You need to teach your children the value of money, I’ve always been the frugal one out of all my mom’s kids, my brothers are quite extravagant though, immediately they have money, they just want to finish it, and one thing I’ve learnt about people who don’t know how to spend is, no matter how rich they are at the beginning of their life, they end up being poor at their old age.
Most people don’t know how to spend so they can be above debt, as mothers, this is the last thing we want for our kids which is why we have to teach them the value of money right from now!
And here’s how to teach your children the value of money;
1. Help them understand want and need
This is one war humans fight within us, most times we forget exactly what we need(important) and go for what we want(optional) because we get tempted by the things we see, but after buying the things we need, we still have to spend money on the things we need.
We therefore have to teach our children the difference between want and need starting from now. For example, when your child is gifted money, remind them of the two things they crave, a new pair of socks and another toy, their socks is due for change but they have tons of toys, the socks should come first.
2. Open them a savings account
If your child is over 7 years old, it’s about time you open a savings account for them, it’s free! They’ll feel having a bank account is special and will thrive to put money in it unlike their normal piggy bank which wouldn’t really motivate them to save up.
Once the bank account is opened, encourage your child to save in it, you can get him a piggy bank so he’d be saving up his money including small, small change, when it’s up to as low as a thousand naira, follow him to the bank and let him save it up. Get them a notebook so they can keep track of the money they put in bank and what they’ve spent.
3. Encourage percentage saving
Tell them about percentage savings, how it can grow gradually as long as they keep putting money into it. This is a lesson that will help them carry on their lives. When you give them pocket money or they are gifted money, encourage them to put a little aside for saving.
4. Let them shop with you
When shopping, take your kids along, tell them you need them to help you make sure you stick to your shopping list and don’t spend more than you budget for. They might even help you find the check for the cheapest product on sale.
5. Let them know the value of new and secondhand
Some people are obsessed with buying new and expensive thing because the idea is expensive things are better, show them the difference between new and secondhand goods. Take your child out for shopping, show them new and secondhand goods and tell them how second hand goods are used good but which are still functional and totally usable, and much more affordable and allow you to use your money for other things. So that in the event that your child has less on them, they know they don’t always have to go for new things.
6. Encourage Them To Earn Money
Encourage your children to work for some money, if you have fridge in your house, encourage them to pluck or buy oranges, make it into lolly, freeze them and sell to other children when they are at home. Another example is to get them to sell things they have fairly used to their mates who need them. It might sound harsh but it will help them have a business sense and value money. if your child is grown enough, they can work part-time at fast food joints.
A child who gets everything on a platter of gold might not know there are two sides to life, and when things turn around, they might find it hard to adapt, manage the little they have and hustle for more.
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