All throughout our children’s adolescence, we have to keep teaching them important life lessons.
However, the things we teach them when they’re little are relatively simple; But when they enter their teenage years and potentially land their first job; money management becomes an issue. And make no mistake - if you don’t implant proper money responsibility in their psyche on time, that’s a character flaw that won’t be easy to correct. Don’t worry, though - we’re here with a couple of useful tips!
Everything Starts With Contentment
When do we spend the most money, regardless of whether we’re teenagers or adults? That’s right - when we’re not content with the things we currently have; so we go out and buy new ones. Now, when that’s a pair of shoes, that isn’t such a big deal; but if you’re constantly envious of people’s better phones or cars - that could be a problem.
And with the teenagers of today, it’s a bigger issue than ever. Providing proper financial education for teenagers is more difficult because they can see all the ways their less responsible friends are spending money.
Let’s face it - they spend a lot of their time looking at their screens and phones, as they scroll their way through all of the social media platforms available to them. And in every minute of that - they can see the best parts of their friends’ lives. Heck, they can even see the lives of total strangers; some of which enjoy far more luxury than you (or even they) can realistically afford.
Sooner or later, if you don’t explain financial contentment to your children - you’ll hear something like “My friend spent $5,000 on her party for Sweet 16! Why can’t I?”. They need to understand that everyone should live according to their means and abilities. That way, they won’t be irresponsible with their money once they earn some.
Give Them Their Own Bank Account
As we’ve talked about above, there are a lot of different things you need to tell your kids about money management once they’re teenagers. But remember the times when you were their age; about 90% of what your parents kept telling you was boring dribble that you refused to listen to - or at least it seemed that way.
So, you should also teach your children about money responsibility in practical ways. Once they’re old enough to have one - give them the responsibility of their own bank account. That way, they’ll be able to start preparing for a heftier and more significant account once they have a proper job and career.
Make Them Participate In College Savings
Obviously, all of us want our children to have a good education, and a nice career after that. But if you want your kids to value their education and the money you’ve spent on it; you should let them participate in the saving for college as well. Sure, you’ll obviously still bear the brunt of costs if you don’t want them held up in student loans for years afterward; but they should still put in some money into the pot.
If they start working a summer job, naturally; they should get to keep most of that money. But a tiny fraction should go towards their college savings - so that they feel like its something they’ve contributed too as well.
Avoiding Student Loans
While we’re on the subject - at one point in high school, you’re going to have “the talk” with your kids. And we mean it in the financial sense - the “how we’ll pay for your college” talk. Right off the bat, you should make sure your kid knows that student loans are the worst possible option.
Tell them about all of the alternatives they have; from a cheaper community college, a university that’s in-state, part-time work, or trying for a scholarship. Sure, at the end of the day - they may not manage to do without a student loan; but they should try their hardest to avoid it, and realize its pitfalls even as teenagers.
Credit Card Danger
Once your teenager turns 18, there’s one thing that will definitely happen - they will get a lot of different credit card offers. And once they apply for college, the intensity of this will increase even more. That’s why you need to make them understand that debt so early on in their professional lives is a very bad idea. Once they’ve got a stable job, they can decide for themselves what kind of financial commitment they can afford. But otherwise, they shouldn’t rush into anything they’re not ready for, in the financial sense.
Budgeting Apps
It’s pretty much an axiom that every teenager spends most of their time on their phone or laptop these days. However, when it comes to learning financial basics - this does not necessarily have to be bad. For example - among the myriad smartphone apps for all kinds of things, you can also find handy budgeting apps. Get your teens to install one of these as soon as possible - and start tracking how much they earn or save, and how much they spend, and on what!
Help Them Make Money
Most of the things we’ve talked about here concern you teaching your kids how to save money, and how to avoid unneeded financial risks. However, that’s not all there is to it. Apart from such thrifty skills, they should also learn how to make money on their own. After all, they’ve got plenty of free time - and while socializing and dabbling in hobbies is nice and positive, they could also spend some time working. Make sure that they know they’ve got your support in all of this!
Norma Spencer fully enjoys her editor career living an RV life with her family. Still traveling with her parents and a 4-legged buddy Albert, she's a devoted tech and finance writer with a Ph.D. in Business Administration (Management).
In the moment of writing this bio, Norma is in Hungary, planning to spend at least few years in Europe.
