• Teaching Teens About Money | Lacey Langford | Episode 78

  • Find out the essential things every parent must know to teach teens about money plus what they need to know before moving out for college or a job. Money isn’t an easy subject for many parents but if our kids don’t understand money then life will happen and they won’t be able to cope. They could ending up struggling, in debt, or possibly even depressed. Teaching teens about money doesn’t have to be difficult. Lacey Langford talks to Sandy Fowler on the essential things we need to understand about finances. She shares her inspirational take on learning about finances on the Mighty Parenting podcast.

     

     

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    A Favorite Quote from the Show: 

    “Teach your child to have a voice around money matters.”

    High Points of Teaching Teens About Money:

    teaching teens to have a voice around moneyIf we aren’t teaching teens about money, life will happen and they won’t be able to deal with it.

    We need to teach our children healthy practices with money. When things happen, we want them to be able to pivot and not fold like a lawn chair and possibly end up depressed.

    It’s important to set aside money for emergencies and regular expenses like car maintenance. However, it’s also important to save money for the good stuff, even for unknown opportunities.

    Parents set the tone for their child’s financial life. Whatever we do is their normal. If we don’t pay bills and the electricity gets turned off periodically then that’s normal to them. If we track our finances down to the penny and consult a strict budget for every decision then that’s normal to them.

    When we’re teaching teens about money it’s important to teach them about:

      • Saving goals
      • Wants vs. needs
      • Spend less than you make
      • Paying attention to which bills you are committing to paying

    Don’t just give your kids a proverbial blank check. Let them have some skin in the game when they want to make purchases. You can give them a portion of the money for an item they want to purchase and have them earn the rest. Perhaps you can match funds they earn for a purchase. Take the time to help them brainstorm ways to purchase something they want without giving them the funds to do it.

    One way to teach your teen about money is to give them some responsibility for spending money from the family budget. For example: let them be in charge of purchasing their new school clothes with money you allot for that purpose.

    You don’t have to budget but you need to know who you owe money and how much you owe them.

    Don’t be so hard on people about money. You may not want to handle money the way someone else does but that doesn’t mean their way is wrong.

    TMake sure your twenty-something knows these things before they move out:

      1. You need to save money for 2 people—your current self and your 80-year-old self.
      2. Be careful about what you are buying, contracting for or subscribing to since these are bills you are committing to pay.
      3. Don’t pay other people’s bills for them.
      4. Don’t give out your pin number.

    Teach your children to have a voice around money matters.

    Our Guest:

    Lacey LangfordLacey Langford, The Military Money Expert® is the founder of LaceyLangford.com a personal finance blog and a boutique financial coaching practice specializing in the unique world of the U.S. military. Lacey is the host of The Military Money Show, a podcast all about money and military. She is a U.S. Air Force veteran, Milspouse, financial coach, speaker, and writer who changes people’s lives from being fearful of money to having control and confidence with it. Lacey’s an Accredited Financial Counselor® with over ten years of experience in financial planning, counseling and coaching.

    To learn more or connect with our guest visit https://laceylangford.com