One Life Skill Every Confident Girl Needs

If we want to raise girls who are confident and ready for the next stage of life we need to be intentional about what we teach them.  Whether she is starting pre-school or graduating from college, learning to tie her shoes or discovering how to manage a credit card, all of it is important. We want to be a resource for you as you raise your daughter to make sure you cover all the bases. 

This month in our Courage Academy we are focusing on money.  We believe that understanding and learning how to manage money is critical for girls to become the best version of themselves. As moms, we need to be sure they are ready for the future filled with confident expectations. When it comes to money, one life skill we believe every confident girl needs to learn is how to budget her money wisely.  Here are 3 quick tips to get your girl started no matter what age she is:

1. Count Her Money:  The first step in creating a budget is to know how much money you have. Maybe your daughter has a beloved piggy bank or you have started a bank account for her using money she has received for birthdays over the years. It is important for her to know how much money she has in her name. If she doesn’t have a bank or account yet, get her started with a deposit that she can call her own. It doesn’t matter how much money you give her as a seed, it simply matters that she has something of her own she can watch grow. 
2. List Her Expenses:  The next step is to list out what she spends her money on that is mom approved. This will vary depending on her age, and stage of life, but make sure to discuss what she thinks is a legitimate expense. Is your daughter an artist? Does she love buying paper and colored pencils to create works of art? Write it down. Does she have a car that she is making payments for monthly? As her mom, you are obviously taking care of her living expenses, but it is good for your daughter to know that for now you are covering that but someday she will need to take care of that on her own. 
3. Keep her Budget Balanced:  One of the hardest parts of managing money is making sure that you don’t outspend what you have available. It is especially important for her to know that if she has an expense, she needs to have the money in her budget to pay for it. As moms, it is easy for us to want to rescue our girls when they really want something but don’t have the money to cover it. We love to delight our girls with good things. But the truth is, if we keep doing that without allowing her to feel the tension of the budget in the first place, she will not learn the valuable lesson of delayed gratification and working hard for something that you really want. 

Once your daughter has a working budget she can understand, meet with her monthly to go over what is in her account. As she develops the important life skill of budgeting, add items like saving for bigger items and investing for the long term—like for college or a car.  The best part about having a budget and learning to keep it is that it helps you grow in your confidence and get in front of your money. Being in front of your money allows you at a young age to see your money work for you instead of the other way around. 

We believe in you mom and we want to help you be courageous as you raise your daughter with wisdom and courage. We have a fabulous conversation going on in our Facebook Group. Join us here!