The Economics of Daughters

Tradeoffs- the simple idea that when money is limited, you have to decide between filet mignon and paying the cable bill- is the first thing you learn in economics.  It’s one of those ideas that is so obvious that it makes people who don’t read economics say “no S#!!, Sherlock!” to people who do.  But I think this idea has power far beyond the obvious.  It might be one of the top one or two things that a parent can teach a kid.  And it’s healthy to remind ourselves of it once in a while too.

My 6-year-old daughter loves her dad. A lot.  And her dad in return gives her pretty much anything she wants.  You want ice cream AND gummy bears?  Great idea.  In fact, let’s get gummy bears on top of our ice cream.  I see to it that she rarely experiences tradeoffs. 

My dereliction plays out in all sorts of ways. For example, she’s discovered a recent fondness for basketball.  Last night, she asked if I’d watch the NCAA tournament with her.  It was late and I was tired and I really just wanted to watch a karate movie by myself.  So I told her it’s too late and it’s time to go to bed. She left the room quietly. Look, sometimes you need to make tradeoffs. It can’t always be about what she wants!

Three minutes later.