One of the ills of our society today is the fact that people think about themselves alone; that is the only reason why an individual will divert funds meant for the public good for his or her personal use only. Every time I get to teach children about money I see that all they know about money is how to spend. This makes the art of helping kids fully appreciate being socially responsible a tough one.

Of course they see people that are suffering on TV or once a while on the road. They get to hear that people are being displaced as a result of flood, earthquake, or tornado, but they don’t understand the severity. They feel some sympathy but they can’t appreciate the agony of a mother who is watching her child starve to death and is powerless to do anything about it. They can’t imagine what it would be like to lose everything you own, including members of your family, in a devastating earthquake or flood. Despite all this, we still need to do all we can to help our children, no matter their age, to understand how fortunate they are. We need to constantly let them see that there are always people who are less fortunate around them so they can appreciate what they have. For example, if you take your child to a motherless home and serve meals there and help in the home. They will appreciate what it is to have a home and also have a better idea of how people who are less fortunate have to survive.

Teaching your child to appreciate what they have and the lot of others will help you to teach them to be socially responsible. Being socially responsible is understanding your place in the world, doing what you can to help others while also respecting and protecting your environment. People of great wealth such as Aliko Dangote, Bill Gates, Warren Buffett and the likes, are pressured to be socially responsible and share some of what they have. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, for instance, support philanthropic efforts in the areas of global health and learning. We all don’t expect less from them because we feel they have more than enough.

We actually don’t need to be extremely wealthy before we start to be socially responsible for our world. We just need to start where we are and with what we have till we are able to get to where we want to be. The more we ingrain this in the hearts of our children the higher the likelihood that they will be encouraged to develop it in their own time. Do this by setting an example for your children. Tell your children why you take good used clothing to the benevolence stand in your church or any other place you take them to instead of tossing it in the trash can. Explain to them why you give up a Saturday morning to be part of an association that has a vision to lend a hand to others in need. Keep a jar in your home where everybody drops loose change. When the jar is filled, contribute the money to any initiative that helps the less privileged. Teaching your children at an early age to appreciate what they have and to share when they can, will instill in them the concept of social responsibility while giving them a sense of the use of good fortune in the world. We have to give, not to accumulate and remember it is more blessed to give than to receive.

Do have a beautiful week!

Photo Credit: TongRo Images/Corbis

– Gbonjubola Sanni