The Report Card That Couldn't Buy Chai

My dear friends, I am Dr. Celso, your financial doctor from Goa. I want to tell you a story today. Not about stocks or mutual funds, but about a brilliant student named Priya and her father, Ramesh.

The Day of the 95%

Priya came home, her eyes shining, holding a report card with 95% in her 10th-grade exams. Her father, Ramesh, a government clerk, was overjoyed. He hugged her tightly and promised her a gift. "Papa, I want a new laptop," she said. Ramesh, with a heart full of pride, immediately withdrew money from his savings—money he had been setting aside for an emergency. He bought the laptop.

But that night, as he looked at his bank statement, a knot tightened in his stomach. That laptop cost him three months of his emergency fund. He had no plan for what would happen if his scooter broke down or if a medical bill arrived. His daughter's brilliant marks had created a silent financial worry.

Your child's marks can get them a seat in a college, but it is your family's financial literacy that will pay the fees for that seat.

The Real Syllabus We Never Teach

We spend lakhs on coaching classes, on new books, on school fees. We push our children to score 95%, 98%. But what is the syllabus for life? Is it algebra, or is it understanding how money works?

Think of your salary as a mighty river. Financial illiteracy is like a cracked pot. No matter how much water you pour in, it will always leak out. You will always feel thirsty, always feel the strain. You work hard, but the money never seems to work for you.

Priya's 95% was a wonderful achievement. But what if Ramesh had also known how to create a separate "Gifts and Goals" fund? What if he had known the power of saying, "Beta, we will get the laptop next month, let's plan for it together"? That conversation would have been a more valuable lesson than any chapter in her economics textbook.

Your Family's Lesson

It is never too late to start. Your family's future security is the most important project you will ever manage. Here is your new syllabus.

1. Talk About Money Openly: Make finance a dinner table conversation, not a secret. Let your children know why planning matters.
2. Pay Your Future First: Before you pay any bill, set aside a small amount for your emergency fund and your goals. Treat this payment as the most important one.
3. Distinguish Between Needs and Wants: A school fee is a need. A brand-new phone because others have it is a want. Fulfill needs first, plan for wants later.
4. Start Small, But Start Now: Do not wait for a large salary to begin. Saving just ₹100 a day becomes over ₹3.5 lakhs in ten years. Small steps create big journeys.

The greatest inheritance you can leave your children is not property, but the knowledge and habits to create their own.