Teach The Young Entrepreneurs In Your Family With Nacho Money


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Nacho MoneyHere at Small Business Trends, we write about every terrific tip and trend imaginable to help small businesses succeed.  Today, I am writing about a book from a small business owner that wants to see families, including those of small business owners, succeed. 

Meet Candi Sparks (@candi_sparks).  She has been writing children’s books on the subject of kids learning about money and how to manage it.   The latest book, Nacho Money, is part of the series, Can I Have Some Money, in which its protagonist, a little boy named Max, learns the pieces to finance and a budding entrepreneurship interest.

I met the author digitally during a twitter chat by Melinda Emerson, leading to a phone discussion about how Ms. Sparks discovered her writing passion.

Sparks discovered her gift in 2005 while recovering from a life-threatening car accident. She noticed children in her hospital and began to wonder about their financial future, even as she struggled with hers.  Given the changes in healthcare we are facing as adults, her thoughts were timely.

So Sparks wrote her series as a wake up call to teach kids how to save what they earn.   Told from Max’s viewpoint, Nacho Money opens with a simple favor among friends. Max’s friend Emma lets him borrow a favorite video game in appreciation for his help with her softball practice. The story grows bit by bit as Max loses the game as well as a few other things which prevent him from obtaining what he wants most.

Nacho Money is a joking term from Max’s brother Chris (Nacho Money is a play on Not Yo Money). Max soon realizes what Chris means behind the joke:

“There are only two kinds of things in this world. What is yours and what is not yours.”

Nacho Money is helpful for small business owners seeing their child losing $20 or borrowing something yet to be returned. The story is very brief.  But its short structure fits on-the-go business owners who want educational material that stick with their children while their own attention is stuck on their business.

The words can feel like you are prepping your child to work on Wall Street, but they entice enough for many ages and not require a spreadsheet to understand.   The material is meant to keep children positive when there is a problem to solve.

Here’s an example. Max’s mom encourages as she asks Max:

(Mom)“Have you ever heard the word debt?”
(Max) “It sounds like dead but that’s not what you said, right, Mom?”
Mom stood up and did some of her crazy dance moves that she thinks the kids are doing now.
“Dead is not what I said!
But I can rhyme, so that you hear me this time.
The letters in the word are ‘dee – ee –bee – tee’
That is plain for all to see.
But don’t forget, they are spoken as ‘det.’”
Mom emphasized the sound of tee at the end of the rhyme. Her dance was over, too. Thank goodness.

A great aspect of the book is that a parent reading along can gain some ideas as to how to approaching a money discussion with a daughter or son.  After Max’s mom introduces the word debt to Max, she leave him mainly to bake a few cookies but to also let him figure out how to address his problem.   

I reviewed this book mainly because small business owners have to think about legacy just as much as finance, marketing, and…ahem, analytics.   Legacy means examining the intangibles beyond assets and liabilities.  Legacy also means ensuring valuable notions we provide to our children growing up are established into their personal standards, letting them make good choices growing up.

Now as many business owners know, finding consistent family time to teach valuable notions can be hard to do.   Nevertheless, Nacho Money succeeds in subtle yet terrific ways to educate, a fit during a challenging schedule. Reminders to make the time effective appear throughout, from its foreword to a small workbook section included at the end.

In its own charming way Nacho Money will help small business owners with families teach fiscal responsibility, and keep children entertained. Candi’s ability to attract young readers is well earned and is a talented author that should be introduced to your young reader.   Nacho Money ultimately aids small business owners in minimizing a potential debt – missing what we share in the quality time with a future doctor, soldier, policewoman, or entrepreneur. 

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Pierre DeBois Pierre Debois is Associate Book Editor for Small Business Trends. He is the Founder of Zimana, a consultancy providing strategic analysis to small and medium sized businesses that rely on web analytics data. A Gary, Indiana native, Pierre is currently based in Brooklyn. He blogs about marketing, finance, social media, and analytics at Zimana blog.

One Reaction
  1. Interesting book. Entrepreneurship is so important! Teaching children positive ideas at an early age is so important! I’m glad that you posted this!