A tall but not especially strong young athlete tried several track and field events and learned the value of letting kids explore what they enjoy and do well.
Last time, I wrote to you about running track, and some people asked if I did the “field” part of track and field. The short answer: Yes, and there was room for improvement.
I think I was the tallest fifth grader when I went out for the track team. I had long arms. Dad was tall, and his dad was tall. Coach knew this and decided I should throw discus.
Sure, I was skinny, but his logic was that I would grow, get stronger, and with my wingspan, I could probably just drop the discus pretty far. The discus ring was close to the shotput ring, so I also did shotput. Same logic. I could just drop the shot put pretty far because of my long arms.
Unfortunately, I was not very strong, didn’t get much stronger, and was pretty pathetic at both events. After two years of struggle, the coach agreed to let me try the long jump and the high jump.
Long arms could only take me so far
Let’s just say I didn’t do much better. Never did I harbor Olympic dreams. I tried other sports and eventually found things that I did better at and enjoyed more.
You never know what kids will do well at and what they may like. As parents, all we can do is offer suggestions, cheer them on, and support them.
When our kids are young, we don’t know if they will want to go to college, explore vocational training, or sign up for hands-on training through an apprenticeship.
What we do know is that for many of them, all of these options will require some expense – and some of them will be very expensive.
That’s why I encourage families to save and invest through our Bright Start and Bright Directions 529 college savings programs. The money can be used at a university, community college, vocational program, trade or technical school, and apprenticeship programs nationwide, and even some abroad. Our programs offer flexibility, allowing you to support the education path your child chooses.
In my office, we want you to be ready when the time comes. No matter your child’s age, the best time to start saving is now. The sooner you start, the more time you have to take advantage of compound earnings and unique tax benefits.
You may have strong thoughts on what is best for your kid. You may see clearly what they should do. Our kids want to pursue their own path. And it may be different from the one you want. I know that you would want to support them as a parent, and in my office, we want to support you.
Please visit our website to learn more about how we can work together to see our children succeed when they eventually leave the nest.
I’m sure they will fly higher and farther than my discus ever did.
Sincerely,
Michael
P.S. Every person chooses their own path, and some don’t include college. I am happy to share that saving that money wasn’t in vain. We’re now able to convert 529 accounts into retirement accounts. This means what remains in a college savings account can potentially be the first deposit toward your child’s retirement.