It’s hard being a parent.
One of the hardest things in life is teaching your kids money skills.
It’s not always fun but it’s vital to teach kids about money if you want them to be happy as an adult.
So, here are the 4 big things you should know!
- “I want” doesn’t cut it. You have to stay strong (and possibly endure a tantrum or three) but not caving into “I want” means your kids stop expecting stuff every time you go out the door with them. Of course, they can have any free samples a store has laying around but that’s it.
- Teach them that “money=work”. When a child wants something, give them a way to earn that something. Make it proportionate to their age and what they want. Earning enough to buy a cake should probably be pretty easy (tidying their room for a week, maybe) but earning enough for a PlayStation 4 should be something much more substantial (mowing the lawn and washing the car for a year).
- Show them how to save. A great way to do this is to have three piggy banks or three jars to put their money in. These should be labeled “give”, “spend” or “save”. You should encourage your children to “save” at least 1/3 of their money, “give” 1/3 to those in need and spend the rest. Of course, if they want to save even more… that’s a good thing. Support that choice.
- Turn being frugal into fun. Kids don’t need expensive stuff to have fun, they need companionship. A trip to the park, borrowing books from a library, preparing dinner together, these things are all fun AND frugal.
