We also want to protect our kids that they do not repeat the same mistakes we made, don’t we? I’m sure that’s not just me that’s looking to help my girls avoid a bit of hurt and heartache in the future.
Being a parent is some kind of special, isn’t it? The love and affection we feel for the little human beings that we’ve created is intense and powerful. We want to protect them for the boogieman, the naughty neighborhood kid, and the strange people on the internet.
I dated this guy in high school that was the definition of a douche bag.
Actually, even a douche bag has redeemable qualities. He was a jerk, but he was also cute in a scrawny sort of athletic way. I was a young 16 years old and itching to do things my own way; which was essentially the opposite of whatever my parents suggested. And you guessed it, they suggested – and even insisted at some point that I not date this kid. Know what I did instead? You guessed right, again! I didn’t date anyone BUT him for the next few years; regardless of the fact that he cheated on me, used chewing tobacco and had a really crappy looking tattoo.
Now, I’m very hopeful that he’s figured out how to treat women two decades later, has a beautiful family and that his mother doesn’t see this post.
No hard feelings. All a part of my journey.
BUT that is no journey that I want my girls to take part in. From the moment I found out that those babies in my womb shared my lady parts I began preparing myself for their 16-year old selves. I don’t know that I’ll ever be prepared for a teenage girl (let alone two), but I’m going to do my best to help them avoid the douche bags that are out there.
Please tell me I’m not the only one that dated a jerk? I know I’m not actually – because some of my girlfriends from high school dated this same jerk…while I was too. LOL Lucky for me, I’m still friends with many of them and we can laugh at this teenage phase of our lives.
Alright, let’s move past the jerky boy mistakes and move on to something bigger.
What about our financial mistakes?
- Remember that credit card you took out your freshman year of college?
- How about the student loan debt that you racked up for 5 years that follows you around for 15 years?
- Remember when you finally got out of college and got your first job – then spent all of your paycheck and then some furnishing your apartment?
- What about the time that you paid WAY too much for a car to get you from here to there? Remember how you thought you deserved it?
Looking back at the early mistakes I made with my finances makes me wonder… What if I had done it a little differently? Would I have been able to be more successful with money earlier in life? I think so.
We can’t go back and change our mistakes from the past.
BUT, we can help our kids avoid our same mistakes in the future. Lets talk to our kids about money. We need to help them understand how it works, what to do with it, and what not to do with it. Let’s set our kids up for success; to avoid the jerks in high school AND the money traps.
Want to know how to start? How about with some good old fashioned advice.
Make money a topic of conversation in your home, and start introducing your kids to the basics.
– Journey to Influence
Thank you for joining me on my journey to influence.
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