When it comes to kids & money, practice what you preach.

Chances are you have different sets of Do’s and Don’ts which have been dictated by the media, your friends, work, and of course your moral compass. Whether it’s fashion (white after Labor Day?), or how you play your golf game (mulligans?), it’s time to think about the do’s and don’ts of teaching your kids to save and spend responsibly. It’s never too early to start, and we do know you are the biggest influence on their habits, good or bad.

So, how can you get your kids to make good spending decisions? Here’s a few do’s and don’ts to get your kids thinking about saving while you open up and start talking about money.

Do keep an open dialogue about what your kids intend to spend their money on.

Don’t be careless with your own spending. Lead by example.

Do give them an allowance. They’ll learn to budget if they are given one on a regular basis.

Don’t allow them to borrow money in addition to their allowance. This may lead to bad habits later on.

Do show them the difference between wants, wishes and needs.

Don’t let them buy it right away. Tell them to wait a couple days to see if they still feel the same.

http://www.banca-internet.com/ Enrico – Banca Online

Nice post.

I’ve got a six year old’s daughter, but I’m not a great example about how to manage money.

I’ll try your suggestions and I hope I’ll learn something new
Sue

Good basics on kids allowance. I just switched to giving my daughter her allowance on a monthly basis as opposed to the end of every week. She is 13. I am hoping this helps her plan and budget her money for the month. She seems to hold on to her money longer this way.

fyi – over the past few years she has learned to save up money to buy the things she wants such as a Ninentdo DS from allowance and money she receives at birthday or Christmas.

As for back to school shopping, I have told her what I will spend on an item and then we shopped the sales. I told her I’d pay $25 for a pair of Converse for her. She would have to pay anything over that. We lucked out and settled for some high tops made by Airwalks for $24. She decided she’d rather keep her money than spend it on the name brand. We also hit a huge sale at Aeropostale and bought a number of shirts for $6, my max amount to spend on tees was $10. This really made her think about what she got for back to school.
http://www.lifehelp.yolasite.com Joe

Our children get the basics: Food, shelter and clothing.

There is a lot of influence out there, by other children, and a lot of pressure on parents to “comply” with other children’s norms.

Parents who cave, need to be reminded we don’t need to conform to children’s norms. The question needs to be asked: who are the parents, and who are the children? I’ve been called the meanest Dad in the nation – big deal – it rolls off like water on a ducks back. In fact, it makes my day as I laugh.

We as parents need to realize we owe our children nothing but the basics. Childrens wants and desires can be earned with hard work and patience – parents make great teachers of these ethics! Take the time to teach your children through “tough love”, and they will work towards an opportunity in life, not a demanded right!

Remember: Food, Shelter, Clothing until they are 18 – they can work hard for the rest, with good advice on how to spend wisely!
Sandy

My kids are all in their 20′s and we’ve always shown them to live on a budget while living below one’s income. Needs are different than wants and always have mad money in your wallet just in case an emergency comes up. We’re fortunate in that we’ve had no house payment in like 15 years and have investments & money in the bank with absolutely no debt. Being a government worker has given me job security and my wife’s professional job means she’ll always have clients no matter what the economic envionrment.
We were both brought up to live within one’s means so we just followed through with those teachings and so on with our kids. Would we like a nicer house or nicer cars…absolutely, but they’re not needed and we’re just as happy spending less & saving more. With my retirement happening within a year or two, we’ll just adjust our living to what our investments bring in and live a nice happy life.
susie

I do not have Kids. It is way to expensive.hahahaha!