Money, money, money! We may not be as obsessed as Warren Buffet, but just like him, our attitudes towards money start early. Whether we recognise it or not, most of us developed our relationship with money by watching family and friends with their cash and taking it all in. 

When we asked the question “What’s your earliest money memory?” around the TelstraSuper office we got a mixed bag of replies. There was a lot of birthday card money and tooth fairy magic, but also a few specific recollections we thought we’d share. Let’s take a walk down nostalgia lane…

1. You never know what riches you might find in a public telephone box. I remember always checking the coin return, just in case.
2. My earliest budgeting skills were learnt with my tuckshop order and how I could best spend my money on a brown paper bag. Sausage roll, Smiths chips and a Big M!
3. My first memory was finding a silver coin in the Christmas Cake, and then walking to the milk bar on Boxing Day to buy a Sunny Boy.
4. I remember saving my pocket money in my State Savings Bank money box, then adding this to my school bank account with my paper bank book.
5. I must have been about six, and I was given 5c to see a whip cracking show at the local hall.
6. My grandmother used to send me a birthday card with $10 in it - my older brother and sister got $20 so I was always a bit ungrateful - what a sod!!
7. I borrowed my brother’s roller skates on the sly and I noticed some paper under the laces – a $1 note! I quickly stashed it in my bedroom. I thought I was rich!

So, what’s your earliest money memory? We’d love to hear about it so we can keep the money nostalgia going in our next SuperInsights issue.

Share your memories

Need help managing your money?

TelstraSuper Financial Planning has a team of phone-based Advisers who can help you manage your money. Phone based advice doesn’t cost you anything extra as it’s included in your membership. To speak with an Adviser call 1300 033 166 or request a call back. 

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