Sorry Kids! We Can’t Afford It! Painless Ways to Teach Kids Good Purchasing Habits

Posted by nate
February 24, 2009
Sad Child
Image by Lukje via Flickr

Growing up I frequently heard those words and they frustrated me to no avail!  In my early adulthood, it was the rebellion against those words that caused me to spend more money than I should have.  Now that I have kids of my own, I want to instill upon them the importance of money management while not leaving them feeling impoverished and poor.

I never want to say, “Sorry kids, we can’t afford it!”

I have a few credit cards (but no credit card debt, thank goodness).  Except for some sort of extreme purchase, I could prettymuch go out and buy anything I wanted right now… and by “buy,” I mean “charge.”  So if I’m willing to put off my security tomorrow for my gratification (or my kids gratification) today, than I guess I could afford it, but I choose not to.

Here is a way to communicate the importance of money spending decisions to your kids.

  1. Needs vs. Wants

    One simple thing we tell our kids when they get in the mood to ask for those must have items, “We don’t need that right now.”  Then we explain all the benefits of what they currently have in their stock pile.  This has worked well because we are consistent.

  2. Provide an opportunity to “earn” the desired object

    Some provide an allowance or payment for chores, others work a point system to earn a prized reward.  However you do it, when the child works for what he/she wants, there is much more appreciation for the item (and a cool bonus here too - this helps them to develop a good work habits!)

  3. Put it on a list for special occasions

    Tell your kids you will add it to the list for their birthday, Christmas and other special occasions.  It is currently February, Christmas and Birthdays are over six months away, but this still works as they are happy to know that it is being “tracked.”

  4. Put it on the treasure hunt list

    This is the list that you keep for when you are going out garage sale-ing or craigslist hunting.  My girls are big My Little Pony fans and I was stoked to find 2 perfect My Little Ponys for sale at a garage sale for $.10 each (that’s right, ten cents) compared to $5… that’s a big savings and I could definitely afford that.

You might not be able to afford it, or you just might not want to buy something.  Teaching your kids some responsibility and control without the stress of feeling “poor” can give them a better outlook on purchases. 

What are some of the things you do to teach your kids financial responsibility?

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