Teens Meet Outreach

The last time, we talked about 5 things you, as a teenager, probably don’t know about money. Today, we are moving ahead in our money talk with 8 money management tips for you, as a teenager. These tips are tested and proven but the list is not comprehensive. However, with these tips, you’ll have a good head start on this money management journey. Yes. It’s a journey.

So, let’s get straight into these 8 tips:

1. Work

I’m not sure if this coming first is intentional. Lol. But really, this is one of the most important money management tips. There’s a fresh appreciation for money that a person gets when they start working for money. It’s like a new understanding of the saying, “money doesn’t grow on trees” descends on the individual. So really, if you want to gain a better understanding of money, find some work to do. Might be an after-school job or maybe some craft that can fetch you money.

Either ways, find a way to earn your own money, it’s a great way to get practically acquitted with this thing called money.

A side attraction of this tip is how much it will beautify your resume when you leave school.

2. Spend your own money

This is an extension of tip 1 but it’s just as important and so, it has to stand on its own. When you start working and earning an income, learn to take care of your own personal expenses yourself. You would most likely not have enough to cover all your expenses and when you do, you might not have too much extra but assuming you do have enough and even enough extra, the act of making and spending your own money would help you to become more aware of money dynamics and how to make the most of it. This would help you stick to your budget. For more on budgeting, please check last post here:

Now, does this mean you can’t accept gifts or allowances? No. However, discipline yourself to stick to what you earn. The excess income could be saved or invested. Remind yourself that it’s still yours and you’re only keeping it for future use. Also, remind yourself the discipline is for your own good.

3. Track your spending

In the last post, a dear soul commented on how she writes down every single expense she makes. This is a great tip! This would help you keep track of where your money is going, how much you have stuck to your budget, how much you have deviated. This will help you with your next budget as well as help you keep track of how much you have improved and ways you can become even better.

4. Get educated

Let’s be sincere here, none of us really gets an adequate Money Education from school, if any at all. This explains why real life money situations is sometimes like waking up from slumber with a bath of ice water; nothing prepares us for it. However, the internet offers no excuse as to not getting moneyducated. Lol, sorry “money education”.

So, yeah, go online and research. That’s probably how you found this page, good job! Keep at it.

There are great books out there that will help hone your financial knowledge. You might always have the information offered to you on a platter of gold, don’t let that limit you, get yourself moneyducated, #winks.

5. Separate your money

Yes, separate them. Separate cash to be spent from cash to be invested from cash to be saved.

Don’t make that mistake of joining them all together, else, even you would not be able to explain how they all disappear.

This means that once you get that money, separate it according to your budget before you deduct even the smallest percentage for candy.

6. Don’t be impulsive

Plan your spending. Let’s get real here. That feeling when you see something that’s in vogue that you like and you happen to have just about enough cash with you is something we all know. However, regardless of how cheap that item is, remember that by purchasing that item you are forfeiting the opportunity to buy something else with that money. Yes dear, that opportunity cost thingy you were taught in high school is real. So, before you pull out that note, pause and evaluate what that purchase would cost you, decide if it’s worth it and act accordingly.

7. Do not borrow

Okay, this sounds like a no-brainer but many still fall into this ditch. So this thing springs up and you have the opportunity to loan the money from a friend and pay later.

It might seem so convenient at the moment but it wont be as convenient when you have to repay.

I like to personally imagine the borrow option wasn’t available. Like, what if that friend doesn’t have it, will I die? Now, this is not to particularly say loans are outrightly bad. However, as teenagers, there’s almost no justified reason to borrow. Think of it, that thing you feel like you desperately need to borrow to buy, would mom and dad be in support of it? I know you’ll respond with, “that’s cause they don’t understand” but are you sure they don’t? Well, maybe, maybe not. However, if your parents don’t think you need to borrow to have that item, it’s mostly not a matter of life and death or even a need, hence not necessary.

Trust me, learning the habit of sticking to what you have and not borrowing is an art that will serve you well in the future.

That money you want to borrow might be very little but you’re teaching yourself a bad habit that will grow into you borrowing large amounts in the future that might cause you perpetual brokenness. Be wise.

8. Develop a money saving habit

A definition of habit says it is performed repeatedly and automatically, usually without awareness. So, when I say start a money saving habit, I mean teach yourself how to save to the extent that you save even without thinking about it. Lol, is that possible, right? Well, yes it is. It’s just about consciously doing it repeatedly until it becomes part of you.

As a teenager, it is advisable that you save up to half of what you get.

As you grow older and have more responsibilities, it becomes harder to put apart even 10% of your earnings but when you have developed this habit, it becomes easy when the going gets tough.

There you have it! 8 money management tips just for you! Were this helpful?
Do you have any more tips? Please share in the comment session and don’t forget to subscribe to this blog to not miss a post.