How to talk to your children about work

O ur lives are dominated by work — doing it and worrying about it when we don’t have it. Work underpins our existence, financially, ethically and socially. An all-encompassing system, lending status and meaning, it is the condition of adulthood.

And yet we barely talk about it with our children. “They’ll have their whole lives to think about work, let’s not bother them with it now” goes the argument. But this is something we should talk about, to help our children to form an attitude and approach to the idea of work.

You might begin with Richard Scarry’s classic What Do People Do All Day? . This jauntily illustrated tome offers a vision of a merrily employed society, an efficient ecosystem, each individual with their position: “Some workers work indoors, and some outdoors, some work up in the sky and some work underground ..

. what does your daddy do, what does your mummy do, and what do you do? Are you a good helper? Everyone is a worker.” The posited theory is that we all work, ideally doing something that makes us smile, that pays us money that can be spent on essentials like food, followed by savings and finally treats.

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