The Story
It was the afternoon of Friday 30th March. We were in Salt Lake City, Utah in the US. The day started early and was packed, visiting museums, art galleries, shopping Malls, Temple Square (where we saw a couple get engaged and everyone clapped), and the Cathedral of the Madeleine (we could not go in because it was Easter weekend and the place was packed having mass) and the family (and one cousin) were now a little more than peckish. Some stayed in the car and the rest of us spilled into the Wendy’s on the main road to Herriman. Wendy’s is an American fast food burger restaurant that was at the time having a ‘Four for Four’ special; a burger, soda, chips, and nuggets for four Dollars. With seven of us it was just easier to all order the same thing.
The friendly assistant got the order started right away and the kids headed over to the soda fountains. I paid with my FNB card but it declined, no worries I thought as I pulled out the Std Bank card. It’s not uncommon that one card may not work where another will, but when the Std Bank card declined, I became worried. The family were hungry and getting a little on edge, and the good folks at Wendy’s were already making the order. The cashier tried the cards again and did say that they had been having some card issues that day and would ask the manager to use the drive through card machine, but this also did not work.
A few minutes passed, the food was made, the kids had filled the soda cups again, the cards still did not work but the cashier handed the food to us and with a smile said that the order had been paid for and wished us a good day. The young cashier whose name was Emily had used her own money to pay for our order. I was deeply impressed by this, she was clearly a student, this was a part time job, and she did not have to do this, but she gladly did. We thanked her and left.
A few moments later I was able to return with cash and thanked the young lady who helped us and pay her back, she never asked for it though and was not expecting anything in return.
The Lesson
Many of you will recognise my sketch when speaking about financial planning, 1st foundation covers risk, then build up the retirement planning and finish with the roof of discretionary investment and nice to have items.
Salt Lake City is the Headquarters of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and I invite you to compare my sketch with theirs and consider how a church teaches its members to approach financial planning.
My Financial sketch is brilliant, of course, but after reviewing the above sketch I’m considering making some changes..
- I really like the foundation of having a commitment to being financially strong, and being unified in this objective with family.
- And I recognise the importance of having a framework of strong work ethic and an effective budget.
The LDS churches Financial Plan is very focused on becoming more Self Reliant to better help others – and I don’t sell that from my brokerage, but it is a happy life to not be tightfisted all the time and wealth is more than just the accumulation of things. Also, I find in life that those who have tightfisted hands, are greedy, inward focused, and stingy tend to become stagnant and closed off to opportunity over time.
I was super impressed with Emily who was happy to part with a few hours wages to be kind to a family she did not know. I don’t know where she is today but I think that life will turn out just great for her. Life has a way of opening opportunities to those who are openhanded, grateful, and generous.
-Brod Von Brughan
