We live in a world where money is becoming increasingly important.

As interest rates and inflation continue to rise, and the most common products and services we purchase become more expensive, it’s more important than ever for children to understand how to manage money.

Whether you have children of your own, grandchildren, or (adopted) nieces and nephews, or plan to have children at some point in the future, you can play an important role in educating them financially as another way to pass on your financial development.

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It’s never too early to start learning about personal finances.

Money is a fundamental part of our lives and the earlier we start learning about it, the better equipped we’ll be to make sound financial decisions later on in life.

These skills are essential not just for managing finances, but for everyday life. By teaching kids how to budget and make responsible decisions with their money, parents can set them up for success both financially and personally.

That’s why it’s so important for parents to teach their children about financial literacy early on.

What does it mean to be financially literate?

Financial literacy is the ability to understand and use financial concepts in order to make sound decisions. This includes understanding things like credit, budgeting, investing, and saving.

It’s important for parents to be financially literate so that they can teach their children how to manage money wisely.

Why Is Financial Literacy Important?

There are a number of reasons why financial literacy is so important, for parents and children.

Financial literacy helps children develop important life skills such as goal-setting and decision-making. 2. Children who understand that money doesn’t grow on trees are more likely to save their pocket money and think twice before spending it.

Financial literacy has been shown to boost academic performance. A recent study found that students who received financial education had higher grades in maths and were more likely than their peers to enrol in University.

How Can Parents Teach Their Children about Financial Literacy?

There are a number of ways that parents can teach their children about financial literacy. One way is to set up a pretend bank account for them where they can deposit allowance money each week. Another way is to help them save up for something they really want by matching each dollar they save.

Parents can also teach their children about budgeting by giving them an allowance that they have to use to pay for things like snacks, entertainment, and clothes.

Whatever method parents choose, the most important thing is to be patient and keep the lines of communication open so that children feel comfortable asking questions and learning more about money.

Teach your children about financial literacy by setting an example

One of the best ways parents can teach their children about finances is to lead by example.

Show your child how you save money, how you make wise spending decisions, and how you manage your debts. You can also teach your child about budgeting by giving them an allowance and helping them track their spending. There are also a number of great financial literacy resources available online.

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The most important thing is to be patient and keep the lines of communication open so that children feel comfortable asking questions and learning more about money.

Parents play a vital role in teaching their children about financial literacy. By starting early, making it fun, and letting them make mistakes, parents can set their kids up for success both financially and personally.

Financial literacy is an important life skill that will benefit your child in many ways, so don’t hesitate to start teaching them about money today!

There are few careers and lifestyles out there that are without their stressful phases… therefore, it’s vital to understand the importance of time management. Having a managed, stress-free schedule can make a huge difference for your personal finances. A lot of similarities can be drawn between managing money and time. For example – always wondering where it went!

How Improving Your Time Management Benefits Your Finances

Improving Time Management Benefits Your Finances!

Effective time management is an essential skill for any successful human being. Successfully managing one of these aspects gives us the ability to transfer our resources into the other. On a daily basis, we face a multitude of time pressures. Time management is about taking control of your available time – before it takes control of you!

Streamline Your Priorities!

Many people fall into the trap of completing tasks as they pop up… or focusing on doing the simple tasks first because they’re easier. Unfortunately, this can lead to time-sensitive or urgent tasks being overlooked; creating far more work pressure than required. The most effective method for overcoming this? Determine your priorities. It’s simpler than you think; especially if you follow our advice and create a daily to-do list.

Being able to prioritise stretches everything further. By prioritising tasks, you intend to accomplish your tasks in order of their hierarchical importance. Prioritising and completing tasks that matter more also creates a better sense of personal success. Having a clear focus on your time and money goals will make it easier to stay on track. A focus on goals will also help you with the prioritisation of what matters most.

How Improving Your Time Management Benefits Your Finances

Time Management is as Easy as A, B, C!

For a very simple way to prioritise your tasks, try thinking about each of them on 3 levels of priority: A being the most urgent, B being relatively time-bound and C as being something you can postpone tomorrow without any negative effect.

