How We Teach Our Teens Good Money Management

Well, you want your child to be financially responsible.

Do you remember when you were young? Did you do well with your money? What are some of things your parents do to teach you to manage your money better?

In this article, we will discuss some ways in which you can teach your child to be responsible when it comes to both money and credit. We will discuss a few options for youth credit and financial management.

Most of us, even adults, do not know much about money management. This article can also help you as an adult to manage your finances and credit better. First, let's talk about setting goals. Why do you need to manage your money? What are you trying to accomplish?

The first thing you can do to introduce your child and perhaps you too, is to track where your money goes. How often do you ask, "Where did I spend all that money?" If you ever ask that tracking your money can give you a better understanding of how to manage your budget better.

There are workbooks that you can purchase or you can use a simple notebook. Ask your child to do this with you so that you can both read together. If you do a family experience, your child will pay attention and participate, because they will be able to see how you manage your money. It has the added benefit of making you manage your money better so you set a good example.

In this new workbook, you and your child write down all the expenses. Every time you or they spend ANY money, it is written down. Not in the category, what is actually paid for with money. You will be able to review this later as you create sections such as, "Things I could have done without it."

If you review your workbooks together, trade them. Each of you can mark what expenses the other person might not have paid and how much each person would have saved if you had not made those extra expenses.

It is not a bad idea to make a few mistakes intentionally so that your child can gain confidence that he or she can manage his or her money and see what expenses were not needed. You need to understand that the destructive behaviors that your teen is experiencing will stay with him for the rest of his life.

The grant is fine, but only until they get a job. Never make enough permission to get the things they want most. Make them learn to save money to buy those things. If they even get a part-time job, there is no more money. They will respect the money they earn more than the money you give them.

When your child is about 16 years old and has a job, help him or her open a test account. Teach them how to balance their test book. If you were working with them, this should be easy. You can help them get a prepaid credit card or teach them how to use the bank card that comes with their new test account with commitment.

Also, if you both create your own workbook and mark everything you spend on it, managing your debit card will be easier. And by continuing to do the workbook, you will both learn to save a lot of money because you will know where your money is being wasted.

We all want to help our teenagers and want to buy them good things, but as parents we need to teach them responsibility. There is nothing more important than teaching yourself to be responsible for money and debt.

Buy them supplies, but make them pay for extra items. That applies to clothing, school supplies, and anything else, especially when your child decides that he or she wants a better, more expensive version of the material in question. Let them pay extra and they will value their money more or they will learn to do without something too expensive.

If you are helping them with a car purchase, give them a dollar-for-dollar comparison to the car. If you plan to buy a car for them, make them responsible for paying for insurance, gas, and more. That will have the added benefit of teaching them to respect and care for their vehicles.

I hope this article has given you some ideas on how to teach your child to manage debt and money. To do the same thing, remember that what you teach your child about money and credit now will determine how successful he or she will be later in life. So take time to teach them.