An entrepreneurial parent describes sitting in first class while their kids fly coach, telling them the family is "poor" to teach appreciation. The strategy: let them see comfort exists, but make them earn their own way to it.
So I'm probably going to get a lot of hate for this story, but I tell it because I think it's great advice for entrepreneurial parents. When we fly as a family, my wife and I sit in first class while my kids sit back in coach. And one time my oldest asked me, hey, why do we get to have to sit back here and you and mom get to sit up there? Now, before I get comments, they never sat alone until they were actually old enough to do so. Second, I think it's great to let your kids see the good life, but they should know what it takes to actually get there. So when my son asked me, why do we have to sit back and coach, I looked at him and I told him very simply, son, I love you, and your mom and I do very, very well. You, on the other hand, you're poor and you're frankly lucky that we bring you along at all. I said it half jokingly. We're a very sarcastic family. He knows I love him very much. But here's the deal. Your kids will eventually realize that what you have is abnormal. If you have any degree of success at all, they're going to notice that your house is a bit bigger. They're going to see that you take more and fancier vacations. And when that time comes, it's all right for your kids to enjoy it. It's why we're working so hard anyway. But they should never feel entitled to it. So, yep, let your kids see the good life. But they should always know what it took to get there.