The Difference Between Priorities and Goals

Think of goals as being part of the ‘bigger picture’; tangible milestones that you’re trying to achieve (e.g. saving for a house deposit). Priorities are the things that you’ll need to say yes or no to in order to reach that goal.

For example, in order to pay off your mortgage faster, your priorities need to be making your money work harder for you.

Develop a Routine

Having a routine will cut down the amount of time spent on decision making each day. Albert Einstein owned several variations of the same grey suit, which he wore every day. He reasoned he could use the extra brainpower and time for more beneficial purposes, instead of deciding what to wear.

We recommend creating a simple to-do list that you can follow each morning and afternoon.

Example Routine/To-Do List

Morning

  • Turn on the computer and make a coffee
  • Check email and respond to urgent ones
  • Review to-do list – adding non-urgent emails
  • Review lesson plans for the day

Afternoon

  • Send emails as needed
  • Tidy any mess from the day
  • Write a to-do list for tomorrow
  • Prepare materials for the next day’s work

Don’t Freak Out!

If you don’t meet all your time management goals straight away, don’t expend energy on stress. Building resilience is all about making ongoing progress in time management. As long as you’ve done your best, there is simply no point in adding stress to your to-do list for tomorrow.

No matter how hard you work to manage your time, there are still only 24 hours in a day to get it all done. Spend a while observing your day to day work as objectively possible to identify areas where improvements can be made if you feel you need to.

“One can best prepare themselves for the economic future by investing in your own education. If you study hard and learn at a young age, you will be in the best circumstances to secure your future.”Warren Buffett

The world of money can be confusing. If you’ve ever wished you learned more about money in school… you would be among the ranks of thousands of Queenslanders, wishing they had more financial confidence.

Building that confidence comes from gaining a deeper understanding of financial services and products such as mortgages, personal loans, credit cards and Buy-Now-Pay Later services.

Financial education is becoming increasingly necessary in our daily lives; and not just for investors. Anyone who wants to get ahead, save for retirement and get the most out of life now needs a solid grasp of finances.

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Education From a Young Age is Essential

According to the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), financial education should start at school for people to be well-educated on personal finance as soon as possible.

Warren Buffett, widely considered to be the top investor in history, has famously declared that the biggest mistake parents make when it comes to teaching their kids about money is to “wait until their kids are in their teens before starting to talk about managing money when they could be starting when their kids are in preschool.”

Young people are engaging with money and financial services from a far earlier age, and are the prime targets of corporate advertising and marketing. The purchasing power of young consumers is well-recognised, and young Australians are increasingly targeted by different forms of marketing practices and commercial pressures in order to push them to purchase more and more frequently.

This year, ASIC is establishing a national expert group on youth financial wellbeing to help identify the most relevant and significant issues impacting young people’s financial lives.

This comes after the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) released the second research study conducted by their Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), looking at the financial literacy levels of 15-year-old students from around the world.

While 15% of the participating Australian students had financial literacy levels above the average of the other participating countries, 20%, according to PISA, do not even reach the baseline proficiency.

Since PISA’s 2012 study, there has been a 9% increase in those failing to reach basic proficiency.

For most people, the biggest problem they face in embracing financial education is the gap between what they think they know, and what they really know.

A recent study by the Financial Basics Foundation surveying 1,100 Australian high school students also found major misunderstandings about managing credit card debt.

Students were asked how long it would take to pay off a $2,000 debt on a credit card with an 18% p/a interest rate, paying only the minimum repayments. Over half the students said it would take less than three years to pay off the debt – it would actually take more than 15.

How Finance Education Could Change Lives

Poor financial decisions can have a drastic and long-lasting impact on individuals, families and dependents. There are many steps and solutions to becoming more financially aware and improving your own financial wellbeing.

The first step to achieving any of this is to understand personal finances and basic economics. For instance, knowing how to set a budget, where your money comes in from (and when), what your expenses are, and where/how much can you cut on your expenses.

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