This is going to be a fun one for the whole family!
Growing up my stepfather introduced us to the wonderful world of ICPOs.
For those of you not familiar with this acronym, it is an Ice Cream Pig Out.
This was the event at the end of the school year where we would pull up to the local ice cream stand and could order whatever we wanted and as much as we could eat.
You can choose the whatever food you want for this lesson. Ideally it will be something that is truly a treat that your children rarely get. I would also recommend that you choose something that will not break the food budget.
Have them take a bite and tell you what they are feeling. Take a second bite and do the same. You may want to note these reactions on a sheet of paper so you can remember them later on.
Now, you can decide when you want to start the educational side of this lesson. My guess would be somewhere after the first portion, when the initial excitement has worn off a little, but before they start feeling full (or sick!).
Explain to them that there are a number of Universal Laws, including the Laws of Gravity, Buoyancy, Attraction, Abundance, Emergence, Electricity, etc.
They are irrefutable, which means they do not change and are always true. For example, if you know the law of buoyancy you will float. The law of gravity does not care if you know about it or not. It always works. If you follow the law of electricity your lamp will light up. If not, it will not work, you may be shocked, or you may burn your house down.
The Law of Diminishing Returns is when you really love something, but the more you have the less you want.
This is why you are using something they really love to eat. At first it is going to be absolutely amazing. Then it is going to be really good. Then okay. Then “I cannot eat another bite”.
Ask at intervals- perhaps after each portion- what your child is feeling or thinking about the food. Notice how their words change.
After they have had enough, let them know that food companies use this Law to their advantage by making the food product so that the first bite has a scientifically formulated combination of tastes so that the first bite is so unbelievably delicious that we keep going back- even after we are full- in search of that initial taste. This is good to know- especially if you are trying to eat healthy.
You can tie this into money by asking them how they feel about a penny, nickel, dime, quarter, dollar, etc (or the equivalents in your currency). Remind them that they once thought a penny was a lot of money. And someday the amount they think is “rich” will not be that much.
Like I mentioned yesterday, once a goal or benchmark is reached, we are hardwired to look for the next, even better thing.
If your children are old enough to understand, you could take this a step further and tie it out to larger life lessons, like plans and goals.
As a reminder:
#1: Have a deeper WHY for your goals than just what first comes to mind. For example, doing something for love is far more compelling than doing something because it is expected of you (and you will continue through far more obstacles and difficulties).The core whys (emotions) are: love, joy, excitement, anger, fear, sadness, and disgust. Ideally your whys will be one of the first three. 😉
#2: Always have little, bigger, and huge goals in front of you. The little goals are those within your current reach. The bigger goals are those you can see, but are going to take a little more time to get to. The huge goals are off on the horizon- you can just make them out, but they are going to take time and effort to reach. Keep creating more goals as you achieve your current ones. You never want to reach your final destination- at least not for long!