Do you have what it takes to be a frugal family? Are you teaching your children financial responsibility? Or are they picking up bad spending habits from their parents?
The best way to teach is by example, of course, and that’s how a frugal family begins. You developed your financial habits from your parents, and you’re now passing them on to your children - whether you realize it or not.
"Everyone who got where he is
had to begin where he was.”
- Robert Louis Stevenson |
So how do you teach financial responsibility to kids?
One way is to keep them aware of your family’s overall financial situation. You don’t need to bore them with all the details, but let them know the inner workings of how you manage the money coming in and going out.
If you’re in debt but striving to get out, tell them - and make it clear that debt is a bad thing, and that you’re seeking to overcome your past poor decisions by first and foremost eliminating your existing debt.
If you’re out of debt, tell them how you did it, and stress how much better it is now that you’re free from creditors. Point out specific things that they enjoy that they wouldn’t have if you were still struggling to pay off credit card bills; that nice TV, for example, or the video games you bought them for Christmas.
A frugal family should save together, and make it fun. Instill in your children a fondness for finding good deals and being thrifty.
Enlist the kids to help Mom cut out coupons from the Sunday paper. Take them shopping with you so they can see firsthand how money works. Portray coupon-clipping and comparison shopping as ordinary things that all sensible people do.
Most kids assume that however their parents do things, that’s how everyone does it. So let them see frugal living as something “everyone” does.
You can also create a frugal family by giving your children an allowance and teaching them how to manage it. A good guideline is to allow each child to earn up to $1 a week for every year old they are (e.g., an 8-year-old gets $8 a week).
Make it clear to the kids that they may NOT simply spend their “earnings” however they wish. Tell them they must put a certain percentage away for savings.
Teach them how to save up for things they want, and get them in that habit so that credit will be less tempting when it becomes available to them later. You may also be surprised to know how quickly children can understand the difference between a credit card and a debit card.
Take the time to explain to kids why you do NOT use credit cards and why you use your debit card instead.
Being a frugal family has many rewards, and it’s a great way to teach your children valuable life lessons that they won’t learn anywhere else!
"Money was never a big motivation for me,
except as a way to keep score.
The real excitement is playing the game.”
- Donald Trump |
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Debt is NOT your friend. It's not a wonderful "tool" for building wealth. That's a myth.
