5 Tips To Set Your Kids Up To Be Financially Responsible Adults

When you’re raising kids, you are constantly trying to impart them with all the knowledge they’ll need as adults. One of the things you want to teach them about early on is money. More often than not, young kids don’t learn the value of money early on, which is why the world has so many financially irresponsible adults.

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Teaching your kids about money, and at the same time, putting measures in place to set them up financially could contribute significantly to raising children that eventually become financially responsible. Now you may be wondering how to go about this. To get you started, here are 5 tips to set your kids up to be financially responsible adults. 

 

1. Start early to talk to them

One common mistake people make is putting off talking to their children about money until it’s too late. You definitely want to start talking about money to your children early enough. In fact, research has shown that kids are receptive to topics like this at as early as 3 years old. As they grow a little older, you can begin to explain the importance of saving over impulse buying, and can even set up a savings account for them as a way to motivate them to save more. 

 

2. Include financial education 

Some middle schools and high schools include financial education in their curriculum. You can try to find out if your child’s school is one of them. Even if they don’t offer those exact subjects, there are still things you can do. For one, you can enroll your teen in a financial education class online or in a local community college. Some of the things they’d learn from this include budgeting and even understanding credit and debt. All of these work together to teach your child some very useful money management skills. 

 

3. Encourage working for money 

Even if you are financially well off, it’s not a good idea to constantly say yes every time your kid asks you for money. By doing this, not only are you missing out on teaching them an important lesson about financial independence, but you are also indirectly raising an entitled child. Encouraging your older kids to get summer jobs allows them to understand the value of making their own money. Once they understand this, they’ll be less likely to splurge on impulse buys since they’ll know how hard it is to work for money. It’ll also teach them to be more respectful of how they approach you for money. 

 

4. Be the example 

There really is no point teaching your kids about good money management and a financially responsible way of life if that’s not something you do yourself. Children and even teenagers are very observant of your actions, so if you are teaching them one thing but doing the direct opposite, they’ll be less likely to listen to you. You need to walk the walk and talk the talk of financial responsibility. Your kids would notice and want to emulate you. 

 

5. Incorporate incentive planning

If you have an estate plan that you want to pass on to your kids, you can attach incentives to ensure that your kids continue to live a financially responsible lifestyle. Incorporating incentive planning can be executed with the help of a family lawyer, on that front you may want to consider a family lawyer, as they offering solid legal services. Some of the incentive trusts that are most common include education and business choices.