Frequently Asked Questions

What is Fi kids?

FIkids is a social platform designed to teach kids how money works and how to use it responsibly. FIkids provides children ownership of their financial decisions and gives them real world consequences to those decisions.

How does firekids work?

The FIkids concept is that so much of our money goes to our children’s livelihoods: between food, clothes, toys and other miscellaneous expenses, those dollars just fly out the door! Worst of all, the kids have no concept of how much it costs to give them the lifestyle and privileges we are pleased to provide them. FIkids funnels the burden of these expenses from the parent to the child, giving them ownership of their expenses and an understanding of how much things cost.

What happens if the money runs out?

Uh oh. The real life has hit. The child has spent the money on “stuff” and now doesn’t have anything left. They have learned the consequence of poor money management. When the family goes out to eat, the child gets to sip their water and watch the rest of the family eat. When they get home, they can either make their own food, or parent can make it for them. The child shouldn’t go hungry, just experience the loss of not being part of the eating out community.

What do the parents continue to provide?

The essentials. The child should not be responsible for rent, utilities, a bed, and groceries. If it is a privilege to possess it, the child should pay for it. Clothes are unique in that they are a necessity but FIkids will pay for these themselves. This is because it teaches the children to take care of their clothes and not destroy or ruin them. If the child can’t eat out, they can eat the groceries at home.

What does the $50 future money go to?

This part is amazing, with the child putting back $50 a week and the parent putting back $50, the child has $100 a week going to their future. After one year, that is $5,200, after 10 years that is $52,000. With that kind of money, they can use it to cover a large portion of their college expense, have seed money for their business, or have a NICE down payment on a house.

why fikids?

One thing is very clear, kids are EXPENSIVE! You are going to be spending money on them anyway, you might as well funnel some money through them so they understand how money works. Using the FIkids method, children will be responsible for their own purchases, tithing, and retirement contributions.

How do you funnel these expenses to the Kids?

At the end of each week, the child presents their invoice (completed chore chart) to the parent. If the chores are satisfactorily completed, the child receives $100, if the chores aren’t completed in full, their income should be docked. With that $100, 10% goes to God, 40% is for the present, and 50% is for the future (see below). The 50% contribution to their future is then matched by the parent, meaning $100 a week goes to the child’s future. Out of the 40%, the children will be responsible for their own clothes, toys, books, and eating out.

When the child buys something, they immediately feel the money leaving their pocket. This gives the child an emotional reaction to seeing the money dwindle. This makes them think carefully whether or not they want that item, or if the hurt from watching their money longer be theirs hurts too much. All of a sudden, they aren’t whining or begging for that toy. When the child wants an item, the parent can reply “sure, you can have it, if that’s what you want to spend your money on.”

$100 a week is a lot, could you do a smaller amount?

Of course, but first, take a hard look at what you spend on your children. It might surprise you how much you actually spend. $100 is a lot of money to a kid, and its lure is very strong for them to comply. You could do FIkids with $40 a week but the results may not be as drastic.

What about a Car?

It is possible to have the child buy their car with cash out of their future fund, with the knowledge that the more they spend on this car, the less they will have for their future. Also, they must consider the cost of operating, maintaining and insuring the car, all of which comes out of their $40 a week.

How Do I start?

Get a chore chart, go over the concept with your children. Let them know that you are going to give them $100 a WEEK. Watch their jaws drop, explain how the money is used and how they have to earn it. Show the kids what $100 single dollars looks like, it’s a huge stack. Have them keep their money in ones, that way every single dollar leaving makes them feel the loss, and the future money growing feels so good. Spending and saving both provide strong emotional reactions, let them learn how to handle money and the emotions tied to money while in your home and in your care, rather than when the stakes are much higher for them later in life.