1) What are some of the challenges parents face when teaching their kids about financial management?

Delayed Gratification vs. Instant Gratification
 – When the baby boomers were children, credit cards were not as commonplace as they are today. As a child, if you wanted something you would set a goal, work toward the goal, and hopefully achieve it. This was called "delayed gratification." In today's world, with the "charge it" mentality, our children are living in a world of "instant gratification." If they want something, they buy it - and then try to figure out how to pay for it a month later when the credit card bill arrives. By helping your children set goals, work toward those goals and achieve those goals, not only are you teaching them the benefits of delayed gratification, you are also building their self-esteem and self-confidence.

I don't want my children to realize I am in financial trouble.
Many parents worry that their children will find out that they themselves are in financial trouble. We want parents to understand that the financial world we live in has changed. The rules have changed but our education system has not. Money is a life skill. Today's parents weren't taught about money in school and our children are still not being taught about money. The greatest gift you can give your children is to provide them the financial education they will need to not only survive, but to thrive, in the world they will face as adults.

Most of my articles are specifically about teaching our children about money, but this article is about the broader subject of “parenting” in general.  Are you a helping parent, or an enabling parent?

Just last year I threw away a colonial building project that my son, Phillip had made for a social studies class project in the ninth grade.  I actually moved this project with the family from Wisconsin to Arizona in 1991, and have no clue as to why.  My son, Phil is 32 years old today and has children of his own.

Saying he had made the project is somewhat of a stretch. 

I wanted to be a Super Mom.
 I wanted my children to know how much I loved them and supported them.
I wanted to help them in any way.
I wanted them to be, do and have the best.

We are often asked, “when should you start teaching children about money”. Our answer is to ask another question. At what age do you think a child knows the difference between a one dollar bill and a twenty dollar bill? The answers usually range from the age of 4 to the age of 6. THAT is the age when you want to start teaching your children about money. Some say, “that’s too young…the children will become greedy!”

The proof is in the pudding.  Money is a life skill but our schools have not been teaching our children about money.  Today we have an epidemic of young people who are deeply in debt and do not have the financial skills to be successful.

As a parent, grandparent or concerned adult, we cannot wait for the school system to change.  A recent survey showed that 94% of young people today say their family is their primary source of financial education.