Teaching Your Children Proper Money Management

As parent's you want to give the world to yourother bills. Even if your objective is to help them pay
children, and do everything in your power to do so.for schooling or pay off their schooling as quickly as
Unfortunately those precedents that are set whenpossible, having them pay rent too will be a good
they're children can carry on well into adulthood,lesson that you don't always have a nice easy
except the $20 toys turn into $20,000 cars, the bracesselection of things to pay. They'll be faced with multiple
turn into wedding dresses, the family vacations intobills throughout their lives, and may have some tough
lavish weddings. As much as you may be willing todecisions. You also should not be required to pay for
continue to shoulder their financial load, you have toand feed a working adult, especially if they're spending
take your own survival and retirement plan intoa good deal of money buying unnecessary items or
consideration. So how can you break out of this cyclepartying.
of giving? Just say no.You should also stress to them the importance of
We know it's not quite as easy as that, but this is reallycareful financial planning, and also the risks associated
what it boils down to. You can gradually try andwith credit cards and over indulgence along with how it
expose them to the financial world and the things they'llcan effect future credit reports. Young adults are
need to do to take care of themselves, but as long asbound to feel unstoppable when they get that shiny
you keep providing for them, that sense of evernew credit card give them big buying power, and with
present danger that everyone should have whenonly small monthly fees to pay. Sure, they understand
dealing with their finances will not exist. They'll alwaysthe concept that they'll have to pay it all back
have that failsafe to fall back on, that being your bankeventually, but until they hit the end of their credit limit
account.and realize the buying power's gone and they're now
If they've grown up in nothing but a life of privilege itgoing to be stuck making monthly payments for the
can sometimes be understandable that they won'tnext 5 years to get it back, they likely won't fully
have a true appreciation for the difficulties that couldappreciate it.
arise through mismanagement of money. This lessonThe hardest decisions you'll be forced to make are
can often only be learned the hard way, while they'rewhen your children are at a real financial risk of either
young are things are not as tenuous as they would bebeing evicted, going without food, not having gas
later in life. Only be experiencing the lows will they evermoney to get around, etc. Certainly you should do
truly appreciate and respect the highs. You have towhat you can to help them, but if it was their own poor
consider this a valuable life lesson and not adiscretion that put them in that situation, you run a real
punishment.risk of them never learning by constantly bailing them
With children that are still living at home, it's importantout.
that they start paying rent to you, and helping out with