The Young Investor

Help your Teens understand the value of money

Helping your teenager understand the value of money can be a tedious process the majority of the time, and finding success sometimes seems impossible.

For the most part, we must understand that they have little to no experience paying bills or taking care of other responsibilities.

We must be persuasive when convincing them to save and understand that money is valuable and not worth spending on fortnight skins.

So, where do we begin? Firstly we need to be the example we want to see in our kids. Trust me, even if you don't realize they see absolutely everything you do and all your buying patterns.

If you are a frivolous spender with a new sofa arriving each week, you can bet that your teenager will want new Jordans every season.

Another thing we can do personally to help is getting them on a budget (keep an eye out for our upcoming post on budgeting).

If your child is not currently working, we suggest giving them some pocket money, BUT this should be on commission. Meaning they have to earn this money.

Another helpful tool that works really well to show your kids the value of money is showing opportunity cost. This involves showing your kids a comparison of the buying power of the money they have.

For example, if your teen wants to buy a new PS5 game and it's $60, subtly mention to them that this is the price of those sneakers you wanted.

No need to pressure them into either decision. But keep them from changing their mind once they decide, and don't fund those sneakers later with your money.

And finally, for today's post on the value of money from Teen Life Skills, teach your kids contentment. In today's modern world, obtaining a feeling of continent or happiness with what we have can be challenging. But it's still a worthwhile exercise.

Today one of the massive downsides of social media is our kids see thousands of other kids and get access to their lives and spending habits.

This can lead to statements such as "Mark's mom bought him a new car" or "The Murphys are in the Poconos again this year."

The hard part is reminding your child that in the first world, we are (for the most part) fortunate to have a roof over our heads, a warm house, and food to prevent hunger.

Flashing cash on social media leads to constantly chasing the next paycheck and never reaching contentment. Trust me, if your kids develop this skill, they will always have a smile on their faces.

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