Must be RRSP season. 

I am one of those fortunate people that was raised by an educated, single mom, the daughter of immigrants who came to Canada in the early 1900s who made it through the hungry 30s. I had my first job at 10 years old delivering groceries in a wagon . I have pictures of this. I kept my earnings in a secret wooden box I hid in my closet. My mom found it and chastised me for not putting it in a bank to earn 2% compounded interest. She showed me a calculation how my money could grow. She also taught me to invest in War bonds which also earned a bit more interest.

Since age 10, I have always saved and had the magic of compounding my money. I graduated in engineering from UBC with two degrees, debt free in my first and money in the bank after my second. Today, in retirement, I still invest in Cdn blue chip stocks that pay at least a 4% dividend. 

I invested in RRSPs, a big mistake. I earn way more in retirement than when I worked and now I pay big taxes on RRIF exit.