Simple Money Moves That Set Kids Up For Success
When you think about setting your kids up for the future, it’s easy to go straight to school grades or sports clubs, but learning about money skills – and the good habits that come with them that they can keep and use for life – are just as important.
The good news is that you don’t need to be a financial genius to help your children in the right way when it comes to money and their future finances, and it could even be a great way to learn more about being good with money yourself, so it’s always wise to do it, and with that in mind, here are some simple money moves that set kids up for success; read on to find out more.
Talk About Money Early
One of the easiest, and most important, perhaps, things you can do is to talk about money from a young age because the more used to it children are, the easier it is to deal with, plus it makes it less of a scary thing. Of course, you don’t need to explain complicated things like interest rates to young children, but you can talk to them about saving money if they want something, and to understand that money is there to help if it’s used in the right way.
As they get older, you can have more conversations about how not to get into financial difficulties, and why it’s important to have separate savings, and so on. You can even talk about how to use credit in the right way (because it can be good when it’s used responsibly). But the more you talk about it, and the earlier you start, the easier it will all be.
Give Them Some Responsibility
Whether it’s their own pocket money or the chance to help with part of the weekly shop, giving kids a bit of financial responsibility helps them learn how to make decisions. It’s true that they’ll also make mistakes, of course, but that’s part of the process. It’s better they learn with small amounts now than struggle with bigger decisions later on, and it’s a great way to remember the lessons they learn that can help them in later life.
When it comes to pocket money, it can be tempting just to give kids the money each week or month and that’s it, but it can be a good idea to get them to earn it - good behaviour can mean some extra money, or helping with chores, and so on. Or if they put money into savings, perhaps you can match it and so on. That way, they’ll get even more responsibility when it comes to money.
Save For Their Future
Something else to remember is that it’s never too early to start putting money aside for your children’s future, and if you do that as early as you can, that’s another excellent way to set your kids up for success when it comes to money - it gives them a good base to start from.
There might also be some outside help to boost your savings and make them go further, so it’s always worth looking. For example, the Canadian RESP family plan could make all the difference when it comes to education later on, and it’s the kind of thing that will show your children how to be responsible with money on top of everything else.
