Multimillionaire Believes That Teaching Kids About Money Is Important

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Jhalesa Seymour, founder of Salt.XO. It has been edited for length and clarity.

My mom raised five kids on a $30,000 salary. We never wanted for anything. Now that I’m a mom of two boys, who are 1 and 5, I don’t know how she did it.

When I was in college, I was offered a teaching job that paid about $30,000. Although it was what my mom had raised a family on, I knew I needed more. My mom always exposed me to a better way of life. Because of her, I knew the life I wanted to strive for wasn’t in that income bracket.

During my senior year of college, I started making all-natural soaps and feminine hygiene wash. I handed them out for free on campus and gave people my personal number to text me once they’d tried them. My fellow students went crazy for them, and Salt.XO was born.

In 2018, I made $154,000 making soaps out of my apartment. The next year, we made $1 million in profits. Since then, we’ve had more than $16 million in sales.

I pay myself a salary and reinvest in the business

One mistake people make is assuming that a company’s sales equal personal wealth. I’m clear about the difference between my company’s profits and my net worth (which I prefer to keep private). I live based on the salary I’m paid by Salt.XO, and reinvest the rest of the profits into the team and the business.

Still, my kids live very differently from the way I was raised. They have pretty much everything they need: clothes, a nanny, and fun outings. We’re in Florida, and a trip to the amusement parks was a huge deal for me as a kid. But for my son, going to Universal feels like a casual Friday event.

I don’t want my sons to have instant gratification

Now that my oldest is in kindergarten, I’m working hard to help him understand money and the work that’s tied to it. I don’t want to raise my boys with a lack mentality, but I want them to understand the reality of money, access, and privilege.

To emphasize that, I’ve started pulling back on the things my sons have access to. I don’t want them to always have instant gratification. I know from my childhood that waiting and saving for things made me appreciate them more, and that made me who I am today.

I tell my son how much I’m spending in stores

I also talk with my son about money, as if he were much older than 5. When we go to the grocery store, I read the total to him. Then, we talk about what spending $300 on something means. I discuss how many hours or days I need to work to bring that money into our home.

I usually let him pick one snack and one toy when we’re shopping. But that’s it. Limiting what he can have helps him understand that money doesn’t grow on trees.

We use a physical piggy bank so my son can see his savings grow

My son’s dad and I have been saving for him since he was an infant. We do it with a physical piggy bank, which is easy for him to see and understand. He contributes the allowance he gets from helping with the dog and the gifts people give him. Each time he fills the piggy bank, we get a bigger container. Right now, his bank is a rocket ship, but by the time he’s 18, I hope it’s a giant tote.

This has helped my son become more conscious about saving. Sometimes, on those trips to the store, I’ll tell him I’ll give him the money for a toy, and he can choose to spend it or save it. Often, the money ends up in his piggy bank.

I have big financial dreams for myself, too

I was never taught how to invest and grow money. I had to learn on my own, sometimes through mistakes. So, I plan to teach the boys about investing, planning for retirement, and weighing the pros and cons of taking out a loan versus paying cash for something.

I still have big financial dreams myself. Once, being a millionaire seemed like a pipe dream. Now, I want to be a billionaire. I don’t get envious when I see people who are ahead of me. Instead, I think: What do I need to do to get there