I told my daughter to plan to go shopping at the mall this Saturday. I encouraged her to engage in a full on shopping spree and spend a significant amount of money on herself. Yes, you read correct. It may not seem like very financially responsible advice, but I sincerely believe it’s exactly the right thing to do.
My daughter got her first part-time job over the summer, working one night a week. She did such a good job, they wanted to expand her hours when school started. Balancing schoolwork, being on the cheer team, and the job has been challenging for her. She’s been so busy she hasn’t spent hardly any of the cash she’s earned. In fact, she’s been so busy she feels a little burnt out.
Why My Daughter Should Spend Money
I don’t usually advocate retail therapy, but in this case a shopping trip is exactly what my daughter needs for the following reasons:
- She’s taken care of her financial responsibility for the month (car insurance)
- She’s grown quite a bit over the last few months and hasn’t gotten any clothes for the new school year.
Most importantly:
- I want her to enjoy the fruits of her labor.
By encouraging her to go on a shopping trip, she’ll spend the money she earned to buy things she wants. It will hopefully make the stress she’s been feeling worth it.
It Won’t Be A Free-For-All
Even though she earned the money, we’ll talk about some ground rules for the shopping trip.
- We’ll come to an agreement on the maximum amount she’ll spend.
- At least one pair of of shoes must be purchased to replace her worn out every day shoes.
- She must buy at least three pairs of jeans or some form of pants. She has several pants that are too small for her and need to be replaced.
- She must take inventory of her makeup and hair products and get what she needs. I frequently get texts stating she’s out of something, asking me to pick it up for her (because a teenage girl who is out of conditioner is not to be messed with).
This shopping trip will accomplish a couple of goals. First, it will restock her wardrobe, and personal beauty products. But most importantly, it will show her the value of having a job and having her own money. She’ll feel a sense of pride of purchasing things she needs with money she earned on her job. Will make the hard work she’s put in worth it, and hopefully reinforce the work ethic she’s developed.
What do you think, EOD Nation, would you encourage your child to engage in a shopping trip to reinforce the value of making their own money?
I personally will encourage my daughter to spend on shopping the money that she has reaped from her hardwork. This is shown to have the impact on teenagers to realize the importance of working hard and get to know the sweetness of money you’ve gained from your own sweat.
I love this post.
I think this is a useful article in the personal finance sphere. Too often we obsess over frugality. Sometimes we need to celebrate, splurge and buy things that we want. There’s nothing wrong with this from time to time
I think it’s better to guide her during shopping and allow her to experience this, than leave her in the future without any guidance to make mistakes. Really great idea. Not to mention she should enjoy some of her money like this, she’s done a great job earning it.