In order to cultivate solid financial management skills with our children, we must establish a solid foundation with them early on. The basis for this foundation is teaching our children to distinguish between needs and wants. This is something that many of us, as adults, are still trying to learn.

We must begin early...VERY early...in fact, as we introduce our babies to the world of words, we should be very conscious of how we use and how we allow them to use the terms “want” and “need”.

“Mamma, I need some milk with my cookies,”,

“Daddy, I need an MP3 player for Christmas.”

“Nana, I need to get a new pair of shoes for the party.”

“Granddaddy, I need you to take me to the mall for that Xbox 360!”

And the list goes on and on……

Teaching our children the fundamental differences between needs and wants will not only impact their financial management, but will also reduce the level of self-centeredness that is often rampant in the mentalities of our children today.

We can teach our children the differences between want and needs in several ways, but, first, we must understand the differences ourselves. We must serve as consistent and strong role models in this area for our children. The things that we consider wants, our children will consider as wants. The things that we consider as needs, our children will consider as needs.

A good rule of thumb is to define a “need” as something you need to survive like:

• Water (not flavored or carbonated)

• Food (not McDonald’s, Burger King, etc..)

• Shelter (not the house on MTV Cribs)

• Clothing (not South Pole, G-Unit, etc.)

As we work to cultivate a high level of consciousness within ourselves and our children, we will also decrease the level of materialism that our capitalistic society promotes.

Finally, one of the best ways to cultivate a positive concept of “a need vs. a want” is to involve our children in community services that serve those that are less fortunate than them. Everyone has someone that is less fortunate than them. It is particularly important to have our children help other children; whether they are fatherless, motherless, homeless, etc.

Managing money is an issue of the heart....

Kandise Thomas-Humphrey, M.S.Ed.