Check out these three most important money habits your kids need to develop to help ensure a positive and secure financial future.
1. Earn and save their own money. It can’t just be handed to them. Sounds obvious, right?
- The Bank of Mum and Dad shouldn’t last forever.
- There is a great sense of pride that comes with earning your own money. You very quickly realise the value of money when you personally put the effort and time into earning it.
- If money is just handed out to kids like lollies, it’s all too easy for them to spend it as the reward factor is so low. Next time they come to you with their hand out why not suggest they complete a task in return for the cash.
2. Have a goal. They need to know what they are saving for.
It doesn’t matter how big or small the goal but have a clear idea on what they’re saving for and why it’s important to them.
Get into the habit of setting smaller/short-term financial goals today, like having $20 for spending on their upcoming family holiday or putting $20 away towards that new bike or pair of shoes. This helps to set kids up with setting larger or more long-term goals like having money for rent when they go flatting, or putting money towards a deposit on a house.
Without a goal, it becomes too easy to spend money frivolously and at the end of the month have no real clue as to where it went and on what. One month of unwise spending soon becomes two or three, and before you know it a year has passed, and the savings account bank balance is a big fat zero.
The sense of achievement in smashing their goals is motivation enough to keep on smashing more of them. It’s like opening a packet of Pringles: once you start, you can’t stop!
3. Keep a budget. This is the plan to help achieve the goals.
A budget is like a road map – plotting out the journey to help get them to their final destination. It helps to keep track of where the money is going, what it’s being spent on and how it is being saved.
Without a plan, goals won’t be achieved, and if kids get into the habit of saving first and spending second, they can jump right to the front of their financial journey.
Budgeting is for everyone. It doesn’t matter if kids’ expenses are takeaways, movies or app downloads. Getting into the habit of keeping a regular budget will mean when they leave home to go flatting or own their own home, they are better equipped to ensure they can afford their lifestyle, but more importantly, achieve their financial goals.
Kick-start your kid’s positive money habits
Squeeze the Day: creating financially savvy minds for the future!
There has never been a more critical time for households and families to feel in control of their finances. With a lot of uncertainty in the world, it’s great to have a thorough knowledge and understanding of our personal finances. Many adults wish they had learnt more about money at an earlier age and hope their children will build financially secure futures, arming themselves with the knowledge to make good money decisions. Squeeze the Day is a fun and interactive financial literacy programme designed for young people and their families, covering financial basics like earning, saving and spending wisely to concepts like debt and interest. The programme is designed primarily with 9 to 14-year-olds in mind but has been developed for the whole household to learn together along the way. It includes a mix of digital content and real-life learning experiences and challenges.
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