Good Money Management

Money is something that encases our whole lives. We all know this yet many of us fall into the traps of debt and overspending without even knowing it. The feeling of never having enough money or living paycheck to paycheck can lead to serious finical troubles that can and easily will carry over into a lifetime of financial struggles. Good money management and good money habits are the same way. Those skills can make a life of financial ease or struggle. All it depends on the skills one develops now as a teen. Money management is not a completely restrictive thing. Many of the skills learned can be use to help friends and family struggling with money. It all starts with clearly seeing the problem. From here the problems can be corrected and carried over through-out one’s lifetime. Money management is an important skill that affects all aspects of our lives and help is available for those who lack this knowledge.

One of the hardest parts about money management is actually seeing the problem and what is causing it. A big source of money management problems is overspending. This is often the root cause. According to Junior Achievement on page 3 of Teen Survey, in 2004 teens spent $169 billion on everything from clothing (33%) to food (21%). What the statistics fail to show is the amount of money saved or how much of that 169 billion was spent wisely. Signs of overspending would be the feeling of running out or never having money. One clear sign is giving into impulse purchases or purchases that are not planned out. This inability to control

ourselves when one shop is over spending and this over spending leads to a deeper and darker valley of debt. For many teens debt is something we don’t think about, but how many of teens owe ...

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... are both good magazines for periodical advice, stories and ideas for teens about money management. Help is there when you need it and never be afraid to look

for it. Money is a serious thing and places like FISC show and help getting people on the smarter money path.

Money really takes up our whole lives. From loans and cars to savings and spending at the mall, we need money in so many ways to move forward. Falling into the traps can be scary at first but there are ways out. Money management is an important skill that affects every aspect of our lives and help is available for those who lack this knowledge. Getting out of debt and cutting spending are all ways towards financial ease but saving and investing help in the long haul. Remember one key fact and that is the amount of money made should never outweigh the amount of money spent.