Not so easy, eh? What makes your teen willing to be in a conversation about money is that you are willing to:
Those are the Three Pillars of Parenting Teens with Great Money Skills. If it isn’t real, if it doesn’t matter to them, and if it doesn’t promise a lasting effect, your teen won’t give it the time of day.
Ok, so you may be thinking “How do I do it?”.
First, make it real. Making it real means that it’s REAL for your teen, not real for you. There’s a big difference. Consider common practices that can be made valuable for teens. For example, consider how you might give your teen an allowance.
NOT real: Giving your teen an allowance without any guidance or accountability. The result is that your teen spends his allowance however he wants, and that’s what he ends up learning (and practicing…and getting really good at!).
Real: Giving your teen an allowance and making him responsible for saving some of it for something he wants, donating some of it to a charity of his choice, using some of it to buy necessities, and setting some of it aside for his future (to be invested now or at a later date).
Stay tuned…Part 2 is on its way. Register for our blog and be sure to be part of the series: How to Talk to Your Teen about Money in a Way that Matters: The Ultimate Guide.
Easy Action: Start a conversation with your teen about what causes matter to him or her. Then explore the Internet for ways to contribute to that cause.
Resource at Your Fingertips: Check out JustGive.org for easy ways to contribute to organizations that are meaningful to you and your teen.
Remember to Pledge to teach your teen to be an excellent money manager! Let the world know that parents are doing their part to build a financially literate society!
© Your Teen’s Money Skills, Inc., 2012 All rights reserved worldwide.