First payslip, investment accounts, and whether a career is worth its cost.
Ages 14–15
The one idea
Every career is an investment — you pay time and money up front and get paid back over decades.
Fourteen and fifteen year olds are close enough to a first job that payslip deductions and investment accounts stop being theoretical.
One per pillar. Each has what to teach, a ten-minute thing to do, and the exact words you can say — so you can start right now without preparing anything.
A payslip lists gross pay, then every deduction, then net pay. Most people never read theirs and never notice the errors. Learn the lines once and you'll check it in thirty seconds forever.
Do this
Find a sample payslip and identify every line: gross, income tax, social security, pension, net.
Say this
"What are all these deductions? Which ones are optional, and which are you legally required to pay?"
Money you need this month belongs in a current account. Money for the next few years belongs in high-interest savings. Money you won't touch for ten years belongs invested. Matching the timeline to the account is most of the skill.
Do this
Split their savings into three buckets by when they'll need it, and pick the right home for each.
Say this
"When do you need this money? That single answer decides where it should sit."
A car isn't its sticker price. It's insurance, fuel, tax, repairs, and depreciation. The purchase price is often less than half of what it really costs to own over a few years.
Do this
Price the full first-year cost of owning a cheap used car. Compare it to the sticker price.
Say this
"The car is $3,000. What does the first year of actually owning it cost?"
Employers often match charitable giving. Some donations are tax-deductible. Organising other people to give multiplies your own contribution. Giving strategically does several times more than giving impulsively.
Do this
Research one matched-giving programme and work out what $100 would actually become.
Say this
"Your $100 could be $200 if someone matches it. Is it worth ten minutes to find out?"
$200 a month from age 20 at 7% is roughly $500,000 by 60. Starting at 30 instead gets you roughly half that — for only a third less money invested. The missing years matter more than the missing dollars.
Do this
Run both scenarios in a compound interest calculator. Write down the difference.
Say this
"You invested a third less and ended with half as much. Where did the rest go?"
Treat a career path like an investment: what does the training cost in money and years, what does it pay, and how long until you're ahead? Some expensive paths pay back fast; some cheap ones never do.
Do this
Pick three careers. For each, find the training cost, the typical starting pay, and the break-even year.
Say this
"That path costs four years and $40,000. When exactly are you ahead compared to starting work now?"
8 questions. You get the reasoning either way — being wrong is where the learning is.
Gross $2,000, deductions $400. What's net pay?
Money you need in 2 months should sit where?
A used car costs $3,000. What's the real first-year cost?
Investing $200/month from 20 vs from 30, at 7%. Roughly?
Your employer matches pension contributions 1:1. What is that?
Training costs 4 years and $40,000, and adds $15,000/year. Break-even?
Why check whether a donation can be matched?
Which is liquid?
Move the sliders and watch what each jar becomes. Only the Grow jar is invested, so only Grow compounds — that is the whole reason the numbers separate.
$260 a year → $2,600 after 10 years
$390 a year → $3,900 after 10 years
$130 a year → $1,300 after 10 years
$520 a year → $7,687 after 10 years
You put in
$13,000
You end up with
$15,487
Grew on its own
+$2,487
That extra $2,487 is money nobody worked for. It came from the Grow jar earning 7% a year on a balance that keeps getting bigger.
For parents: About $25 a week, or replace it entirely with earnings from real work. If they have a job, shift to matching their investing instead.
The 7% is a rough long-run stock market average used for illustration. Real returns vary, some years are negative, and nothing here is investment advice.
Defined the way a 9th grade child would explain them — not the way a bank would.
This week's mission
They compare three real paths on cost, pay, and break-even year — before anyone asks them to choose.
"I do this professionally, and here are three clients who'll say so."
What it costs to start
$0 — the investment is hours of learning
What to charge
Start slightly below market to get the first three clients, then raise to market once you have testimonials.
The business lesson underneath
Your rate is set by proof, not by hours worked. Three testimonials are worth more than three months of practice.
The money lessons only stick if these are running underneath them.
Errors happen and go unnoticed for years. Thirty seconds a month is a genuinely worthwhile check.
When you need it decides where it belongs. This one rule prevents both stranded cash and forced selling at a loss.
Before any expensive path — a course, a car, a venture — write the cost, the return, and the break-even year.
Tick these off through the year. If one is still open in June, that's the lesson to go back to.
Everything on this page is free and always will be. If you want structured worksheets to go alongside it, the 9th Grade packs cover the whole year across maths, reading and writing, and study skills.
Every career is an investment — you pay time and money up front and get paid back over decades. Concretely: reads a payslip and identifies every deduction; places savings in the right account for the timeline; calculates total cost of ownership, not just purchase price. The six lessons on this page cover each of those, and the money check tells you which ones have landed.
Around $25 a week is a reasonable starting point at ages 14–15. About $25 a week, or replace it entirely with earnings from real work. If they have a job, shift to matching their investing instead. The calculator on this page lets you try different amounts and splits.
The Paid Skill: "I do this professionally, and here are three clients who'll say so." Startup cost is $0 — the investment is hours of learning. Your rate is set by proof, not by hours worked. Three testimonials are worth more than three months of practice.
Yes — all 6 lessons, the 8-question check, the vocabulary, the mission, the starter business, the allowance calculator, and the milestones are free with no signup. The 9th Grade printable packs in the shop are optional.
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