Teach them young…

While I was growing up and in my teens, we had very few options on how we could empower ourselves financially. This was in the nineties and having no internet then, any option to live off a digital product were unimaginable unlike today. I remember when I finished my high school back in 2000 only the first mobile operator, Safaricom had landed in Kenya which meant that phones were very basic and we’re majorly only used to make/ pick calls. We were reduced to either going to learn driving or study basic MS Office packages.That is not today though; in thin information age it means that you can access any information anytime concerning anything provided the interest is there and you know how to find it. ‘How to’ videos have simplified processes and now you can literally learn something from the comfort of your mobile phone. This simply means that teens of today can start making money much earlier than we could then. It means that as parents, we should facilitate our children to start thinking how not just to make, but to manage their money and make informed choices that can grow whatever activities they are involved in.I have a daughter who does a lot of beadwork and recently, we introduced her to liquid soap making. She is actually our main supplier of liquid soap and has sold several beaded items thus far and we continue encouraging her to keep at it. Infact, the money she is making is enough motivation for her as she now understands the basic business concepts which basically involve buying/ making stock, marketing and selling the stock then saving the profits for expansion or to acquire something else she might need.For starters, as parents, you can supply the initial capital once there is solid interest from your child. With that, you can guide your son/ daughter on how to make a simple inventory so that they are aware of the finances spent and how they can recover the monies and even make more to pay themselves. After that, you can walk hand in hand with your child as he/ she learns to navigate throught the world of business, educating her/him and practically teach her/ him to market his products and make sales and record the sales. In a matter of time they will be able to conduct the business with no supervision and be able to even handle the challenges that they meet as they progress. Let them learn from the challenges so that they think and advance on their research to make them acquire a niche in their business. Financial literacy for kids can start even much earlier as soon as your child knows how to count and can communicate well with potential clients. Being responsible for cash made by themselves will teach children the value of each cent made and therefore making them use money wisely. This will prepare them when dealing with clients in their own enterprises in future when they spread their wings and venture into the outside world.My daughter is doing well in her business, supplying liquid soap to several houses and still doing her beadwork making necklaces, rings, bracelets and many more while still balancing with her schoolwork. I can also confidently add that she spends less time on the phone and even when she’s using it, she’s either checking new trends in her beadwork and learning new beading techniques or actually marketing the beadwork she has already done as she seeks to expand her market everyday. Financial literacy goes hand in hand with psychological development of a teenager especially in regards to self esteem and confidence. My daughter had to learn good communication skills to convince customers to buy her wares. The interactions force her to be bold and confident when speaking about her products. Encourage your teen to engage in simple money making projects to give her something to motivate her in her / his life into greater heights and achievements. This, coupled with proper guidance and supervision, will relieve you of many unwanted eventualities that tempt teenagers in those trying times.I have written ebooks in relation to financial literacy that emphasizes on this aspect from a young age. Follow the link to download and kindly provide feedback. Thanks

Money Mastery: Unlocking Financial Freedom