LET'S TALK LIFESTYLE

What do I mean by "Let's Talk LifeStyle"?

Let me explain...

When our children are young, we talk to them and teach them about things we feel they need to know...
Watch out for cars! Don't talk to strangers! Say please and thank you. Eat your vegetables. Don't hit your brother! etc.,

When they're a bit older, we continue to talk to them and teach them, trying to keep them on the right track...
Don't do drugs! Don't drink and drive! Don't hang out with the wrong crowd. Stop hitting your brother!

It's natural that we as parents want to shield our children from the hardships of life. On top of protecting them, we try to do the best we can for them.

We try to put money aside for their future. But for some reason, we don't teach and involve them in any of the steps we've taken to save and invest that money. We believe that children don't need to concern themselves with that stuff because they're just children.

We try to provide the best surroundings and lifestyle for them too, so they can have what we didn't have in our own childhood.

We don't want them to want for anything.

Why is that? Why do we feel guilty saying "no"?

Giving them everything isn't teaching them anything about life, it's just teaching them to want and ask for more.

We buy them great clothes and shoes so they don't feel uncool at school. Of course they have a cell phone too, so that we feel safer. (I wonder if the extra cost per month for unlimited text messaging makes us feel safer too..)

They'll learn soon enough how hard it is to save money, you think. Let them be young and carefree while they can.

By adopting that attitude, we're actually doing them a disservice. I constantly hear parents say "Wait until they move out... they're going to be in for a shock when they figure out what it's really like out there."

Why does it have to be a shock?

At what point in their lives do we introduce the subject of money and lifestyle?

When do we start guiding them on how to save, invest, give and spend money?

At what point do we start talking and asking them about what kind of lifestyle they would like? what they think they expect or deserve? and how they plan on getting it?

If we start talking about money to our children from a very early age, it will be an easy topic to bring up in conversation. It won't be something uncomfortable, and they'll feel free to ask us questions as they mature.

As they grow older, engaging them in conversation about how they envision their future lifestyle is equally important.

This generation is an interesting one. Many young adults are either still living at home after the age of twenty or have returned home after university because they can't seem to make ends meet by themselves. Why is that?

Admittedly... rent, food and clothing is expensive. All of that was expensive when I moved out at seventeen too.

What's really happening is that young people want and expect to continue living the same lifestyle they enjoyed when they were at home.

Because they weren't taught anything about money management, they use their credit cards to fund what they think they deserve to have.

This eventually catches up with them, their credit cards max out, and they move back home broke, in debt and disillusioned about their future.

Lack of communication and not being taught financial intelligence from a young age is really the culprit here. It's not about how expensive things are.

By giving our children everything and shielding them from reality, we're unintentionally setting them up for failure.

It is our responsibility as parents to teach our children from a young age how to handle money. Not only how to handle money, but how to control money so they can use it to their benefit.

We need to explain to them that a certain lifestyle is not something they should expect or something that is owed to them, but something they can achieve if they learn money management and set realistic goals.

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