Teen Article: Money – It Comes, It Goes
How do you use it wisely?
My 13th birthday just passed, and I was given cards filled with money from my family members. As always, I am happy to spend it right away, but how do I not overspend?
Many teens just want to blow their money. It’s almost like we just want it out of our pockets and purses as fast as possible. Sometimes we want to buy things, but forget to look at the prices and then ask our parents to pay the difference. Now that I’m growing up, I know that’s not the right thing to do. We teens need to pay attention to how we spend and save our money.
Saving money is especially hard for teens. Teens tend to make assumptions about each other based solely on which brand-name clothes we wear, so it’s hard not to overspend on clothing in an effort to “fit in.” But I found the answer – a smart way to get money out of your purse or pocket without using it on things you don’t really need: you can put it into your savings account.
When I was younger, I was in SLFCU’s Savings Laboratory program and would earn stickers with my deposits and get prizes such as a gift card or movie tickets. This made saving fun and taught me it was better to save than to spend my money on things I didn’t need. In my opinion, saving money is the smartest idea. That’s exactly what I did and what you can try, too. Saving money is hard, but it is not impossible.
Teens: Be smart! Start a savings account so you can save up money for things you actually need and so you can help pay for things instead of relying on someone else. This begins our journey to independence. As a teen, I know that may sound hard, but it’s totally possible. So, don’t think harder, think smarter – start saving your money!
Teens Can Get $100
SLFCU members age 13-17 are invited to submit an article on a financial topic to be considered for publication in our Dollars & Sense newsletter and on our website. SLFCU will award teens $100 for published articles. Click here for details and to submit an article. SLFCU will review all submissions and respond within 30 days.
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