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Thoughts on educating teens on thrifting and using their money wisely.

It seems that because America has had such good fortune, even with the downturn in the economy, many of , today’s teens haven’t learned how to spend their money wisely. At one point in time, our economy provided a luxurious life for many teens. Money was not a huge concern for many Americans and because of that, there was a lack of knowledge about the importance of saving and spending wisely. Credit cards are widely used in place of cash and because you can’t see money leaving your wallet, it can seem like there is an endless supply.

Now that our economy has suffered such a severe blow, the once luxurious life many teens has changed. They are learning that money does have great importance, but lack skills necessary to navigate these leaner times. There is an opportunity to teach teens a great lesson today: that thrifting can really help them become aware of how they can harness and stretch their dollar much further.

One great way to teach your teen about money is to take themto Goodwill on a 50% off sale day, with the promise that if you can’t find anything there, you can go to another place. Give them an allotted amount of money to spend, and they can either purchase used or new. Check out the used items first. Because Target often sends their excess inventory items to Goodwill for donation, many times the teens can get brand new clothes at a fraction of the cost.

Some teens might think that having used clothing is not the coolest thing to do. Teens are swayed easily, and they want to fit in, so they purchase the $120 pair of jeans. That $120 could buy them an entirely new outfit at a thrift store, and often times it is just as trendy and hip. If they knew this, I believe they would realize the savings and go more often, donate more often and keep the earth cleaner longer. There is great potential to teach teens about the benefits of thrifting, and learn the value of the dollar. If a teen walked into school wearing a recognizable $300 outfit that was found for only $30 at Goodwill, that would start to open minds!

Thrifting can be cool, teens just need to be exposed to the right way to do it!