Keeping Teens Safe with Spending Supervision

This seems like a harsh topic today compared to my typical light hearted posts but I have received a couple emails from parents who have raised the topic of controlling where their teen is spending the money they give them. Evidently, these parents have experienced situations where their teens take their allowance and use the money to purchase drugs or other harmful and illegal items. What an awful situation for a parent; I can only imagine what it must feel like to have a teenager that has fallen victim to drug use. The question becomes how to stop this from occurring.

I believe that teens that have fallen victim to this likely fall into two categories. Teens that are tempted by the drugs and happen to have cash in their pocket to make the purchase and teens that are addicted and it really doesn't matter if they have cash in their pocket or not; they are going to find a way to get the drugs, no matter how much a parent cuts off access to money.

For teens that are addicted, I highly recommend getting professional help and fast. Here are some resources for parents if you find yourself in this dreadful situation:
Phoenix House - Non-profit help for drug abuse
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)

For teens that have not fallen into the trap, my theory is that you inject yourself into their lives. A child's safety is to important to ignore the difficult conversations or hesitate to ask where money is being spent. We all want to trust our children and assume they wouldn't do something like this but all too often people are caught thinking "my teen wouldn't do that". The fact is that teens are teens and they are bound to try things and test the boundaries of their youth. I believe that a non-invasive way to keeping a close eye on children is to keep a close eye on their spending. Even if your teen has a job outside the home, you should have an idea of how much money they are bringing in and a good idea of what is being spent.

I believe that a teen prepaid card is a great way to keep an eye on teens and it is one of the reasons I believe so strongly in what we are PAYjr are doing. With our program, parents can easily view transactions including ATM withdraws and get a good idea where money is going. I have received feedback from parents that the most important benefit that our program provides is the opportunity for a discussion related to spending. Now...instead of coming across as "prying" into where a teen is spending money by asking questions constantly, a parent can track activity without asking the teen and then use the program to create directed inquiries in regards to a teen's spending.

Please don't think that I feel this is the end all, be all solution to the problem. It is simply a suggestion to help with the issue. I strongly urge parents to seek as much help as possible when dealing with these issues; you can never be too informed or safe with your children.

Till next time - Earn Smart. Spend Smart.
Dave
www.payjr.com
www.Buxx.com