Parents often ask me, “How much allowance should I give my child?” Alas, there is no magic formula. If you really want to know how much money to give your kids, look no farther than yourself. As a parent, you are in the unique position to transform your kid’s allowance into one of your most [...]
Here’s a little story for all you parents out there. Parents often tell me about their kid’s experiences with money. In this true story I have changed the name of the boy to Sam. Sam is six years old and about to go on a spending experience that sends him home with out spending a [...]
Teens, in our society, have what might seem to be the perfect relationship with money–plenty of money to spend with few recurring debts or financial responsibilities. Yet it is only a short journey from a teen’s world to that of an adult who is legally responsible for his spending. To expect someone who has been spending money freely to make an overnight transition to being a financially savvy adult is unrealistic.
The Pathways to Prosperity Project done by the Harvard Graduate School of Education reveals some thought-provoking statistics that should be of interest to both parents and students. As parents look to guide their children to a successful career choice, these statistics tell us that “college for all” may not be the best plan after all.
Money is like fuel for a car; fuel is measurable, gets used up and has to be replenished. How does this compare with teaching kids to manage money?
When driving your car you routinely glance at the fuel gauge, check the speedometer and the odometer. This information helps you decide when to re-fuel, when to adjust your speed, and how much farther you have to go. Managing money similar to driving a car, but most of us pay more attention behind the wheel than with our finances.
At the Financial Literacy Summit 2011 in Chicago earlier this month, leading financial literacy experts talked about improving financial literacy levels for people of all ages. There was the repeated mention of one necessary basic skill. Take a guess.
Here’s the scenario. Parents say to their kids, “You are going to receive some money but you can’t use it now. This money is for something in the future. You are too young to really understand what that something is, but you have put money away for it.”
Would you knowingly overpay one of your bills by $250 every month? Most people would say, “No, of course not.” Yet, that’s what can happen when taxpayers have too much money withheld from their income for taxes.
Everyone says they should save more money, but fewer and fewer people do. The reality is that the national savings rate in the United States has been on the decline for decades, currently less than 1%. What does this mean?