Providing hand outs to your adult children is not going to teach them the valuable lessons they need to stand on their own two feet. However, that’s not to say you can’t help them by providing a “hand up” alternative. We’ve previously discussed the issues on hand outs in our “kids these days” blog, particularly how these are not only a detriment to your retirement savings plans but also to the adult children who become reliant on their parents to bail them out.
In the short-term, providing hand outs may seem like you're helping, but the reality is that you are solidifying bad financial habits and neglecting the opportunity to teach good ones. This topic isn’t talking about your children who have started their apprenticeship or are currently studying in university, it’s about those who should be in a position to stand on their own two feet and look after themselves. So, how do you help your adult children while building good financial habits? By providing hand ups and not handouts. I’m sure you’ve heard the old saying “Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime”. What are some examples of these?
The above examples are only a small list of possible methods you could use; you may combine some of these or have other great ideas of providing hand ups. For some, it can be hard to resist slipping your money to your children to help ease their short-term pain. But, you just aren’t helping them. If you are over the age of 50 and still providing handouts, you need to take a step back and realise that not only are you restricting your child's growth, but you could potentially be pushing your retirement back by years! Think of better alternatives that help you both. Comments are closed.
|
AuthorDallas Davison, Michael Hogue and Ali Hogue. Archives
October 2020
Categories
All
|