Once upon a time in a small township, two boys grew up as best friends Tawanda and John.
Tawanda’s parents always said to him, “My child, we are counting on you. When you become a doctor, you will build us a big house, send your siblings to school, and carry the whole family on your shoulders.”
John’s parents, on the other hand, said something different: “Son, we are working so that you and your children never start life in debt. Whatever career you choose, choose it for yourself, not for us.”
Fast forward 20 years. Tawanda became exactly what his parents prayed for a brilliant doctor. The first salary he earned? It didn’t buy him a car, or a bed, or even new shoes. It bought groceries for the whole extended family. Every month, he carried the weight of school fees, electricity bills, medical bills, and the never-ending black tax. His dream car became a dream forever postponed.
Meanwhile, John didn’t become a doctor. He became a software engineer. His parents had invested in land, in businesses, in shares. Instead of sending his salary back home, John used it to build his own future. By 30, he wasn’t feeding a village he was building a legacy.
And that, my friends, is the African tragedy.
For decades, we’ve raised children like walking pensions. We tell them: “I’m sending you to school so that you take care of us.” But in reality, we are setting them up to start life already drowning in responsibility. By the time many Africans buy their first car, they’ve already paid for four funerals, three siblings’ school fees, and a new roof at their parents’ homestead.
Compare that with the Jews, the Asians, and the so-called “whites.” Their children inherit houses, trust funds, and businesses. Our children inherit bills, debts, and “Don’t forget where you came from.”
It’s time to break this cycle.
Let us not burden our children with our unfinished business. Instead, let’s build businesses, create wealth, buy assets, and set up structures so that our grandchildren thank us instead of rescue us. Let’s change the script from “Be a doctor and take care of us” to “Be whatever you want, and build on what we’ve already started.”
Because real success is not when your child buys you groceries every month. Real success is when your child’s children still eat from the seeds you planted long after you’re gone.
By The Chartered Vendor
#BlackTax #GenerationalWealth #AfricanBusiness #MindsetShift #BuildLegacy #StopTheCycle #WealthCreation #EntrepreneurshipAfrica #BusinessWisdom
