Parents should encourage children to learn how to save and invest money at an early age. The worlds richest man today, Warren Buffett started investing at a tender age of 11 and still complains that he started too late. Besides saving and investing parents should also teach children how to invest. John D Rockefeller taught his kids to donate 10 percent of their earnings to charity. We all should follow this outstanding example. It will create compassion in our children. After all, what are we in this world for but to love and help those in need?
Today we go a step further, we want to even teach our kids to raise funds for the needy.
Many of us experienced school fund raisers as kids. We had the task of going door to door selling chocolate bars, magazine subscriptions, wrapping paper and more to raise money for our schools or activities.
While we still have fund raisers, the methods of fund raising have changed. Going door to door is quickly becoming outdated and the focus for methods has shifted drastically.
As a parent, you might find yourself still working in fund raisers. Its a fine line between making it your job and instilling the values of fund raising to children. While parents do need to be more involved in the process, there are still ways you can teach your child the importance of fund raisers.
Who is Doing The Selling?
Do not fall into the trap of doing all the selling for your child. Sure, its great to solicit friends, family and coworkers, but you have to draw the line. The whole idea behind the child participating in the fund raiser is for him or her to achieve a sense of pride from a job well done. Children have to learn that not everyone will say yes. Keep your child motivated, let them pitch the sales and teach them how to gracefully deal with rejection.
Competition
While fund raising does entail a good amount of competition, your child should not be made to feel any less than the child who had higher sales because a parent had more contacts at the office. The child has to learn that every little bit counts towards the greater good. Their contribution and hard work is important even if they don't have the biggest numbers of sales.
Who To Sell To?
Before your child embarks on her mission, take some time to discuss who to sell to. This can be difficult, considering so many children in the same neighborhood most likely knock on the same doors. The child should know that when someone says no, this person should not be bothered repeatedly for future fund raisers until the person gives in and buys something. Sit down and make a list of people to visit. Keep the list so that the next time a fund raiser comes around, you can avoid asking those people to contribute again. If you have several fund raisers a year, it can get expensive for people to contribute to each one. Come up with several lists and rotate them through each fund raising event.
The Sales Pitch
Speaking to strangers, even if they are friends of the family, is not easy for many children. Take some time with your child to practice his or her sales pitch. Do a few rounds of pretend sales before going out and fund raising for real. One site suggests that parents scope out potential customers by asking if they might be interested in seeing what products their child has to offer. If the potential customer is open, go ahead and let your child follow up.
Keep in mind that you should never allow your child to go door to door alone, unless you know the people well. Do allow your child to do all the talking when trying to pitch a sale. After all, even if your child does not sell a thing, it is the effort that counts.
If our kids learn how to donate and raise funds, charities in Malaysia will have much more funds and resources to work with. They can better take care of animals, children, disability, education, elderly, emergency, environment and medical needs in Malaysia. There are a lot of charity organizations here that are in need of assistance.