It’s never too early for financial literacy

FRANKLIN LIVING— We have a lot of difficult conversations with our kids. Money can be one of the most trying – mostly because it’s a constant lesson in teaching them that money does not come easy. To kids, everything seems just a swipe of the debit card away – or, if you’re a child of my era and younger, “just write a check.”

One thing is for sure: It’s a whole lot easier to spend money when you’re not making it yourself yet. That’s why it’s good to start having financial discussions early so it’s part of your regular rapport with your kids. The problem is sometimes these conversations can seem super awkward and stressful, for us and the kids both. With that being said, here are five tips to help you get these conversations started. Keep in mind, these do not have to be sit-down, “formal” discussions. These can happen in the line at the grocery store.

Encourage saving

Encouraging your child to save money is one of the easiest and most important fiscal lessons. This doesn’t mean save their money and spend yours! Teach them to save a little and spend a little and to look for values instead of buying the first thing they see. Encourage them to challenge themselves with savings goals. The New Year is a great time to set some goals.

Set the example

Let your kids see you being fiscally responsible. This can be anything from discussing with them how you budget to having them help you keep a running tally on what’s going in the buggy. Letting them know money is most definitely not in unlimited supply is important. My go-to line is, “be a good steward of your money.”

Wants versus needs

This one is technically easy to grasp, but for some reason we all have trouble sticking to budgeting our wants verses ours needs. The key to teaching this one is having a continual conversation. Always be identifying and discussing the difference. Show examples and talk about them together.

Opportunity costs

This one gets a little bit deep, but teaching our kids and ourselves that money is finite is key. Breaking this down: The money we use to buy one thing is no longer available for something else. Trade-offs are indeed a real part of life. Teaching our kids early on that we don’t get to have “all the things” will help them be money-smart as they grow up.

Patience is a virtue

Living in this fast-paced world, it’s difficult to make ourselves wait for anything. However, delayed gratification not only helps teach the real value of money but also self-discipline! We can teach our kids they can’t purchase everything they want all the time and teach ourselves to also avoid impulse purchases. Not only is it a sure-fire way to save, but we actually end up valuing what we’ve bought more. Plus, we get to have a sense of accomplishment to top it off.

Emily Mays is vice president/senior marketing director at Community Spirit Bank in Red Bay, working in finance for 13 years. She is an enthusiastic social media marketer, financial literacy advocate and go local supporter. She lives in East Franklin and has one daughter, Lola, 10.