Neurons On the Brain
I have not stopped thinking about Episode 3 of SAVVY where I sat down with Dr. Cristina Wohlgehagen, Chief Neurologist and founder of the International Headache Center (IHAC) to discuss how the brain learns. The work of SAVVY seeks to explore every corner and turn over every stone in the name of financial literacy so that innovators, educators, and legislators can draw conclusions that will help the next generation. Dr. Cristina Wohlgehagen (Dr. Cris) was one of the select experts brought into the miniseries for her unique lens.
Dr. Cris told us about a colloquial phrase among fellow neurologists, “neurons that fire together, wire together” the principle that once a connection is made, it stays connected making it paramount to give attention to connections we feed to ourselves and (even if by accident) our children. The casual vocalizing of internal thoughts like, “I’m bad with money” or “No, we can’t afford that” wire ideas together that hurt an upward trajectory.
In speaking with Dr. Cris for months prior to filming, I gleaned insights that led me further down the path of guiding my own children with life skills. Maybe you can relate or perhaps it is the Asian in me, but when parenting, it seems nearly every moment in a day evokes a lesson I could share, which touches another important tip, which touches another core principle my kids need to understand. Clearly, I cannot frantically teach them every lesson I see and want them to know without completely fire-hosing them. How, in my lifetime, can I teach them what I have learned in my lifetime?
There have been moments in my life where I felt my mortality deeply, but no mortal-awareness moments that send tremors through my whole being as when I experience them now as a parent. It is the realization that there are things my children do not yet know that I feel desperate to impart to them to ensure they can survive and thrive in the world. So I made a list of things I wanted them to learn and then separated them into two categories: "For Survival" and "To Thrive." I began looking for ways to create teaching moments that work amidst the usual riptide of life. It became apparent that I needed to reframe (for them and myself) along with a generous dose of grace.
I began drawing connections between things. Time and money. Friendships and cooking. Before I knew it, our daily schedule unfolded little repeatable phrases of pearly wisdom. I blew on my nails and buffed them on my shoulder. I felt like such a good mom when those pearls rolled smoothly off my tongue. When my tiny humans occasionally dismissed my genius phrases I was very harsh with myself that I could do better, I could be more creative. Of course, the repeatable phrases were not magic fairy dust I reminded myself and the fruit of its impact wouldn't show till later. Grace. Patience. Grace.
I continued to pursue the line of thought that it is a mindset of the lacing of resource concepts in everyday moments that could help life skills stick. After co-presenting “Undressing the Mind” at a finance industry conference on the topic of the skill of serving multiple generations, with wealth advisor and university educator, Holly Knight, we kept the conversation going (Savvy episode 15). Her personal experience, including educating individuals at every level (from pre-K to the C-suite) is fascinating. She talks about the constant drip of insights on our children/students. Little drip, little drip. Constant and consistent. In a recent conversation, I shared stories of my kids’ milestones with Gayle Reaume, founder of MoolahU, who affirmed the importance of creating the environment to think and it is the environment that cultivates the mindset.
I want my kids to live full lives, free of preventable financial worries. What I have discovered is that one thing I aim to “wire together” for my children is not the pursuit of money, but the positive reinforcement to be clever with it. After seeing how the mindset of conversations was working with my four elementary aged children, I took pen to paper and found myself at a conference table with the CEO of a publishing house pitching her my idea to come alongside families.
In my children's storybook The Monster Job I use everyday life, the kid’s own aha-moments for autonomy, and guiding moments to teach money skills in a self-worth-enriched environment. The reward-based system helps wire the positive feelings with the goal-oriented effort. If neurons and mindset skills fire you up, then grab a copy of The Monster Job for the budding entrepreneur in your life. I would love to hear what inspired conversations you can create at home with your kids.
The Monster Job by Faith Teope, Illustrated by Peili Huang
themonsterjob.com or faithteope.com/shop
For bulk orders please contact: Brown Books Publishing Group | 972.381.0009 thomas.reale@brownbooks.com
