Teens Listen up: What Fathers Really Want

This Father’s Day you probably spent a ton of money, most likely your dads’ to begin with, to buy him something nice.

And the sentiment is lovely.

For next year though, I’d like you to consider giving him something novel.

This isn’t something you can ‘Amazon Prime’ the day before…it will take time.

This isn’t something you can tie up with a fancy bow…though I guarantee he will notice it and smile broadly.

This isn’t something particularly instagrammable (this is hard I know)… but I guarantee he will love it and brag about it to all his friends.

This is something that would require you to learn, think deeply and work consistently at.

Something that I assure you would make him breathe easier and worry less.

Something that will save him money in the long run. And all dads are fans of anything that saves them money.

So what is this mysterious gift?

It’s the gift of ensuring that you are financially educated.

So that he can rest assured that you know the value of money and understand how it works.

So he doesn’t have to be apprehensive about you going off to college because he realizes that you have a pretty good handle on your money and expenses. (He will be apprehensive about the friends you make there but that’s just him being overprotective.)

So that he can sleep easy knowing that you are financially educated enough to avoid getting sucked into expensive debt.

So that he can be less concerned about you making bad loans to your friends. (Dads worry about the damndest things!)

So he doesn’t have to worry about you recklessly burning through your inheritance, if you’re lucky enough to have one. (70% of wealthy families lose their wealth by the second generation and 90% by the following generation, so this is valid concern.)

So that he can stress less about your future because he knows you are self-reliant and are capable of managing your finances competently. (You are likely going to graduate into some of the most economically challenging times in modern history, so being smart with money is a meta skill and he knows that.)

So he doesn’t have to be concerned about you being completely dependent on him when you grow up. (He’d really like to enjoy his retirement.)

So that he doesn’t have to fear you ever being in a physically/ emotionally abusive situation that you can’t walk out of because you’re dependent on someone else for money. (His worst nightmare.)

So that he has no doubt about you being able to stand on your own feet and make it through the financial quagmire of life.

So take some time out this coming year to ease your dad’s worries and educate yourself on making smarter money decisions.

Just like when you were little, he will always be there for you if you falter but he needs to know that you will be okay on your own.

That’s what fathers really want…