It was a bright, cheery sunny morning at Sunny Meadow Farm, and the barn was bustling with barn-type activity. Lily and Ben, both 10 years old, were brushing Champ, Lily’s golden-brown Quarter horse. Champ loved their attention, snorting happily as they worked through his thick, shiny coat and under his belly…his favorite!

“Do you think Champ knows how lucky he is?” Ben asked as he braided a strand of Champ’s mane.

“He’s got us, doesn’t he?” Lily laughed. “We’re like his personal assistants.”

Just then, Mrs. Carter walked into the barn with a clipboard and a mischievous grin. “Good morning, CEOs!” she announced.

“CEOs?” Ben asked, tilting his head. “What’s that?”

Mrs. Carter set the clipboard down on a hay bale. “CEO stands for Chief Executive Officer. It’s the person who runs a company, makes all the big decisions, and ensures everything works smoothly, everyone gets along and the company does well. Today, I’m promoting you both to CEOs of your own lives!”

Lily raised her childish eyebrow. “Wait, we’re in charge of… us?”

“Exactly,” Mrs. Carter said. “You see, just like a CEO is responsible for a business or corporation, which is a type of business, you’re responsible for your own life. That includes how you manage your time, energy, and especially your money.”

Ben scratched Champ’s neck thoughtfully. “But we’re just kids. Aren’t you and Dad the CEOs of us?”

“Good question,” Mrs. Carter said. “Dad and I are more like your mentors. We’re here to teach you, expose you to new information and guide you, but the decisions you make about your life—your goals, your dreams, your habits—those are yours. And if you want to grow up to be independent, the sooner you start thinking like a CEO, the better.”

Lily’s eyes lit up. “So, what does a CEO of life actually do?”

Lesson 1: The Power of Decisions

Mrs. Carter pulled out a small notebook. “First, CEOs create a vision and set goals for the organization. What do you want to create and achieve for yourself? Whether it’s saving for a bike or becoming a vet when you grow up, you need a clear vision or plan.”

“I want a dirt bike!” Ben exclaimed.

“And I want to save for a horse show entry fee,” Lily added.

“Perfect…those are great goals,” Mrs. Carter said. “Now, let’s talk about decisions. Every dollar you earn or spend is like hiring or firing an employee in your company. If you waste money, you’re firing potential employees who could help you reach your goal. If you save or invest your money, it’s like you’re putting your employees to work for you.”

“So, spending all my allowance on candy is like firing my money?” Ben asked.

“Exactly!” Mrs. Carter said with a smile. “It’s okay to spend a little on fun—that’s like giving your employees a coffee break—but if you spend it all, your company can’t grow. Not only that, if you spend it on candy, you also aren’t investing in your health, but that’s a story for another day.”

Lesson 2: Financial Freedom Is Your Responsibility

Mr. Carter walked in carrying a bucket of oats for Champ. “What’s all this CEO talk?” he asked, setting the bucket down.

“They’re learning how to be CEOs of their own lives,” Mrs. Carter said. “We’re talking about financial freedom.”

“What’s financial freedom?” Lily asked.

“Financial freedom means that you’re in control of your money instead of your money controlling you,” Mr. Carter explained. “It’s when you have enough money saved or invested to make the best choices about your life without worrying about bills all the time.”

“Like being able to buy a dirt bike without begging for money?” Ben asked.

“Exactly!” Mr. Carter chuckled. “And here’s the catch: financial freedom is YOUR responsibility. No one else is going to hand it to you. It’s like taking care of Champ—you have to feed him, brush him, and make sure he’s healthy. No one else can do it for you.”

Lily nodded thoughtfully. “So, if we’re CEOs, we have to make sure our money ‘works’ for us?”

“Bingo!” Mrs. Carter said.

Lesson 3: Setting Up the Business of YOU

Mrs. Carter grabbed a piece of chalk from the the barn’s chalkboard on the wall and drew five boxes on it.

“These are the categories a smart CEO of life manages:

1. Savings: Money you set aside for big goals.


2. Investing: Money that grows over time, like planting seeds for the future. This is money you’ll use when you’re older but again, that’s also a story for another day.


3. Spending: Think of this as your living expenses. These are everyday needs and wants which you can think of as fun treats.


4. Giving: Helping others and sharing your success.


5. Learning: Investing in yourself, like books or classes.”


6. Play: This is the stuff you want to buy for yourself, like movies, going out to eat, getting a massage like I do once a week!


Ben leaned in. “Investing? That sounds complicated. How is it different than saving?”

“It’s definitely different but it doesn’t have to be that complicated,” Mrs. Carter said. “Putting your money in a piggy bank and watching it grow is a form of saving. You’re accumulating money but it’s not growing. Investing, on the other hand, involves taking some of the money you save and buying things called assets, which we’ll learn about later, that increase in value over time AND also can create something called passive income for you and passive income is a GREAT thing. It’s basically money you don’t have to work for.

Investing looks like buying stocks or real estate or starting a business…all stuff you can start learning about money!”

Practice Time: CEO Decisions

“Let’s try it out,” Mrs. Carter said. She handed each of them ten dollars in play money. “Pretend this is your allowance for the week. How will you divide it into these six categories if you divide it like this:

Living expense get 55%

Saving gets 10%

Investing gets 10%

Education gets 10%

Play gets 10%

Donation gets 5%

Lily thought for a moment and asked to use the calculator on her mom’s phone. “Well, I’ll put $5.50 in Living, $1 in savings, $1 in investing, $1 in education, $1 in play and fifty cents in donation. But how do we keep track of all of that?”

Mrs. Carter said, “Well, you can use jars and call it the Money Jar system! How about Dad and I help you both set up your own Money Jar systems tonight after dinner?”

Both kids excitedly nodded their heads YES!

Ben scratched his head. “But what if I want more for candy, so I’ll put more in the play cateogry.

Mrs. Carter said, “Well, you can do that but it’s better to focus on the whole system. Remember, the key is balance. If you spend everything on fun, your future goals will take longer to reach.”

Lesson 4: Learning from Mistakes

Later that week, Ben spent all his spending money on a pack of trading cards. By the weekend, he didn’t have enough left to buy popcorn at the movies with Lily.

“That’s okay,” Mrs. Carter told him. “Mistakes are part of learning. Every CEO messes up sometimes. What matters is that you reflect and adjust your choices next time based on your experiences and what you learn. You’ll do that in every area of your life as long as you’re alive.”

Ben sighed. “I guess I should’ve saved a little more in case something fun came up.”

“That’s the CEO mindset!” Mrs. Carter said.

Champ’s Role in the Lesson

As they wrapped up their talk, Champ whinnied, nudging Lily’s shoulder.

“You know,” Mrs. Carter said, “Champ is a great example of why planning matters. He’s healthy and happy because we budget for his food, his vet bills, and his gear. If we didn’t plan, we might run out of money for his care, and that would hurt him.”

“So, being a CEO isn’t just about us,” Lily said. “It’s about taking care of what’s important.”

“Exactly,” Mrs. Carter said.

Wrapping It Up

By the end of the day, Lily and Ben were feeling inspired. A little overwhelmed with the new money lessons their parents had given them earlier that day but inspired as well.

“I’m going to write down my goals and start saving more,” Lily said.

“Me too,” Ben added. “And maybe I’ll think twice before firing my money on candy.”

As the sun went down over Sunny Meadow Farm, Champ neighed as if to say, “Good job, CEOs.” And for the first time, Lily and Ben felt ready to take charge—not just of their money, but of their lives.

The Moral:You are the CEO of your own life. Financial freedom is your responsibility, and it starts with the decisions you make today.