God not a place where everything has to go their way. They stayed. I've learned that staying is important in a job setting, too, when something is not going your way.

My point is that before I ever got my first job I had learned some of the most important job attitudes and therefore already started to be more "promotable" than many of my co-workers.

These are tough times but we will come out of them. When we do, make sure you are one of those whose work patterns and attitudes put you out in front.

Chapter Two is going to be about the first years of my marriage, fights about money, and starting with very little.