However, the things we teach them when they’re little are relatively simple; But when they enter their teenage years and potentially land their first job; money management becomes an issue. And make no mistake - if you don’t implant proper money responsibility in their psyche on time, that’s a character flaw that won’t be easy to correct. Don’t worry, though - we’re here with a couple of useful tips!
Everything Starts With Contentment
When do we spend the most money, regardless of whether we’re teenagers or adults? That’s right - when we’re not content with the things we currently have; so we go out and buy new ones. Now, when that’s a pair of shoes, that isn’t such a big deal; but if you’re constantly envious of people’s better phones or cars - that could be a problem.
And with the teenagers of today, it’s a bigger issue than ever. Providing proper financial education for teenagers is more difficult because they can see all the ways their less responsible friends are spending money.
Let’s face it - they spend a lot of their time looking at their screens and phones, as they scroll their way through all of the social media platforms available to them. And in every minute of that - they can see the best parts of their friends’ lives. Heck, they can even see the lives of total strangers; some of which enjoy far more luxury than you (or even they) can realistically afford.
Sooner or later, if you don’t explain financial contentment to your children - you’ll hear something like “My friend spent $5,000 on her party for Sweet 16! Why can’t I?”. They need to understand that everyone should live according to their means and abilities. That way, they won’t be irresponsible with their money once they earn some.
Give Them Their Own Bank Account
As we’ve talked about above, there are a lot of different things you need to tell your kids about money management once they’re teenagers. But remember the times when you were their age; about 90% of what your parents kept telling you was boring dribble that you refused to listen to - or at least it seemed that way.
So, you should also teach your children about money responsibility in practical ways. Once they’re old enough to have one - give them the responsibility of their own bank account. That way, they’ll be able to start preparing for a heftier and more significant account once they have a proper job and career.
Make Them Participate In College Savings
Obviously, all of us want our children to have a good education, and a nice career after that. But if you want your kids to value their education and the money you’ve spent on it; you should let them participate in the saving for college as well. Sure, you’ll obviously still bear the brunt of costs if you don’t want them held up in student loans for years afterward; but they should still put in some money into the pot.
If they start working a summer job, naturally; they should get to keep most of that money. But a tiny fraction should go towards their college savings - so that they feel like its something they’ve contributed too as well.
Avoiding Student Loans
While we’re on the subject - at one point in high school, you’re going to have “the talk” with your kids. And we mean it in the financial sense - the “how we’ll pay for your college” talk. Right off the bat, you should make sure your kid knows that student loans are the worst possible option.
Tell them about all of the alternatives they have; from a cheaper community college, a university that’s in-state, part-time work, or trying for a scholarship. Sure, at the end of the day - they may not manage to do without a student loan; but they should try their hardest to avoid it, and realize its pitfalls even as teenagers.
Credit Card Danger
Once your teenager turns 18, there’s one thing that will definitely happen - they will get a lot of different credit card offers. And once they apply for college, the intensity of this will increase even more. That’s why you need to make them understand that debt so early on in their professional lives is a very bad idea. Once they’ve got a stable job, they can decide for themselves what kind of financial commitment they can afford. But otherwise, they shouldn’t rush into anything they’re not ready for, in the financial sense.
Budgeting Apps
It’s pretty much an axiom that every teenager spends most of their time on their phone or laptop these days. However, when it comes to learning financial basics - this does not necessarily have to be bad. For example - among the myriad smartphone apps for all kinds of things, you can also find handy budgeting apps. Get your teens to install one of these as soon as possible - and start tracking how much they earn or save, and how much they spend, and on what!
Help Them Make Money
Most of the things we’ve talked about here concern you teaching your kids how to save money, and how to avoid unneeded financial risks. However, that’s not all there is to it. Apart from such thrifty skills, they should also learn how to make money on their own. After all, they’ve got plenty of free time - and while socializing and dabbling in hobbies is nice and positive, they could also spend some time working. Make sure that they know they’ve got your support in all of this!
Norma Spencer fully enjoys her editor career living an RV life with her family. Still traveling with her parents and a 4-legged buddy Albert, she's a devoted tech and finance writer with a Ph.D. in Business Administration (Management).
In the moment of writing this bio, Norma is in Hungary, planning to spend at least few years in Europe.
