I was in a local deli recently. 

What did I have with me?  On my tray was a book covering financial concepts and savings to read as I ate.

As I paid for my lunch, the cashier (in his early 20’s) noticed the book and asked “why are you reading that?”

It's an easy answer for me, “the more I learn, the more I can share, and hopefully help other parents with less time that have “almost flown” kids along the way.”

My new-found cashier-friend replied “can I tell you my story?”  By now I am thinking, gosh, I’ll never get to eat my lunch and read my book but I am the friendly type and said “I’d love to hear.” 

(Remember, he is behind the cash register and in his early...

Welcome to HS and College Homecoming.       

But what else is Homecoming? 

It's like hiding veggies in the spaghetti-o’s.  (fyi, I tried that, it that doesn’t work !)

Homecoming provides teachable moment all wrapped up in scoreboards, yard lines, and cheering.  One of the huge items on my list to teach my kids was money management.  Do you have a teaching list yet?   Doing so helps you reduce worrying and sleepless nights.  

Remember those $400 jeans?  This amount was spent by a parent for...

This conversation, with slight modifications, can be heard in households with teens everywhere.

And "this, that, and the other thing expenses" are coming. . .

How can you use this to your advantage? (be sure to read all the way to the bottom for a mock-agreement you can adapt)

Do The Parent Mental Money Flip and Take The Challenge

Actually, spending can bring opportunity.  Perhaps they have a job. Perhaps they have an allowance for doing things around the house. Perhaps none of these applies and you have them do things around the house but choose to give them...

Have you ever wondered what’s in billionaire Warren Buffett’s wallet? 

Here are just a couple of points about Mr. Buffett you might want to know.

• He drives an “average” car.
• He has lived in the same house for 60+ years, bought for $31,000.
• 98% of the time he uses cash when purchasing items.

Wow. 

Burying The Lead

I was pleasantly surprised by what I learned.  No, driving a Ferrari or moving to a new home every 5 years isn’t wrong.  But “burying the lead” is that this billionaire lives semi-frugally when he could buy almost anything he wanted.

How Many Times Have You:

• gone clothes shopping (shoe shopping, groceries, etc.) and didn’t remember what you needed?...

First:  Full transparency here.  After you ask this question, you might not like the answer, but then again, you might love it.  After asking you will learn so much that you will be glad you asked.

Second: You can modify this question to cover an unlimited supply of topics.  You can re-purpose it at nearly any time you’d like.

Third: Few parents have probably ever asked this type of question before.  It’s rather simple in concept.

Fourth: Our teens (though this question can work at any age) are already “conditioned” to respond.

The question? 

“Honey, what grade would you give me on ___________?”

Our teens get grades every week day, and probably several times per day. They understand the concept of grades. They probably don’t like getting them, but it shows them where they are with respect their mastery of the topic involved.

Wouldn’t we parents like to know how we are doing on a particular...

“Playing well with others.” Didn’t you detest seeing that question on your report card? 

How did your young adult score on that as a child?  We can hear parents all across the fruited plain shouting their answers!  The “get along” challenge answers sound like this:

“Kicked to the Dorm Hallway Curb”

Did we ever tell you about this awesome freshman college co-ed that was basically “kicked out” of her dorm room because her roommate wanted her “significant other” to practically move in?

True story.  Frustrating 1^stcollege year.

 

“I No Longer Talk to my Best Friend”

Best friends since 1^stgrade began not speaking in High School. Why?

As we’ve taught high school students on a myriad of “life” topics, it gradually dawned on us that no one had taken the time to teach them how to approach conflict. 

Teens have and will experience conflict everywhere, from...

A Tale of Two Cities

It's no surprise that not all cities and their living costs are equal.  It then follows that salary offers and their buying power vary greatly by city.  

Sadly few of us moving to a new city stop and think about the wide swings in standards of living we might encounter.

New graduates contemplating two different cities in which to live don't consider this phenomenon either.  

Do you want to avoid mistakes, create a leg up on negotiation tactics?  Then this article is tailor-made for you or your upcoming graduate.

Do you want to know what the cost of living is in any particular city?  Then this article is also for you.  

"My child was so excited to be...

 Consider a Plan B Idea

Each school and situation is different, of course.  Consider these ideas.  

Point A:  It Isn't Over.

If your teen is still waiting to hear, then the positive is that they are still waiting to hear. It isn't a NO, it's a not yet.  That's the good news.  Every school operates differently, and uses different parameters on how many offers to extend.  Just remember, your teen is in the "not yet" category until you hear differently.

Point B: Send another Recommendation...

What every parent wants to hear is . . . 

How Do Our Teens Get Good Recommendations from Superiors?

Have you heard? 

When I heard this story, my immediate thoughts were “you have got to be kidding”.  How could this happen?  

Then it hit me like a ton of bricks. 

This happens ALL THE TIME and it happens especially to our teens.

Hang in there with me for a minute. 

Our teens have so much talent, knowledge, and skills just waiting to be explored and developed but they often are never developed.  Is this worth $190 million?  Absolutely. Any time we as parents can give our kids the keys to build on all their unique talents...