Prepare that Bird to Fly

If you have a high school senior, you’re concentrating on their graduation and open house. In the excitement of these special days, don’t forget to prepare them for everyday life. While the obvious things after high school are pre-planned: where they will live, what classes they’ll attend for college, where they will work… how they will live needs practice.

The cliché of “poor college student” doesn’t have to apply to your teen. Sure, they won’t have much money to spend, but teaching them how to stretch what they do have will make a big difference in their quality of life.

Apply these techniques over the next few months, before shoving your baby bird out of the nest and expecting flight.

(1)    If they haven’t grown up working alongside you to stretch a dollar – teach them how you do it. Give them access to your coupons to start, and then make them buy their own paper weekly and print their own coupons. By the time they leave, they’ll have a personal coupon stash to take and know what to do with it.

(2)    Put them on a personal budget. They must take a reasonable amount each week and grocery shop for only themselves. This includes making a list, researching the sales, and using their coupons.

(3)    Don’t overlook personal health and beauty care. Teach your teen about coupon stacking and store offers, such as Catalinas, so they can get their care items free or very cheap; freeing money for other needs.

(4)    Make the groceries and supplies they buy off limits to the rest of the household. If their purchases disappear mysteriously, it’s hard to keep track of how they are doing.

(5)    Teach them to make and eat their own meals from their purchases. No ‘supplementing’ from the household supplies. It needs to be realistic.

(6)    Do not allow any borrowing except in the case of a true emergency.

(7)    Employ this concept for other expenses – including eating out and entertainment. Teach them how to search out and use coupons for things they want to do. Including using daily deal sites, such as Groupon, Living Social and Seize the Deal; buy them an Entertainment book as a gift.