Hey ChooseFI friends,
After years of coaching high school soccer, I’ve learned something that applies just as much off the field as on it: you can’t teach advanced skills until the fundamentals become habit.
In soccer, that means building muscle memory through repetition—trapping, passing, spacing—until players can move with purpose automatically. In life, and especially with money, it’s exactly the same.
That realization led me to create a new blog series for parents called Money on the Field, part of my Developing Long-Term Habits project. The series walks parents through how to teach financial habits to their kids at every stage, from preschool to young adulthood.
Each post connects soccer lessons to money lessons—showing how simple, consistent habits compound over time:
- The First Kick (Ages 3–6): Effort and reward
- Dribbling and Passing (Ages 5–9): Patience and balance
- Game Day Goals (Ages 9–13): Routine and purpose
- Midfield Vision (Ages 13–18): Awareness and independence
- Defense and Strategy (Ages 17–25): Budgeting, credit, and investing
The goal isn’t to raise financial prodigies—it’s to raise kids whose money habits become automatic, just like great players who no longer think about their first touch.
If you know parents in the community—or anywhere—who want to help their kids build financial confidence and lifelong habits, please share the link to the series with them.
We talk a lot about financial independence here, but FI really starts with the next generation learning to manage, plan, and save with intention. This series is designed to make that process simple, practical, and fun.
Thanks, everyone, for helping spread this. If even a few families start building strong financial “muscle memory” early, it will compound for generations.
~Coach Holdren