ADVISORNEWS
You Helped Your Clients Build A Budget — But What About Their Kids? Empowering clients to have conversations about money with their children will generate greater client trust. • Thomas Henske
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art of our job as advisors is educating clients on good financial strategies, including helping them determine and maintain a budget. But who’s educating their kids? Just as sure as budgeting is a key to financial success, it’s a topic that’s often avoided, even at the adult level. If you can find a way to help your clients sew the concept of budgeting into their kids’ brains, their children will grow up with a healthy attitude on the subject and will have a much better chance at achieving a secure financial future. Plus, by empowering your clients who are parents to have this beneficial conversation with their children, you’ll cultivate greater client trust, securing longer-term clients.
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InsuranceNewsNet Magazine » June 2022
Beginning The Conversation
Tweens (ages 8-12) are at the age where the concept of budgeting starts to make sense. Introducing them to your actual household budget is a crucial first step in helping them understand what money is and what money does. It’s a natural next step to then move to establishing their own micro budgets. Before introducing the budget conversations, your client will want to first
explain the differences between income and expenses. In a child’s world, income can be described as any form of inflow from allowance or part-time jobs such as caddying, mowing the lawn or babysitting. On the other hand, expenses are outflows for goods and services such as toys, books, clothes and food. With that foundation, your client is now ready to define budgeting and why it’s important. Parents can start with the
Introducing kids to your actual household budget is a crucial first step in helping them understand what money is and what money does.
